Cape, Newark Charter secure top seeds for DIAA Field Hockey tourney

Twenty schools — eight in Division 1 and 12 in Division 2 — have been selected to vie for the DIAA Field Hockey championship, including Division 1 top seed Cape Henlopen, and Division 2 top seed Newark Charter.

No. 1 Cape Henlopen is a perennial Division 1 powerhouse, losing only to Delmar this season. They are young but fierce and ready to keep the winning tradition at Cape, where their stadium is appropriately named “Champions Stadium.”

Newark Charter pulls in its first-ever No. 1 seed in Division 2, entering the tournament undefeated. Coach Stacey Spiker has been building the program with this group of players over the last three seasons. This is the moment these upperclassmen have worked for, and they are primed and ready to compete for a state title. 

The teams in the Division 1 bracket include the champion from Henlopen North, the Blue Hen Flight A champ, and six at-large teams) while the Division 2 bracket holds 12 (Blue Hen Flight B Champ, Henlopen South Champ, Independent Champ, Diamond State Champ and eight at-large teams). 

Tournament games have a different feel. There is an air of excitement and electricity, the pressure is palpable, and title winners will need to take advantage of every opportunity and capitalize on someone else’s mistake. 

Round 1 for Division 2 starts Thursday, with the quarterfinals set for Saturday. The Division 1 quarterfinals are Thursday. All games will be at the home field of the higher seed. 

Congratulations to the following teams for capturing their conference and/or division title:  

Cape Henlopen, Henlopen North 

Delmar Wildcats, Henlopen South &  Henlopen Conference Championship

Middletown Cavaliers, Blue Hen Flight A  

Concord Raiders,  Blue Hen Flight B 

Wilmington Friends, Independent

Newark Charter,  Diamond State