BOSTON – Northeastern field hockey head coach Cheryl Murtagh will be inducted into the Zag Field Hockey / NFHCA Hall of Fame Class of 2012, the National Field Hockey Coaches Association announced Wednesday.

"It is extremely humbling to receive such recognition," Murtagh said. "It makes me reflect on my time in coaching and how much I appreciate the opportunity Northeastern has given me to coach so many incredible young women. I am very thankful to the NFHCA for the honor."

Murtagh will be joined in her class by the late Catherine Brown, former head coach at Ohio University and a former umpire, and Linda Dirga, former head coach at Pomperaug High School in Connecticut. The three inductees will be honored 2013 Annual Convention in conjunction with the NCAA Division I, II and III Championships in Virginia Beach, Va., in November of 2013. A calendar change has prompted the 2012 induction ceremony to be moved to coincide with the 2013 induction ceremony.

"Cheryl's commitment to excellence is seen in her teams accomplishments on the field as well as in the classroom—numerous NCAA tournament appearances, multiple Academic All-Americans, and more than 350 career wins," said athletic director Peter Roby. "All of us at Northeastern congratulate Cheryl on this latest honor."

In her 24 full seasons in Boston, Murtagh has given the Huskies plenty to be proud of, both on and off the field. She led Northeastern to 10 America East titles in her first 15 seasons, twice stringing together four-consecutive conference championships. Under Murtagh, the Huskies have reached the NCAA Tournament 15 times, including three Final Four appearances. A seven-time Northeast Region Coach of the Year, Murtagh entered the 2012 season with a 350-198-10 (.627) career record, which is tops of any female coach in NU history and eighth all-time among Division I coaches.

In total, Murtagh has amassed 39 conference and NCAA Tournament victories, including impressive wins over mainstays Connecticut, Iowa, Massachusetts and Providence in the postseason. Under her direction, the Huskies have recorded at least one postseason victory in 20 of the last 24 seasons.

Through seven games in 2012, Murtagh has the Huskies as a factor in the nation's top-10, having gone 6-1. No. 8 NU, which has wins over five ranked opponents this year, is set to begin conference action this weekend.