MERION STATION, Pa. – Saint Joseph's won its fifth Atlantic 10 Field Hockey Championship Saturday afternoon, earning a hard-fought 1-0 victory over VCU behind a single goal by Anna Miller at Ellen Ryan Field.
 
The top-seeded Hawks (16-4) earn the A-10 automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament, and will find out their fate Sunday night at 10:00 pm on the selection show on NCAA.com.
 
VCU (12-6), the No. 2 seed, made a handful of spectacular defensive stops to keep the nationally-ranked Hawks off the board, despite seven first half shots an constant offensive pressure. Freke van Tilburg, who was named the Championship Most Outstanding Player, and All-Championship selection Manu Ghigliotti had several chances, including a shot off a penalty corner that cleared the goal line but was ruled too high.
 
Coming out of a scoreless halftime, Miller broke the tie by scoring off a rebound from the ground as the play moved rapidly from right to left. She beat VCU goalkeeper and All-Championship selection Sasha Elliott, who surrendered just the one goal to the high-powered Hawks, making six saves on 13 shots. Miller, who also scored in SJU's semifinal win was also named to the All-Championship team.
 
This was the third time the two A-10 field hockey powers have met in the title game, with Saint Joseph's winning in 2018 and VCU capturing last year's crown, snapping the Hawks streak of four straight titles.
 
SJU did not allow the Rams a penalty corner, but were unsuccessful in converting their five corners as well. Robin Bleekemolen, the Hawks' keeper, stopped both shots she faced.
 
Joining van Tilburg, Ghigliotti, Miller and Elliott on the All-Championship team were Katy Benton and Sol Borensztein of Saint Joseph's, Svea Strum, Janne Wetzel and Litiana Field from VCU, UMass' Emilie Keij and Richmond's Lindsey Frank.