2014 PSAC Women's Soccer Championship: ESU Takes Crown
EAST STROUDSBURG EARNS PSAC TITLE
Boxscore
Complete East Stroudsburg Story
Kutztown Story
Courtesy of East Stroudsburg Sports Information
East Stroudsburg, Pa. - Sophomore midfielder
Shea Neal scored the game’s only goal in the 78th minute, giving East Stroudsburg the third PSAC women’s soccer championship in program history with a 1-0 win over Kutztown on Saturday night at Eiler-Martin Stadium.
ESU (20-1) earned its 20th straight win - and 10th in the last 20 minutes of regulation or overtime - to add the 2014 PSAC championship to conference titles won in 1994 and 1997.
The Warriors, under eighth-year head coach Rob Berkowitz, the PSAC Coach of the Year, earn the PSAC’s automatic bid to the NCAA Division II Tournament. They will appear in the NCAA postseason for the third time, following trips in 1997 and 2008. The complete NCAA field will be announced on Monday at 7 p.m. on ncaa.com.
ESU also avenged its only loss of the season, a 1-0 setback to Kutztown on a second-half goal in the season opener on Sept. 4. The Warriors’ ensuing 20-game winning streak is the second-longest in PSAC history.
After scoring two goals in the final 10 minutes to rally for a 3-2 win over California in the semifinals on Friday, ESU and Kutztown were scoreless late in the contest despite several good chances for each side - including an ESU goal disallowed on an offsides call in the 11th minute.
Neal broke through with 12:44 remaining, gathering a deflection in the box and slotting it past Kutztown goalkeeper
Deanna Messner (three saves) for the only goal of the contest.
Neal was named the PSAC Tournament MVP and was one of two Warriors on the All-PSAC first team earlier this week, along with senior back
Lexie Peveraro. The goal was her seventh of the season - one of four Warriors to score at least seven goals on the conference’s highest-scoring team.
Freshman goalkeeper
Jess Hetrick had four saves for ESU in her fourth start of the season, replacing All-PSAC second team freshman goalkeeper Jules Harris, who was injured late in the win over California.
Hetrick denied Kutztown its best scoring chance, deflecting a 40-yard shot by Kutztown back
Morgan Staley just over the crossbar in the 39th minute. She also had three saves on shots by KU’s
Sam Costello, the PSAC Athlete of the Year who had two goals and an assist in a 4-2 win over West Chester in the semifinals.
Messner turned aside ESU senior forward
Courtney Keller on a short-range shot in the 48th minute, and Kutztown had the next scoring chance when Dana Wong hit the crossbar in the 74th minute.
Neal scored the Warriors’ goal less than four minutes later.
Kutztown (15-5), the tournament’s No. 4 seed, is the PSAC runner-up for the fifth time in 11 years. The Golden Bears were seeking their first-ever PSAC tournament title.
Only West Chester (23 games in 2006) has had a longer winning streak than ESU’s current 20-game run since the PSAC’s first season of women’s soccer in 1994.
PSAC SEMIFINALS
East Stroudsburg Survives California
East Stroudsburg, Pa. – No. 1 East Stroudsburg will play for the PSAC Women’s Soccer title thanks to a 3-2 win over No. 4 California in the PSAC Semifinals on Friday afternoon at Eiler-Martin Stadium.
The Warriors will face Kutztown in the PSAC Championship game at 6:00 p.m. at Eiler-Martin Stadium on Saturday, November 8. In both teams’ first game of the 2014 season, Kutztown defeated East Stroudsburg 1-0.
California sealed its own fate with an own goal in the 85th minute to give East Stroudsburg the 3-2 victory. East Stroudsburg’s
Courtney Keller knotted the game at two apiece in the 81st minute off a cross from
Amanda Vojta. In the fifth minute,
Sammi Jo Hughes finished a
Shea Neal header attempt for the game’s first mark.
Janelle McCann scored both California goals and was unassisted each time.
Meghan Jayes recorded eight saves for the Vulcans, while
Jules Harris stopped five shots for East Stroudsburg. The Warriors out-shot California 18-8.
Saturday will mark the first time in five years the Vulcans have not played in the PSAC Championship game. California has won the league title twice over the last three years.
The Warriors have not played for the conference crown since falling 1-0 to Bloomsburg in 1998. East Stroudsburg’s only PSAC titles came in 1997 and 1994.
Boxscore
East Stroudsburg Story
California Story
Kutztown Powers Past West Chester
East Stroudsburg, Pa. – No. 3 Kutztown upset No. 2 West Chester 4-2 in the PSAC Semifinals on Friday afternoon at Eiler-Martin Stadium.
The Golden Bears will face No. 1 East Stroudsburg in the PSAC Championship game at 6:00 p.m. at Eiler-Martin Stadium on Saturday, November 8. In both teams’ first game of the 2014 season, Kutztown defeated East Stroudsburg 1-0.
Dana Wong got things started for Kutztown in the 14th minute with a header goal off a
Mariah Dimm corner kick. PSAC Offensive Athlete of the Year
Sam Costello found the back of the next two minutes later to put the Golden Bears ahead 2-0. Costello later assisted
Brooke May’s eventual game-winner at the 34-minute-mark.
Assisted by
Cara Deola, West Chester’s
Dana Hunt put the Golden Rams on the board just 43 seconds into the second stanza, but
Taylor Higgins’ cross to Costello stole the momentum right back in the 47th minute, as Costello buried her second goal of the evening and 12th of the season.
Deola assisted West Chester’s
Nikki Lynch for the final goal of the game in the 80th minute.
Kutztown put eight of its 13 shots on goal, while West Chester placed five of its 11 shots on target.
Kutztown last played in the PSAC Championship game in 2012 and lost 2-1 to California. The Golden Bears have played in four PSAC title games and have lost by just one goal each time against four different PSAC foes (California – 2012, West Chester – 2011, Slippery Rock – 2005, IUP – 2004).
Boxscore
Kutztown Story
West Chester Story
CHAMPIONSHIP PREVIEW
East Stroudsburg, Pa. – For the first time since 1998, the East Stroudsburg Warriors have clinched hosting rights for this weekend’s PSAC Women’s Soccer Championship.
On Tuesday, East Stroudsburg defeated IUP 5-0 in quarterfinal action to advance as the No. 1 seed and will face No. 4 California at 1:00 p.m. on Friday, November 7. California advanced to the semifinals with a 2-1 win over Slippery Rock. The Warriors and the Vulcans met just days ago on November 1, a game in which East Stroudsburg narrowly won 1-0 at Eiler-Martin Stadium.
Brielyn Hackett’s goal in the 71st minute clinched the Warrior’s No. 1 tournament seed.
Defending PSAC Champion California will have to stop East Stroudsburg’s high-powered offense, as well as put pressure on its formidable goalie
Jules Harris. The Warriors lead the league in scoring (2.74 goals per game), margin of victory (2.27), goals (52), and have 10 players with at least two goals. Additionally, Harris owns a PSAC-best .443 goals against average during her freshman season. The Vulcans will look to junior
Janelle McCann, who scored both goals in their quarterfinal win, and senior
Chelsea Crockett to lead the offensive attack. McCann and Crockett both have scored a league-high 11 goals apiece.
At 3:30 p.m. on Friday, No. 3 Kutztown will face No. 2 West Chester in a rematch of their 2013 PSAC Quarterfinal contest, which West Chester won 2-1. The two teams met in the regular season on September 4, with West Chester grabbing a 2-0 victory. Both teams shutout their quarterfinal opponents, with Kutztown defeating Edinboro 2-0, and West Chester topping Gannon 3-0.
Kutztown is led by PSAC Offensive Athlete of the Year
Sam Costello with 10 goals and four assists on the season. West Chester is seeking its second consecutive PSAC Championship appearance and fifth in the last nine years. Two-time All-PSAC player
Carly Yost, with seven goals and six assists, leads a group of five Golden Rams that hold four or more goals this season. West Chester’s defense will look to stifle a Kutztown offense that averages 9.22 shots on goal per game. Golden Ram goalie
Alex Srolis leads the league with eight shutouts this season.
The semifinal winners will play at 6:00 p.m. on Saturday, November 8 at Eiler-Martin Stadium.
PSAC QUARTERFINALS
California Defeats Slippery Rock
California, Pa. – Defending PSAC Champion No. 4 California defeated No. 5 Slippery Rock 2-1 in the PSAC Women’s Soccer Quarterfinals on Tuesday in California, Pa.
The Vulcans advance to play PSAC Championship host No. 1 East Stroudsburg on Friday, November 7, in East Stroudsburg, Pa. at 1 p.m.
Janelle McCann beat the goalie one-on-one to score her 11
th goal of the season, and the game-winner with just nine minutes left in the contest. The Vulcans’ first goal came when junior
Marissa Neifert found McCann in the 28
th minute.
Dara Demich of Slippery Rock fed a corner kick to
Tess Keeley who headed-in The Rock’s only goal in the 87
th minute.
California won the 2013 PSAC Championship, and has won two out of the last three league titles.
Boxscore
California Story
Slippery Rock Story
East Stroudsburg Blanks IUP
East Stroudsburg, Pa. – Top seed East Stroudsburg posted a 5-0 win over No. 8 IUP in the PSAC Women’s Soccer Quarterfinals on Tuesday afternoon in East Stroudsburg, Pa.
As the highest-remaining seed, the Warriors will host the remainder of the PSAC Championship tournament, starting with a 1 p.m. semifinal contest between East Stroudsburg and No. 4 California.
Senior
Courtney Keller started the scoring on a cross to
Brielyn Hackett who finished from six yards out, sending East Stroudsburg into halftime with a 1-0 lead.
Four minutes into the second half,
Amanda Vojta added a goal directly off of a corner kick, marking her second goal of the season. Minutes later,
Sammi Jo Hughes stole the ball from an Edinboro defender and netted another East Stroudsburg goal to extend the lead to 3-0. Hackett notched her second goal of the game in the 70
th minute before Vojta found
Syrandin Deere Vester off of a corner kick to bring the final score to 5-0.
East Stroudsburg is riding an 18-game win streak into the Semifinals. The Warriors are searching for their program’s third PSAC title and first since 1997.
Boxscore
East Stroudsburg Story
IUP Story
Kutztown Shuts Out Edinboro
Kutztown, Pa. – No. 3 Kutztown topped No. 6 Edinboro 2-0 in the PSAC Women’s Soccer Quarterfinals on Tuesday afternoon in Kutztown.
The Golden Bears advance to face No. 2 West Chester on Friday, November 7, in East Stroudsburg, Pa. at 3:30 p.m.
Senior
Sam Costello knocked-in the game-winner off of a rebound shot taken by freshman
Brooke May in the 34
th minute. In the 60
th minute,
Mariah Dimm found the head of junior
Diana Malanga off of a corner kick to give Kutztown an insurance goal.
The Golden Bears placed a total of 11 shots on goal, with five of those coming from Costello.
Kutztown is seeking the program’s first PSAC Championship.
Boxscore
Kutztown Story
Edinboro Story
West Chester Beats Gannon
West Chester, Pa. – No. 2 West Chester defeated No. 7 Gannon 3-0 in the PSAC Women’s Soccer Quarterfinals on Tuesday afternoon hosted by West Chester.
With the win, the Golden Rams move on to face No. 3 Kutztown on Friday, November 7, in East Stroudsburg, Pa. at 3:30 p.m.
Six different Golden Rams either scored or tallied an assist in the shutout. Senior
Sara Wulk found
Nikki Lynch for her first goal of the season just eight minutes into the contest. Sophomore
Haley Mangiaruga found the back of the net off an assist from
Marissa Valenti in the 36
th minute. Senior
Dana Hunt headed-in the final goal with seven minutes remaining off a corner kick taken by
Cara Deola.
West Chester is on the hunt for its league-leading fifth PSAC Championship and first since 2010.
Boxscore
West Chester Story
Gannon Story