May 30, 2001

CHAPEL HILL, N.C.--The fourth annual United Airlines Field Hockey League will kick off play this weekend at UNC's Francis E. Henry Stadium with the hometown team looking to begin its march to a third consecutive title. The Chapel Hill-based Southern Charm, which features 16 current and former Carolina players on this summer's roster, won league championships in 1999 and 2000.

The seven-team elite level league, administered by the U.S. Field Hockey Association, includes numerous Olympians, National Team members and All-America selections. Players come from the high school, college and post-collegiate ranks.

Games begin Friday at 5 p.m. and continue that evening until 9. Saturday's games start at 8 a.m. and last until 9 p.m. Sunday's action starts at 8 a.m. and continues until noon. All games are open to the public. There is no charge for admission.

The league's second weekend of round robin play is scheduled for June 15-17 at MIT in Cambridge, Mass. The season will culminate with semifinal games on June 30 and the championship on July 1 in College Park, Md.

The 2001 UAHFL includes seven teams: Metro Rush (New York, New Jersey, Delaware), Midwest Cyclones, New England Eclipse, Pennsylvania Pride, Philadelphia Fury, Southern Charm and Tidewater Tempest (Virginia, Maryland).

Included on the Charm roster are the head coaches of all three area ACC programs: Liz Tchou of Duke, Jennifer Averill of Wake Forest and Karen Shelton of North Carolina. Shelton, who has served as head coach of the Charm the last two seasons, is also a Charm assistant coach and will not be on the playing roster for this weekend's games. The head coach of the Southern Charm is UNC assistant coach Nick Conway.

UNC players on the Charm roster are Amber Chambers, Stephanie Fuller, Mary Havell, Susan Hayes, Meredith Keller, Katie McDonald, Emily O'Hara, Alison Stewart, Alexis Suarez, Amy Tran and Abbey Woolley. Also on the team are Carolina alums Jana Toepel, Leslie Lyness, Amy Cox Vitt, Jana Withrow (now a UNC assistant) and Cindy Werley (now a Duke assistant). The team also includes several current Duke and Wake Forest players.

Complete rosters are available at www.usfieldhockey.com.

Schedule:

Friday, June 1
5 p.m. Charm vs. Tempest
6 p.m. Rush vs. Fury
7 p.m. Pride vs. Eclipse
8 p.m. Charm vs. Cyclones

Saturday, June 2
8 a.m. Tempest vs. Rush
9 a.m. Fury vs. Pride
10 a.m. Eclipse vs. Charm
12 p.m. Tempest vs. Fury
1 p.m. Pride vs. Cyclones
2 p.m. Tempest vs. Eclipse
3 p.m. Charm vs. Fury
4 p.m. Rush vs. Pride
5 p.m. Tempest vs. Fury
6 p.m. Fury vs. Eclipse
7 p.m. Charm vs. Pride
8 p.m. Rush vs. Cyclones

Sunday, June 3
8 a.m. Charm vs. Eclipse
9 a.m. Tempest vs. Pride
10 a.m. Fury vs. Cyclones
11 a.m. Rush vs. Eclipse