McFerran Named Vitality Hockey World Cup Best Goalkeeper

The University of Louisville's Ayeisha McFerran was named Best Goalkeeper of the 2018 Vitality Field Hockey Women's World Cup after helping to lead Ireland to a silver medal.

The Larne, Northern Ireland native was instrumental in the Green Army's historic run, surrendering only three goals in their first five matches, and dominating in a pair of shootout victories as they entered the finals against top-ranked Netherlands. The Dutch went on to capture the gold medal with a 6-0 victory to mark their second straight and eighth overall title.

Aided by McFerran's outstanding performances in the cage, Hockey Ireland became the first in the nation's history to reach the World Cup finals.

Making its first World Cup appearance since 2002, Ireland entered the tournament at No. 16 in the FIH world rankings, the second lowest of any team competing in the World Cup and the lowest in their pool. They opened play with wins over the United States and India. Despite a loss to host England, the Irish emerged as the Pool B winner, becoming the first team to gain a spot in the quarterfinals.

Facing India in a quarterfinal rematch, McFerran again posted shutout to send the contest to a shootout where she stopped two attempts as the Irish prevailed 3-1. She followed that performance with another shootout victory, this time turning back four tries help the Green Army emerge with a 3-2 win against Spain.

McFerran is in her fourth year as a member of the Irish National Team. In 2017, she was named Goalkeeper of the Tournament after helping the Green Army to the World League 2 title in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

McFerran, who is entering her senior season at UofL, is three-time National Field Hockey Coaches Association (NFHCA) All-America selection. The three-time All-West Region and All-ACC team member cemented her status as one of the nation's top goalkeepers when she collected a career-high 18 saves and turned in another brilliant shootout performance to hold off No. 2 Duke in the semifinals of the conference tournament, sending the Cardinals to their first appearance in the ACC Championship game.

World Cup Ireland Results
Pool B
Ireland 3 –United States 1
Ireland 1 –India 0
England 1 – Ireland 0

Quarterfinals: Ireland 0 – (#10) India 0 (Ireland wins 3-1 in shootout)
Semifinals: Ireland 1 – Spain 1 (Ireland wins 3-2 in shootout)
Finals: Netherlands 6 – Ireland 0

University of Louisville Athletics

McFerran Named Vitality Hockey World Cup Best Goalkeeper

Related News

Players Mentioned

Ayeisha McFerran

Related Videos