SLIPPERY ROCK, Pa. — The Slippery Rock University women's soccer team will go up against Gannon University with a 3 p.m. kickoff Wednesday in Erie, Pennsylvania at McConnell Family Stadium.
 
Coming off an undefeated homestand, The Rock enter the game with a 5-2-1 overall record and a 4-1-1 mark in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference Western Division. The Golden Knights come in on a two-match winning streak at 4-2-1 overall and 4-1-0 in PSAC West competition.
 
WATCH LIVE
• Fans can watch Wednesday's game live and on-demand for free via the links below provided by Gannon Media Relations:

GAME 9 of 18
Opponent: Gannon
Date: Wednesday — 3 p.m.
Venue: McConnell Family Stadium
Location: Erie, Pennsylvania
Live Video: PSAC Sports Digital Network
Live Stats: Gannon Media Relations
In-game Updates: X (@Rock_Athletics)

SERIES HISTORY vs. GANNON
Wednesday will mark the 31^st all-time meeting between The Rock and the Golden Knights. SRU holds the advantage with a 14-13-3 record. Gannon, however, has the upper hand in games played in Erie, as Slippery Rock is 5-8-2 on the road against the Golden Knights. In the last four meetings Slippery Rock has gone 0-2-2. Last year, Slippery Rock fell 1-0 at Gannon and played to a 0-0 tie at home. Slippery Rock's last road win at Gannon came Oct. 9, 2019 in a 1-0 decision.

LAST MEETING
Slippery Rock hosted Gannon Oct. 5, 2022 and played to a 0-0 tie. Slippery Rock was outshot in the first half, 7-4, but claimed the majority of second half opportunities, edging Gannon in shots, 7-5. Ashley Rea was the only member of The Rock to post more than one shot on goal, with two of her four shots going on target. Sydney Patrick, Morgan Sarver and Kayla Swope each had one of The Rock's five shots on goal. Overall, Gannon led in shots (12-11) and corner kicks (5-3). Both keepers made five saves.

THE ROCK BY THE NUMBERS
Overall Record: 5-2-1 (.688)
PSAC West Record: 4-1-1
PSAC West Standings: 2^nd
Home Record: 4-0-1
Away Record: 1-2-0 
Last Five Games: 3-1-1
Streak: T1
Head Coach: Jessica Giegucz | Ninth season at SRU (88-40-18, .664)

LAST TIME OUT
Slippery Rock hosted Clarion Sept. 23 in the third of The Rock's three-match homestand, drawing to a 2-2 tie. The Rock got on the board in the 51^st minute when Sarver played a perfect through ball in front of Skylar Munnikhuysen, who sent the ball into the net. The Golden Eagles answered quickly when Ciara DiMauro responded twice with 53^rd and 56^th minute goals to take the ambush lead. 
 
Munnikhuysen, who had previously never scored two goals in a game, fired a beautiful looping shot over the keeper in the 57^th minute to cap off the flurry of goals. SRU would not allow Clarion back in the net, claiming an overall advantage in shots (22-6), shots on goal (11-3) and corners (6-1). 

LEADING THE CHARGE
With Munnikhuysen's superb performance against Clarion, Slippery Rock now has four players with at least half a dozen points. Patrick and Sarver still lead the team, each with 12 points. Patrick's 12 points have come on four goals and four assists, while Sarver has scored three goals and has given The Rock a conference-high six assists.
 
Munnikhuysen has six points on three goals and Rea's six points come via two goals and two assists. 
 
Seven players have one goal on the season: Maddie DeLucio, Faith Diffenbacher, Sophia Palermo, Lindsey Price, Briona Rice, Olivia Yoder and Libby Zacharyasz. Yoder has also contributed two assists.
 
Additionally, Nina King and Brooke Riefenstahl both have one point on one assist.

A STREAK OF PRECISION
With one shot on goal in each of last week's games, Sarver has now taken at least one shot on goal in the last 12 regular season matches for Slippery Rock.
 
In total, Sarver has taken 45 shots this season, 18 of which have been placed on target. She leads the PSAC in total shots and is second in shots on goal. Sarver's 45 shots rank her second in Division II and sixth in the nation in shots per game at 5.62. 
 
Thanks in large part to Sarver's attacking consistency, SRU as a team ranks first in the PSAC with 176 shots. The Rock ranks third nationally in total shots and is tied for third in shots per game at 22.  SRU's 84 total shots on goal put The Rock at the top of the PSAC and fifth in the nation. SRU is eighth in Division II in shots on goal per game with 10.5.
 
Per game, Slippery Rock is outshooting its opponents, 22.0-5.6.
 
SUCCESS TO START THE YEAR
With Wednesday's contest marking game nine of 18 on the year, a win would put Slippery Rock at 6-2-1 halfway through the year, which would be SRU's best opening half to a season since 2021 when it started 7-1-1.
 
A year ago, Slippery Rock's opening half of the year resulted in a 2-2-5 record in a season that would eventually contain a program-high eight draws. Slippery Rock has not been below .500 at the halfway mark in the season since 1995, the program's third year of existence, when it started the year 3-7.

AN UNDEFEATED HOMESTAND
Slippery Rock capped off its longest stretch of consecutive home games of the season last week with a 2-0-1 run, defeating Indiana University (Pa.), 3-2 and Edinboro, 1-0, before drawing with Clarion, 2-2. The Rock had a seven-game undefeated sequence last season, spanning from Sept. 24-Oct. 15, 2022.
 
On the road, Slippery Rock is 1-2 this season, its lone win coming Sept. 9 at Seton Hill University, 2-0. A year ago, Slippery Rock was 1-1-2 in its first four away games of the season.

LEADING THE CONFERENCE IN CORNERS
No team in the PSAC has taken as many corner kicks in 2023 as Slippery Rock, which has 65. The Rock currently sit at second in Division II in total corner kicks (Catawba College, 67). The Rock's 8.12 corners per game is most in the PSAC and ninth in the country.
 
Possibly even more impressive than the number of corners taken is the amount of corners Slippery Rock has held its opponents to. Per match, The Rock holds an advantage in corner kicks, 8.12-1.38, allowing just 11 corners all season.
 
A BRACE FOR THE JUNIOR
Munnikhuysen's two-goal game against Clarion marked the second time this season that a Slippery Rock player scored twice in a game. Patrick put up two of the six goals in The Rock's season opener against Davis & Elkins College. Slippery Rock only had a single two-goal game last season, with Rea posting back-to-back goals against Pitt-Johnstown in a 3-1 win.
 
ANOTHER AWARD FOR THE ROCK
Following her first career game-winning goal last week, Zacharyasz earned her first PSAC West Defensive Athlete of the Week award, the third different member of the team to earn a PSAC weekly honor this season. Zacharyasz scored in the 87^th minute of the 0-0 deadlock with Edinboro after sprinting the length of the field to receive a far-post cross from Sarver and secure victory for SRU.
 
Zacharyasz not only helped post the shutout against Edinboro but then joined forces with the Rock's defensive core four including Diffenbacher, King and Riefenstahl in limiting opportunities against Clarion, saving the 2-2 draw. She took five shots on the week, three of which were on target.
 
Zacharyasz is the first defender for Slippery Rock to be named PSAC West Defensive Athlete of the Week and the 20^th overall student-athlete to be selected for a weekly honor in program history.
 
Earlier in the season, Sarver and Patrick were each honored as PSAC West Athlete of the Week for the first time in their respective careers.
 
PROTECTING THE NET
Over the three-game stretch at home, Leah Allman faced 17 shots, making four saves. Her 1-0 shutout against Edinboro was the third of her career. Allman enters Wednesday's matchup with a GAA of 1.40, having made 14 saves on the season with a save percentage of .560.
 
ONE WIN AWAY FROM 100
Head coach Jessica Giegucz enters Wednesday's battle one win shy of 100 career victories. After beginning her head coaching career with 11 wins in 2014 at Division III Northland College, Giegucz took over the Slippery Rock program in 2015 and has gone on to post an 88-40-18 record during her tenure.

WHERE THEY STAND
Wednesday's road test proves pivotal as Slippery Rock enters second in the PSAC West with 13 points on four wins and one draw. Gannon is third with 12 points on four wins, but the Golden Knights have played one less game than SRU. Both teams have a mutual loss to Mercyhurst University, with SRU falling 5-0 and Gannon dropping the game in a 4-2 defeat.
 
ACTIVE SRU ROSTER vs. GANNON
Sydney Patrick – 4 points (1 goal, 2 assists)
Maddie DeLucio – 2 points, (1 goal, 0 assists)

THE GOLDEN KNIGHTS BY THE NUMBERS
Overall Record: 4-2-1 (.643)
PSAC West Record: 4-1-0
PSAC West Standings: 3^rd  
Home Record: 1-2-1
Away Record: 3-0-0
Last Five Games: 4-1-0
Streak: W2
Head Coach: Colin Petersen | 22^nd season at Gannon (192-159-38, .542)

GANNON SCOUTING REPORT
Despite great success on the road with a 3-0 record, Gannon enters Wednesdays' bout at just 1-2-1 while on home turf. The Golden Knights are 4-1 in PSAC West play, most recently going on a two-game winning streak by beating Clarion, 4-1, and California (Pa.), 2-1.
 
The Golden Knights have outscored their opponents 20-13, and outshot them per game, 22.0-6.4. Gannon leads the PSAC in shots on goal per game, with 11.14. Slippery Rock's 10.5. is second.
 
Gannon is led by true freshman standout Brooklyn Respecki, who has 11 points on four goals and three assists. Additionally, Respecki has 43 shots. Her 6.14 shots per game are third in the nation, just three spots ahead of SRU's Sarver, with 5.62.
 
Three Golden Knights have six points on the year: Gabby Boden, with two goals and two assists, as well as Ella Fadale and Logan Nicklas, each with three goals. Boden was named the PSAC West Athlete of the Week Monday after putting up five of her six points on the year within the last two games.
 
Australian junior Paige Taylor enters the match with four points on one goal and two assists, while freshman Victoria Wheeler has four points on two goals to her name.
 
Senior goalkeeper Morgan Sinan has started six of seven games this season for the Golden Knights, allowing just five goals on the year. She has faced 22 shots, making 10 saves. The 3-0-1 goalie enters with a 1.06 GAA and a save percentage of .667.

LOOKING AHEAD
The Rock will next stay on the road 1 p.m. Saturday as they travel to California (Pa.). Slippery Rock went 0-1-1 against the Vulcans a year ago, playing to a 0-0 draw on the road.



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