Through 38 seasons the Ithaca College field hockey program has posted an overall record of 386-223-21 for a .624 winning percentage. The Bombers have been to 16 of the 24 NCAA tournaments, including every year from 1990-98. Ithaca won the 1982 national championship.
Nancy Hicks led the Bombers to a 6-0 record in 1968, Ithaca’s first varsity season. A year later Doris Kostrinsky began her 27-year coaching career. Kostrinsky, who was inducted into Ithaca College’s Athletic Hall of Fame in 1984, was recently selected for the National Field Hockey Coaches Association (NFHCA) Hall of Fame.
The Bombers were undefeated in 1969 (6-0) and 1970 (7-0), and had a 23-game winning streak. From 1971-81 Ithaca won five New York State Association of Intercollegiate Athletics for Women (NYSAIAW) titles, paced by scoring leaders Mary Ellen “Satch” Alger and Dee Dee Mayes and goalie Karen Patterson.
In 1979 competition outside the state became a playoff option, and the Bombers placed second in the Association of Intercollegiate Athletics for Women (AIAW) Division II regionals. The next season Ithaca finished third at the AIAW Division II tournament. Patti Klecha established school records for goals (29) and assists (16) in a season. The Bombers hosted the national tournament in 1981 and finished third.
In 1982 the NCAA became the sole governing body for women’s athletics, and Ithaca won the national championship, beating Trenton State, 2-1, on penalty strokes. The championship was Ithaca’s first in a women’s sport and third overall. Cathy Foto, Clare Lamont, Tracey Moyer and Diane Rapp were named to the NCAA all-tournament team.
The Bombers came within one goal of defending their crown in 1983, losing 2-1 to Trenton State in the finals at Ithaca. The team was led by standout goaltender Karen Howarth, a first-team all-American. The Bombers contended for another championship in 1984, losing in the NCAA semifinals, 1-0, to Messiah.
NCAA playoff invitations in 1985, 1986 and 1987 ran Ithaca’s streak to nine years in the national tournament. After consecutive losing seasons, Ithaca returned to the national tournament in 1990. The Bombers won the New York State Women’s Collegiate Athletic Association (NYSWCAA) crown, but were eliminated in the first round of the NCAA tournament by William Smith. In 1991 Ithaca was paced by all-Americans Sue Bender and Rachael Greener, who combined to score all three goals in a 3-1 win over Ohio Wesleyan in the NCAA playoffs. Ithaca was eliminated by Lock Haven, 2-1, in the regional final.
Bender and goalie Karen Hollands earned all-American honors in 1992, leading the team to another NCAA appearance. The Bombers avenged a regular-season loss to Oneonta with a 1-0 win in the regional semifinal before falling to eventual national champion William Smith, 2-1, in the regional finals. In 1993 the Bombers advanced to the regional finals once again before losing, 1-0, to Cortland, the eventual champion. Hollands earned first-team all-American honors in 1993.
Ithaca lost first-round NCAA playoff games in each of the next three years before beating Eastern Mennonite in the first round of the 1997 tournament. The following season the Bombers reached the NCAA playoffs for the ninth straight year, losing to Gettysburg in the regional semifinals.
The 1999 team competed in both the NYSWCAA and ECAC tournaments. In 2000 Ithaca was back in the NCAA playoffs, losing to Williams, 2-0, in the first round. Senior defender Becky Karver was a second-team all-America selection.
The 2001 team was again back in the postseason, competing in the state and ECAC playoffs. A year later Ithaca stretched its string of postseason appearances to 13 consecutive seasons, capping their trip to the NYSWCAA tournament with the program’s eighth state title.
Another milestone occurred in 2005, when Tasha Snowden became the first Bomber to be named Empire 8 Player of the Year.
Also in 2005, Foto was named to the NCAA Division III Field Hockey 25th Anniversary Team. A total of 16 players were named to the anniversary team. Foto is the only member of the squad who played field hockey in 1981, the first year of NCAA competition.
In 2007, the Empire 8 sponsored a conference championship tournament for the first time. Ithaca clinched a berth in the tournament after thrilling overtime wins over Stevens Institute of Technology and Elmira to close the regular season. Starting in 2008, the Empire 8 Tournament champion will earn an automatic bid to the NCAA playoffs.
Ithaca’s Athletic Hall of Fame includes 13 field hockey players and one coach: Mary Ellen Alger ’78 (inducted in 1986); Penny Curtis '77 (2006); Cathy Foto ’83 (1989); Karen Hollands ’94 (2000); Mary Klecha ’83 (1989); Patti Klecha-Porter ’81 (1986); Tina Klecha-Reinprecht ’77 (1990); coach Doris Kostrinsky (1984), Mildred Piscopo ’87 (1993); Dee Dee Mayes Relph ’78 (1985); Sally Scatton ’75 (1997); Debbie Smith '90 (2006); and Barb Wachowiak ’85 (1991).