BROOKVILLE, N.Y.- Seeking to pull off an upset and win its first NCAA Division II Atlantic Regional Championship, the No. 2 seeded West Chester University Golden Rams (14-2-5) were back in action on Thursday morning against the No. 1 seed University of Charleston (Wv.) Golden Eagles (18-1-2). West Chester got the victory it was looking for winning by a final score of 1-0 courtesy of a goal early in the first half of play.
This is also the first Atlantic Regional Championship by a PSAC team since the end of the 2013 season.
Stephen Thompson (Mechanicsburg, Pa./Cumberland Valley) scored his second goal of the NCAA Tournament in the 13
th minute hitting a rocket from the top-right corner of the box off a loose ball to give West Chester the early lead.
The Golden Eagles applied relentless pressure to the Golden Ram defense but the West Chester backline and goalkeeper
Will Marshall (North Versailles, Pa./East Allegheny) were up to the task as they stood tall to stop Charleston and earn the victory.
Marshall was outstanding between the pipes for West Chester making three huge saves to keep Charleston off the scoreboard. Marshall also etched his name into the record books on Thursday morning as he picked up his 13
th win, which ties him for the most wins in a single season by a West Chester goalie joining
Matt Palmer and Andrew Shafer at the top of the single-season wins list.
West Chester was outshot by a 10-3 margin including a 3-1 margin in shots on goal but shot on goal was all the Golden Rams needed to pull off the upset. Charleston also ended the game with a gaping 9-2 advantage in corner kicks but a solid defense effort by the Golden Ram backline kept the Golden Eagles off the scoreboard.
West Chester advances to the Elite Eight for the first in the programs Division II history where they will face off against the East Region Champion (LIU-Post/Adelphi) on Saturday afternoon at a time yet to be determined.
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