BRUNSWICK, Maine - The Bowdoin College field hockey team continues to rise in the national polls, improving to fourth in the latest National Field Hockey Coaches Association rankings released on Tuesday. The Polar Bears are 12-0 this season and are Division III's lone unbeaten squad heading into action this week.

Bowdoin clinched the top seed in the upcoming NESCAC Tournament with a 4-0 shutout of Trinity last Saturday. The Polar Bears, who are one win shy of tying the school record for consecutive victories, will host Southern Maine on Tuesday evening. Bowdoin will close out their regular season slate with a contest against Wesleyan on Saturday, and will not have to play in NESCAC First-Round contests on Sunday, receiving a bye as the top seed.

The 2005 NESCAC Field Hockey Championship will be played on November 5-6 in Brunswick, with gametimes to be determined. Two semifinal contests will be played on Saturday, with the Championship tilt scheduled for Sunday. It will mark the second time in the last four years that Bowdoin has played host to the tourney, as the Polar Bears also received the top seed in 2002.

COMPLETE NATIONAL POLL (.pdf)