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(Lock Haven, Pa.) - The
Lock Haven University of Pennsylvania women’s soccer team (15-3, 10-1 PSAC)
will host Indiana University of Pennsylvania (12-3-1, 8-2-1 PSAC) on Wednesday,
October 31, in one of the 2001 Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference
post-season tournament semifinal games. Lock
Haven earned the top seed in the tournament and the right to host the first
round match against the No. 4 seed Indiana on McCollum Field at 1 p.m.
The winner of Wednesday’s game will face the winner of the other
semifinal match-up between No. 2 seed Bloomsburg University and No. 3 seed
Edinboro University on Sunday, November 4, at 1 p.m.
Lock
Haven: The two-time
defending PSAC champion Lady Eagles under the guidance of first-year Head Coach
Doug Moore finished the regular season with a 15-3 overall mark and a 10-1
ledger in the conference. This is
LHU’s sixth consecutive appearance in the post-season playoffs. Lock Haven is ranked 12th in the nation and first in the
Northeast Region.
The
Lock Haven offense currently posts 3.61 goals per game, riding on the talents
of five players who have posted 20 or more points.
Junior forward Katie Taylor (Hammonton, N.J./Edgewood) has
stepped up her game to a new level this season and currently leads the Lady
Eagles with 10 goals and 10 assists for 30 total points.
Sophomore and returning All-American Naomi Clarke (Cambridge, New
Zealand/St. Peter’s School) remains a consistent force on the offensive
side of the ball, netting a team-best 11 goals along with seven assists for 29
points.
Midfielders Brooke Rangi (Kawerau, New Zealand/Kawerau) and Erin
McKasson (Irwin/Penn Trafford) are also dominant players on the LHU
offense. Rangi, a freshman, has posted nine goals and five assists in her
inaugural campaign. McKasson, a
senior, leads LHU with 13 assists and has also tallied five goals along the
way. Junior midfielder Kristi
Ward (Philadelphia/Nazareth Academy) rounds out the top scorers for Lock
Haven, having posted seven goals and seven assists (21 points).
Midfielder and returning All-American Becky Nichols (Wind
Gap/Nazareth) is also a key player for the Lady Eagles, controlling the
center midfield while contributing five goals and two assists.
Defensively,
Lock Haven has allowed 17 goals over the course of the season, an average of
just 0.94 per game. Of the Lady
Eagles’ 15 wins, nine have been of the shutout variety.
A number of players have made ample contributions to the stingy LHU
backfield, including Shannon Becker (Durham/Palisades), Adria Vitale
(Philadelphia/St. Maria Goretti), Christa Cox (Ephrata/Ephrata), Erika
Schneider (Mechanicsburg/Cumberland Valley), and Danielle Smith
(Johnson, N.Y./Minisink Valley). Two keepers will vie for the rights of a
post-season appearance, freshmen Brandie Kessler (Bethlehem/Saucon Valley)
(1.24 GAA) and Ashley Babiarz (Philadelphia/Northeast) (0.210 GAA).
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PSAC Championship
Tournament
Semifinals - October 31 - 1 p.m.
(4) IUP at (1) Lock Haven
(3) Edinboro at (2) Bloomsburg
Final - November 4 - 1 p.m.
Semifinal winners at highest remaining seed
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Indiana:
Indiana, under the direction of Head Coach Adel Heder, will make its
second appearance in the conference tournament.
The last time IUP advanced to the playoffs was in 1995, when they won
the league crown in the program’s first season at varsity level.
The No. 4 seed, Indiana sports a 12-3-1 overall and 8-2-1 PSAC record and is
ranked fifth in the Northeast Region. IUP’s
two conference losses came against Lock Haven (3-0) and Bloomsburg (3-2, ot),
while one game was split with Edinboro (2-2).
The
Indiana offense records an average of 2.13 goals per game and is paced by
junior Tia Kipp (Quakertown/Quakertown) and senior Jen McMaster
(Lansdale/North Penn). Kipp is
IUP’s leading scorer with 30 points off of 12 goals and six assists.
McMaster adds 10 goals and seven assists for 27 points.
Sophomores Shanelle Peters (Cooperstown/Rocky Grove) and Kirsten
Hogg (Fairfield, Ohio/Fairfield) have also proven themselves to be
offensive threats, Peters scoring five goals and an assist and Hogg netting
three of each.
Senior
keeper LaToya Wallace (Baltimore, Md./Catonsville CC) headlines the
Indiana defense, recording a 0.888 goals against average while allowing just 14
goals. As a unit, the
Indiana defense has helped lead the squad to nine shutout victories out of its
12 total wins, and has been scored on just 14 times all season.
A number of players have contributed to the standout effort, including Christina
Stern (Lock Haven/Lock Haven), Lindsey Coy (York/Central York), Courtnay
McClinton (Exton/Villa Marie Academy), Missy Swindel (Toledo, Ohio/E.L. Bowsher),
and Leslie Hrubes (Latrobe/Derry). In regular
season action, Lock Haven defeated Indiana, 3-0, on October 23 at LHU’s
McCollum Field.
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