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SLIPPERY ROCK, Pa. – The 23rd ranked Slippery Rock University women's soccer team punched its ticket to the championship game of the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference tournament by edging No. 15 West Chester University 4-3 in a penalty kick shootout after the two teams played to a 1-1 draw in the semifinals Friday from James Egli Field.
The Rock advance to the conference final and will host Gannon University Sunday at 1 p.m. at Egli Field with the title on the line. The Golden Knights took down No. 4 Kutztown 2-1 in the first semifinal Friday to deliver a PSAC Western Division final. The top two seeds in the West played twice this year and tied both meetings.
Friday's game officially goes into the books as a tie, moving Slippery Rock to 15-2-3 on the season, while West Chester moves to 13-2-3.
The Rock wasted little time in getting the party started Friday when
Sophia Palermo headed home the first SRU shot of the game off a corner kick just 89 seconds into the first half.
Bailey McGee and
Peyton Los were credited with assists on the play.
West Chester took advantage of an SRU blunder just a few minutes later, however, when an errant pass back to the goalie
Leah Allman was buried into the empty net by Adriana Ryder to tie the game at 1-1 in the 10th minute.
The two teams settled in after the nervous start and finished the opening half with SRU posting a 9-8 edge in total shots and West Chester earning a 2-1 advantage in corner kicks.
Slippery Rock carried most of the possession and had most of the opportunities in the second half, but could not find a go-ahead goal. The Rock outshot the Rams 16-7 in the second half, hit two posts and a crossbar and saw one shot get cleared off the goal line by a defender for a team save.
The momentum shifted in the first overtime, as West Chester outshot SRU 3-0 with a 4-0 advantage in corner kicks. Allman made one save in the first extra session to send it to a second overtime.
SRU returned the favor over the final 10 minutes, outshooting West Chester 3-0 in the second overtime, but had to settle for a 1-1 draw and penalty kicks.
The Rock went first in the shootout and scored their first three attempts from McGee,
Jordyn Constable and
Abby Paterline. West Chester made its first two, but missed high and over the goal on a third attempt.
Slippery Rock missed its fourth attempt with a saved shot and West Chester tied the shootout at 3-3 after four rounds.
The Rock sent out graduate student
Leah Walter, who did not play a single minute in the game, to take the fifth penalty kick. Walter delivered a high shot into the left side of the net to put SRU up 4-3 in the shootout.
West Chester's Abigail Hanemann needed to make her attempt to extend the game, but her high shot to the right side was fought off by a diving Allman, who made the save to secure the 4-3 win in the shootout. It marked the first penalty kick save of Allman's SRU career.
Slippery Rock finished the game with advantages of 28-18 in total shots and 11-7 in shots on goal. West Chester posted a 10-7 edge in corner kicks. Both goalies played well, with West Chester's Grace Keen finishing with nine saves and Allman stopping six shots.
Friday's tie extended SRU's current unbeaten streak to 12 straight games and kept The Rock unbeaten at home this season with a 9-0-2 record.
Slippery Rock advances to the PSAC Championship game for the first time since winning it 2019. The Rock are looking for their fifth conference title (2003, 2005, 2012, 2019), while Gannon is searching for its first league crown. Kickoff Sunday at Egli Field is set for 1 p.m.
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