Pune (Maharashtra) [India], March 20 : The 14th Hockey India Senior Women National Championship at the Major Dhyanchand Hockey Stadium Pimpri, Pune witnessed Hockey Madhya Pradesh, Hockey Haryana and Hockey Jharkhand winning their respective quarter-finals to inch one step closer to the championship on Wednesday.
The first quarter-final saw defending Champions Hockey Madhya Pradesh defeating Hockey Bengal 1-1 (4-3 SO). After a goalless first quarter, Maxima Toppo (30') converted a penalty corner to put Hockey Bengal in front. Despite not being able to convert any of the ten penalty corners that Hockey Madhya Pradesh was awarded, they managed to equalize in the final minute of the third quarter as Aishwarya Chavan (45') found the back of the net with a field goal, taking the game into a shootout with the score reading 1-1 at the end of regulation time after no goals were scored in the final quarter.
The shootout had more drama as it ended 3-3 with Aishwarya Chavan, Preeti Dubey and Captain Ishika Chaudhary scoring for Hockey Madhya Pradesh while Anisha Dungdung, Sanjna Horo and Sushmita Panna scored for Hockey Bengal. On reaching Sudden Death, Aishwarya Chavan again scored for the defending champions while Yashika Bhadoriya made a crucial save for the team as they sealed a spot in the semi-finals, as per a Hockey India press release.
In the other game, Hockey Haryana comfortably defeated the Hockey Association of Odisha 4-1 in their quarter-final. An early penalty corner conversion from the Indian women's hockey team forward Deepika (5', 14') put Hockey Haryana in the lead. She returned to double the lead with a field goal towards the end of the first quarter. The second quarter did not produce any goals as Hockey Haryana led 2-0 at the end of the first half.
Hockey Haryana further extended the lead to 3-0 after a field goal from Indian Women's Hockey team Midfielder Neha Goyal (39'). Neha Lakra (42') scored for Hockey Association of Odisha to reduce the goal deficit to two and give them some hope, but Indian Women's Hockey Team Midfielder Navneet Kaur (54') scored for Hockey Haryana in the final quarter to confirm their place in the Semi-Finals.
Next, Hockey Jharkhand qualified for the Semi-Finals after a well-contested match where they defeated Hockey Mizoram 2-1. After a quiet first quarter, Deepika Soreng (27') scored a field goal to put Hockey Jharkhand in the lead towards the end of the first half. Indian Women's Hockey Team Forward Sangita Kumari (33') scored early in the third quarter to double the lead for Hockey Jharkhand but her national teammate Lalremsiami (35'), another forward for the Indian Women's Hockey Team, put Hockey Mizoram on the scoreboard with a penalty corner conversion soon after.
Despite Hockey Jharkhand having a one-goal lead, the match was hanging well in the balance going into the final quarter. Hockey Jharkhand managed to hold onto their slender lead, keeping three penalty corners and one penalty stroke out to win the game 2-1 and confirm a spot in the semis.
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