Box Score
SLIPPERY ROCK, Pa. – The 22nd-ranked Slippery Rock University women's soccer team handed two-time defending champion West Chester University a 1-0 defeat in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference quarterfinals Tuesday afternoon at Mihalik-Thompson Stadium.
The Rock will play No. 17 Kutztown, which defeated Gannon 2-1 Tuesday, in the PSAC semifinals Friday at California. Kickoff time will be set Wednesday morning. The other semifinal will feature California and Edinboro, which defeated Indiana Tuesday.
Tuesday's win increased Slippery Rock's current school record winning and shutout streaks to 11 consecutive games and improved The Rock's season record to 14-3-2 overall. The team has not allowed a goal in the last 991:02, dating back to a Sept. 24th game at Kutztown where the Golden Bears scored with 1:02 remaining in regulation.
The quarterfinal win over West Chester (12-3-4) was also the first Rock win over the Golden Rams in the playoff history of the two teams and avenged a shootout loss at West Chester in the PSAC semifinals last season.
West Chester, winners of four of the last five conference titles, had a stretch of six consecutive seasons with a trip to the PSAC semifinals snapped.
Kara Mullins scored the game's lone goal off an assist from
Lucy Hannon in the 69th minute and
Lisa Rodgers picked up her PSAC-leading 10th shutout of the season in goal to lead Slippery Rock to the win.
West Chester finished the game with slim advantages of 11-9 in total shots and 4-3 in shots on goal, while Slippery Rock managed a 7-6 edge in corner kicks.
The game was played nearly evenly throughout the entire match, including in the first half where West Chester posted a 6-5 edge in total shots and both teams were awarded three corner kicks.
Slippery Rock pushed the tempo over the first 25 minutes of the second half, generating multiple chances, including a shot from Mullins the hit the crossbar early in the period.
Mullins made her next shot count when she took a through ball up the middle of the field from Hannon and chipped the ball over West Chester keeper Shannon Fedyk into the left side of the net at the 68:24 mark.
Rodgers and The Rock defense made that tally stand over the final 21 minutes of action to give Mullins her team-leading fifth game-winning goal of the season.
Rodgers, who stopped all four shots she faced, lowered her season goals against average to just 0.35, while also raising her save percentage to .914.
Fedyk made two saves in the loss.
Prior to Tuesday's match, Slippery Rock and West Chester had met 20 times with the Golden Rams owning a 13-5-2 edge in the series. The teams had played twice in the PSAC playoffs, most recently last season when WCU earned a 4-3 win in a penalty kick shootout after the teams played to a 2-2 tie. Prior to that, the Golden Rams defeated SRU 2-0 in the 2007 title game.
Complete details of the Slippery Rock-Kuztown semifinal matchup, including start time, live coverage options and game notes will be available at www.RockAthletics,com Wednesday morning.
