Box Score
WEST CHESTER, Pa. - Carlee Dragon banged home a rebound off her own shot in the 95th minute, lifting third-seeded C.W. Post to an upset over second-seeded and host West Chester in one PSAC field hockey quarterfinal round game at Vonnie Gros Field on a pleasant Tuesday afternoon.
With the double-overtime win, C.W. Post (10-7) advances to the conference semifinals to play Shippensburg Friday afternoon at Shippensburg. West Chester (14-4), ranked third in the latest NCAA South Region rankings, must wait until the NCAA Selection Show on Monday to see if its season continues in the national tournament.
Dragon, who is second in the nation in scoring, potted the game-winner when she broke in all alone on Kristin Arnold. The Golden Rams' goalkeeper made a diving save on a poke check of Dragon's original shot. However, the ball skirted the the keeper's left, and Dragon stepped over and sent home her 21st tally of the year.
C.W. Post forced the overtime session when Helene Bruckner tipped in a cross along the goal line from teammate Lyn-Marie Wilson with 56 seconds left in regulation. It was Bruckner's 11th marker of the year.
West Chester dominated much of the play throughout regulation and the first overtime. In fact, the Golden Rams controlled possession of the ball for the majority of the first 15-minute OT, despite playing down one player for 10 minutes due to a yellow card. Unfortunately, the game-winner never materialized.
West Chester held a 23-8 advantage in penalty corners, including an 11-2 lead in the first half and a 7-1 advantage in the second. The Golden Rams defense held the Pioneers' high-scoring offense in check for much of the game, yielding just nine shots in the first 70 minutes.
Alisha Moran put West Chester on top eight minutes into the contest when she slapped home a rebound off a shot from Nancy Stehman while framing the cage on the left post. It was the senior's sixth goal of the season.
Arnold was called upon to make just three saves in the first 70 minutes. However, she stoned C.W. Post on back-to-back rebound shots in the first OT and stopped two more shots in the second OT to finish with seven saves. Devon Trenkle made 14 saves for the Pioneers in the cage.
West Chester, who is ranked third in the NCAA regional rankings, must hold onto that ranking to qualify for the NCAA Division II Field Hockey Championships. That field of six will be revealed on Monday. C.W. Post was ranked sixth in the latest regional poll and would most likely have to win the PSAC conference tournament to have a chance at nationals.
The NCAA Tournament will be made up of the top three seeds in the North and the top three seeds in the South. Indiana (Pa.) is ranked fourth in the latest South Region rankings. The Crimson Hawks defeated Slippery Rock, 2-0, in the other PSAC Quarterfinal Tuesday. They advance to the conference semifinals to face Bloomsburg on Friday at Shippensburg.
