Madison Field Hockey Seeded No. 1 for Morris County Tournament

After a visit to the championship of the Morris County Tournament a year ago, the field hockey team again looks primed to make a run at the title after starting the season with wins in seven of its eight games played.

At Tuesday night’s seeding meeting, the Dodgers were rewarded for their hot start with the No. 1 seed for the tourney, set to begin   Saturday.

Madison, ranked 17th in the state by the Star-Ledger, will play the winner of Morris Hills vs. Mendham, who face off in the preliminary round, also on Saturday.

Madison is followed in the seedings by 2-West Morris Central (6-1), 3-Chatham (7-2), 4-Pequannock (5-2-1) and 5-Randolph (5-2-1).

West Morris Central comes off of wins over Morristown, Morris Knolls, Mendham and Roxbury, with its only loss this season coming by way of a 1-0 loss to fifth-seeded Randolph. Through seven games this season, the West Morris defense boasts a less than one goal per game average.

West Morris will play the winner of Morris Knolls vs. Butler, who meet in the preliminary round on Saturday.

Chatham, the reigning 2010 MCT champs, has kept up its form in 2011, cruising to a 7-2 mark heading into this seasons’ tournament wth losses to Madison and West Essex the only blemishes. Chatham’s defense has remained stout, allowing just over one goal per game, while the Cougar offense has averaged just under four goals per game.

Chatham will play the winner of the Saturday preliminary between Morristown-Beard and Mt. Olive.

Here’s a look at the complete seeding setup for the Morris County Tournament:

1. Madison (7-1)

2. West Morris Central (6-1)

3. Chatham (7-2)

4. Pequannock (5-2-1)

5. Randolph (5-2-1)

6. Jefferson (5-2)

7. Morristown (4-2)

8. Boonton (5-3)

9. Mountain Lakes (4-3)

10. Parsippany (4-3)

11. Montville (4-3)

12. Whippany Park (4-3)

13. Roxbury (3-4)

14. Morristown-Beard (2-3)

15. Morris Knolls (2-4-1)

16. West Morris Mendham (2-5)

17. Morris Hills (2-4-1)

18. Butler (1-5)

19. Mount Olive (1-6)

20. Parsippany Hills (0-6)

The preliminary round matchups are played at the higher-seeded team's home field.

Here’s a schedule for each round of the tournament:

Preliminary Round – Play by October 1, 2011 @ TBD.
Games will be played at the higher seed.

First Round – Play by October 8, 2011 @ TBD.
Games will be played at the higher seed.

Quarter-Finals – Play by October 15, 2011 @ TBD.
Games will be played at the higher seed.

Semi-Finals – Play by October 19, 2011 @ TBA.                        Games will be played at the higher seed or TBD.

Championship Game – October 22, 2011 @ Boonton High School  Time: 6:30 p.m.