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SLIPPERY ROCK, Pa. – The Slippery Rock University women's soccer team will face No. 16 California University (Pa.) Sunday in the second round of the NCAA Division II Tournament at the Philipsburg Soccer Complex in California.
Live Coverage: The California sports information office will provide a live statistics feed for the game at the link above. The SRU sports information office will provide live updates through the official Rock Athletics Twitter page (@Rock_Athletics).
Tickets: The NCAA mandates a $10 charge for adults and a $5 charge for students and children. Children under the age of two will be admitted free. All tickets must be purchased on game day at the site.
Rankings: California is ranked 16th in the latest Division II national rankings compiled by the NSCAA. The Vulcans rank first in the Atlantic Region according to the NCAA selection committee. Slippery Rock received votes in this week's national rankings, but did not break into the top 25. The Rock is ranked fifth in the region.
Playoff Picture: Slippery Rock advanced to the second round with a 4-2 edge in a penalty kick shootout against No. 24 Edinboro Friday. The two teams played to a 1-1 double overtime tie to set up the shootout, where SRU made all four of its first attempts and Rock keeper
Dana O'Neill made two saves to seal the win.
In the other side of the region, No. 6 seed West Virginia Wesleyan shocked the No. 3 seed and seventh ranked Golden Knights of Gannon, 2-0, and will play No. 2 seed West Chester in the second round Sunday. The winners of both Sunday games will meet in the Round of 16 at the highest remaining seed in the Atlantic Region, which will either be California, West Chester or Slippery Rock.
PSAC Playoff Recap: Slippery Rock was dominant in its run through the PSAC playoffs last week, winning three games in four days and outscoring opponents by an 8-1 margin. The seventh-seeded Rock went on the road and upset No. 2 seed West Chester in the opening round, 2-1, before trouncing No. 6 seed East Stroudsburg 3-0 in the semifinals and blanking No. 1 seed California 3-0 in the championship game. Edinboro won its opening round game 2-1 over Kutztown before being eliminated by California in the semifinals with a 2-1 loss.
NCAA Tourney History: Slippery Rock is making its eighth appearance in the NCAA Tournament and is returning for the third consecutive year. The Rock has reached at least the second round in each of the two previous years and is coming off a trip to the Round of 16 last season. California has been a thorn in the side for SRU in the national playoffs, knocking The Rock out in each of the last two seasons.
Scouting The Rock: Slippery Rock enters the game with an overall record of 13-5-3 and is riding a five game unbeaten streak. The Rock's 13 wins gives them their 17th consecutive winning season with 10 or more victories, the eighth-best streak in Division II history.
Slippery Rock is outscoring opponents 44-18 and outshooting the opposition 292-200.
Lucy Hannon leads the way with 10 goals and 10 assists, followed by
Shelby Ward with nine goals and three assists.
Cailin Conner has five goals and two assists, while
Lauren Impey has four goals and three assists and
Stephanie Buckenheimer has three goals and four assists to cap the top scorers.
Dana O'Neill is 13-5-3 with nine shutouts in goal. She has allowed 18 goals for a 0.83 goals against average and made 74 saves for a .804 save percentage.
Scouting the Vulcans: California enters the game with an overall record of 16-4-1 and has a record of 24-1 on its home field that opened last season. The only loss was to Slippery Rock in last week's PSAC title game.
California is outscoring opponents 48-18 and outshooting the opposition 398-197. Haley Henderson leads the team with 11 goals and two assists, while Erin Hogan has added four goals and a team-high 14 assists. Chelsea Crockett has six goals and four assists, Janelle McCann has seven goals and one assist, Kelsey Russo has four goals and six assists and Bethany Smyda has five goals and three assists to cap the top scorers. First team All-American and reigning PSAC and Regional Athlete of the Year Carley Work was out most of the season with an injury, but has appeared in five games and made a start in the PSAC semifinal.
Ashley Magruda has started 20 games in goal and is 15-4-1 with eight shutouts. She has allowed 17 goals for a 0.83 goals against average and has made 75 saves for a .815 save percentage.
Head Coaches: Noreen Herlihy is in her 18th season at the helm of the Slippery Rock program. She has led the team to 17 consecutive winning seasons with 10 or more wins and owns a career record of 224-102-27. The 17 consecutive winning seasons rank eighth all-time in Division II history. Herlihy is a 1992 graduate of Mercyhurst College with a bachelor's degree in sports medicine. She also owns a master's degree in sports administration from Slippery Rock.
Gene Smith is in his first season as the head coach at California after serving as an assistant with the program for the previous two years. He was an integral piece of the coaching staff that saw the team go undefeated in the regular season in 2011. As a member of the staff, he helped oversee a 38-2-6 run during the 2010 and 2011 seasons.
Series: Slippery Rock holds a 18-9-2 advantage in the all-time series. The Vulcans eliminated SRU from the NCAA Playoffs in each of the last two years, including a 2-0 defeat in the Round of 16 last season when Cal was ranked No. 2 in the nation and SRU was ranked No. 23. The year before, Cal edged SRU in penalty kicks in the second round to advance.
Last Time: (
Box Score) Slippery Rock claimed its third PSAC title in school history with a 3-0 win over No. 16 California in the championship game last Sunday at the Philipsburg Soccer Complex.
Lucy Hannon was named the MVP of the tournament after scoring two goals and assisting the third goal, which was scored by
Shelby Ward.
Cailin Conner and
Allison Harbart also picked up assists for SRU.
Dana O'Neill made five saves to earn the shutout, while Ashley Magruda made three saves in the loss.
SRU finished the game with advantages of 18-15 in total shots and 6-3 in corner kicks.