BROOKVILLE, N.Y. (Nov. 20, 2014) - On Thursday, junior forward Keliann Margiotta (Sewell, N.J.) recorded a hat trick to propel the No. 4 and top-seeded LIU Post field hockey team to Saturday's Northeast-10 Conference Championship final, following a 4-0 blanking of fourth-seeded American International at Bethpage Federal Credit Union Stadium.

Margiotta's offensive performance boosted her name to the top of the Pioneer (16-2) record books. Her seven-point performance (3 G, 1 A) made her the program's all-time assists and points leader, surpassing former teammate Carlee Dragon (Bridgewater, N.J.). She also shattered the team's single-season goal mark.

It didn't take long for the Sewell native to break the career assist record. Just two minutes into the contest, graduate defender Dani Crouse (Westville, South Africa) converted a Margiotta helper to give the green and gold an early 1-0 lead. Shortly thereafter, in the 13th minute, Margiotta re-directed a Steph Mocerino (Andover, N.J.) shot into the cage, extending the LIU Post lead to 2-0.

Margiotta wasn't done there. She struck again in the opening stanza, on an unassisted effort in the 23rd minute, to break the single-season goal record. 

In second half action, Margiotta clinched the hat trick by sneaking a shot through AIC (12-8) goaltender Ainslee Penfield's (Greenfield, Mass.) legs, ensuring LIU Post's 4-0 win and the Pioneers' spot in the NE-10 title game.

Between the pipes, sophomore goalie Ericka Parks (Nesconset, N.Y.) made two saves for her 14th win of 2014. Overall, the green and gold attempted 30 total shots, while limiting the Yellow Jackets to only six.

Head Coach Raenee Savin and the Pioneers are back in action Saturday (Nov. 22), when they host Stonehill in the NE-10 Championship at Bethpage Federal Credit Union Stadium at 1 p.m.