Division III Field Hockey Championship

Dates and sites: The national semifinal games will be November 18 and the national championship game will be November 19 at Washington and Lee.

Field: 24 teams. The following berths have been allocated for the 2005 championship: Pool A -- 13; Pool B -- 3; Pool C -- 8.

Selection date: November 6.

2004 champion: Salisbury

Top contenders: Salisbury, Ursinus, Messiah, Skidmore and Rowan round out the top five in a recent STX/National Field Hockey Coaches Association poll.

Championship notes: Since the first Division III championship in 1981, only three times has a team scored four or more goals in a title game; nine championship games have been shutouts; and 19 have been decided by one goal ... In 18 overall appearances, Messiah has finished second four times and has yet to win a championship ... Rowan, the 2002 champion, is seeking to equal its best showing behind sophomore Danielle Miranda and senior Liz Unger, the 2004 New Jersey Athletic Conference midfielder of the year, who lead the team with 14 points each.