WASHINGTON - The start of the game was shaky but it was nearly all uphill from there for the American University field hockey team, as the Eagles came from behind for a 3-2 victory over Lafayette (12-8) in the 2019 Patriot League Championship game. AU (13-5) will now wait to find out its NCAA Tournament opponent and destination when the NCAA Selection Show airs online at 10 p.m. tonight.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• The Eagles found themselves on the defensive early in the contest as Lafayette's Cameron Costello received a short pass from Tara Hamilton and found an opening in the lower left corner of the cage in the seventh minute for a 1-0 lead.
• It took a little time for AU to get its footing back, and the first quarter ended without a shot for the Eagles.
• The quarter break seemed to give life to AU, who came out and earned a penalty corner just 30 seconds in.
• Off the corner, junior and PL Tournament MVP Noor Coenen found sophomore Josie Formica who scored her third goal of the season to even the game at 1-1.
• American took three more shots, one on goal in the second quarter, but the score stayed knotted at halftime.
• Eight minutes into the third quarter, Coenen did her job on a direct corner, getting assists from juniors Lauren Fredricks and Gaby de Kock to give AU a 2-1 lead.
• With three minutes gone in the fourth quarter, sophomore Atina Pagani created her own space for AU's insurance goal, finding the right corner of the cage.
• In the final minute of action, Lafayette registered just its second shot on goal on a direct corner, with Lisa van der Geest scoring for the Leopards.
• AU finished with a 13-5 advantage in total shots and a 9-2 lead in shots on goal, also getting six corners to Lafayette's one.
• The Eagles, who went undefeated in PL regular season play for a 10th time since joining the Patriot League in 2001, have now won the tournament title 11 times.

COACH STEVE JENNINGS POSTGAME

• "I'm really happy and really proud of the team. They did a great job of playing some really awesome hockey today. I also want to give a lot of credit to Lafayette. They're a great team and really well-coached, I think Coach Stone does an awesome job with them. They were really on top of us in the first quarter and we had to turn the momentum around. But I'm just so proud of our kids for everything they did this whole year...it sounds cliche but this program is built on love and I think this team really loves each other. They love the staff and vice versa so when you have that, you can do some incredible things. I think it's great that the journey is continuing for this group."

PL TOURNAMENT HONORS

• Coenen, the Patriot League's Offensive Player of the Year, scored four goals and recorded one assist for the Eagles in their tournament run. She was deservedly named the PL Tournament MVP.
• With her four goals and nine total points, Coenen tied two PL Tournament records. The four goals record she now shares with Holy Cross's Colleen Schmidt from 1997, while her nine points tie Lafayette's Deanna DiCroce in 2011.
• Joining Coenen on the PL All-Tournament Team were Pagani, Fredricks, and sophomore back Georgia Davies.

NCAA SELECTION SHOW

• The selection show will air tonight, Nov. 10, at 10 p.m. ET. Watch HERE.

For the latest on American University Field Hockey, stay tuned to AUEagles.com and follow the team on Twitter (@AU_FieldHockey) and Instagram (@aufieldhockey).