SLIPPERY ROCK, Pa. - The Slippery Rock University field hockey team kept close with third-ranked East Stroudsburg University for the duration of Sunday's Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference home tilt at Mihalik-Thompson Stadium in an eventual 2-0 loss against the nationally ranked Warriors.
 
Slippery Rock's record moves to 2-8 overall and 0-5 inside the PSAC while East Stroudsburg improves to 11-2 overall and 3-1 in league games.
 
The Rock's defense was stout for the overwhelming majority of Sunday's game as they limited ESU, which entered the game averaging 19.7 shots per game, to just eight overall shot attempts. Of those eight, only five were on target which is down from the Warriors' 11.8 shots on goal per game average.
 
Goalkeeper Grace Burker made two saves over 60 minutes to guide the defense while Christina Clymer tallied her team leading fifth defensive save of the season.
 
Offensively, SRU was held to just five shots with none being on goal. Clymer and Hilary Hoffman accounted for two attempts apiece while Bailee Christman added another as well.
 
Following a scoreless opening quarter, SRU began the second quarter by earning a pair of penalty corners and firing off two shots, but the attempts by Hoffman and Clymer both went wide as the game remained deadlocked at 0-0 18 minutes into competition.
 
However, East Stroudsburg finally broke through Slippery Rock's solid defense in the 19th minute when Minke Klijn capitalized on a pass by Allyson Forman for what turned out to be the game-winning goal at 18:30.
 
The Warriors went on to add an insurance strike in the third quarter by way of Jady van Gils' team-leading 11th goal of the season all the while holding The Rock to just two shots in the second half – a blocked attempt by Clymer in the 56th minute and a wide effort from Hoffman in the 57th minute – to cap off the two-goal victory.
 
As a team, East Stroudsburg held advantages over The Rock in total shots (8-5), shots on goal (5-0) and penalty corners (8-6).
 
Slippery Rock continues PSAC competition 3 p.m. Oct. 15 on the road at Mansfield.






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