BLOOMSBURG, Pa. – So., Forward
Katie Crouthamel (Quakertown, Pa./Quakertown Area) finished off a beautiful lob into the box from classmate
Jenna Peters (Fairless Hills, Pa./Pennsbury) with 45 seconds left in the second overtime period to lift West Chester to a stunning 2-1 victory over sixth-ranked Bloomsburg in the quarterfinal round of the PSAC Tournament Tuesday night.
West Chester (12-4-1) advances to the semifinals for the fourth consecutive year and will take on Edinboro at 2:30 p.m. on Friday on the campus of Slippery Rock University. The win evens the Golden Rams record against the Atlantic Region's top-ranked squad at 1-1-1 this season while also avenging a 2-0 loss earlier this year, and a defeat on penalty kicks a year ago in the conference semifinals, on the very same pitch.
It also marks the first time since 2015 that West Chester leaves Steph Pettit Stadium with a "W".
"We had a lot of confidence (going into Pettit Stadium) just based on how we had played them up here earlier in the season," WCU head coach
Betty Ann Kempf Townsley said. "I felt they really deserved it."
Peters chipped a pass into the penalty area that Crouthamel, who had checked into the game just four minutes earlier, kicked into the far corner for the game-winner.
"The girl she replaced was cramping," Kempf Townsley explained. "And (Crouthamel) had scored some goals in the middle this year. I felt like we had to get her in there because she really has a knack for the goal."
Bloomsburg had tied the game three minutes into the second half when Megan Callan finished off a touch pass up the far side from Lauren Hoelke. That's the way things stood until the final minute of the second OT.
West Chester's
Hannah Zach (Doylestown, Pa./Central Bucks East) put her side on top in the 27th minute when her shot from way outside the area tucked inside the upper right-hand corner of the net over the outstretched arm of Bloomsburg goalkeeper Jenna Hawkins.
Freshman goalkeeper
Hayley McGee (Mechanicsburg, Pa./Cumberland) made five saves to improve to 4-0-0 on the season in her first college playoff start. Hawkins made four saves for Bloomsburg.
