WASHINGTON, Pa. -- The No. 18-ranked Washington & Jefferson field hockey team punched its ticket to the Empire 8 Tournament Title Game with an exciting 1-0 victory over Hartwick at Cameron Stadium on Friday, Nov. 2.

With the win, the Presidents picked up their program-record 16th win of the season, as they are now 16-1. Hartwick, on the other hand, fell to 12-6 in 2018. 

The game-winning goal was credited as an own goal in the first 1:09 of overtime. Alana Boyd (Alexandria, Va./Thomas Edison) dumped the ball into the opposing circle trying to find a streaking Rachel Buyan (Huntington Beach, Calif./Edison), when a Hawks defender tried to tip the ball away but ultimately hit it into her own cage. 

Besides the OT tally, both teams put on strong defensive showings. Rena Israel (Wexford, Pa./North Allegheny) made a career-high 10 saves to earn her 12th shutout of the season. She also improved her record on the year to 14-1. 

Offensively, Sofiya Bobrovnikova (Philadelphia, Pa./Northeast) led the charge with five of W&J's 10 shots. Five other Presidents split up the team's remaining five attempts. 

After securing today's victory, first-seeded W&J will battle second-seeded St. John Fisher in the E8 Tournament Championship Game tomorrow afternoon at 1 p.m. at Cameron Stadium.