The West Chester University field hockey team scored a pair of second-half goals, snapping a 1-1 halftime tie, en route to a 3-1 victory over the Bloomsburg University field hockey team 3-1 from chilly Steph Pettit Stadium on Wednesday afternoon. Following the loss, the Huskies own a 9-8 record with a 5-4 record against Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) opponents. The Golden Rams, meanwhile, advance to 11-6 overall, also with a 5-4 record in the conference.
The opening 20 minutes of the contest went back-and-forth, with neither team finding the goal. A few moments later, the Golden Rams began to threaten and were awarded a penalty corner opportunity. Mackenzie Mlkvy took the penalty corner and the ball eventually found Kaitlin Hatch, who knocked home a rebound past freshman goalkeeper Hannah Barnard for West Chester’s first goal of the afternoon and Hatch’s PSAC-leading 16th goal of the season. Munster added her second assist of the season on the play.
Just 1:14 later in the half, the Huskies tied the game when junior Erica Krebs put back a rebound off of a shot that was originally stopped by West Chester goalie Marissa Elizardo. The score was Krebs’ fourth goal of the season. Freshman Emily Alker took the initial shot and picked up her first assist of the season. Krebs became the sixth different Husky to reach double figures in scoring as she now has 10 points on four goals and two assists.
Neither team added to their point total in the final minutes of the first period, and the teams went into halftime tied at 1-1.
But, it only took the Golden Rams 1:21 to take the lead that they would not give up. Katie Thompson beat Barnard on a rebound after the freshman netminder stopped an initial shot from Mlkvy. Then, Hatch knocked home her second goal of the game, and 17th of the season, with 8:38 left for the final goal of the afternoon.
West Chester outshot Bloomsburg, 21-5, for the contest and held a 10-4 margin in penalty corners. Barnard totaled six saves on the day to fall to 2-2 on the season. Elizardo was credited with two saves in the win for the Golden Rams.
The West Chester win now causes a four-way tie (Bloomsburg, Kutztown, Slippery Rock, West Chester) for the final three playoff spots. Kutztown competes against East Stroudsburg at 7:00 pm on Wednesday night in its final conference game of the regular season.
Bloomsburg’s focus now turns to its final game of the regular season which takes place this Saturday, October 28, at Seton Hill University. The Griffins defeated Mercyhurst in a shootout on Wednesday and now own a 4-13 record on the season with an 1-8 record in the PSAC. The start time for Saturday’s contest is slated for 12:00 p.m.
Junior Erica Krebs was the lone husky who scored against West Chester. She has four goals this season, and two in the last three games.