Golden Rams Travel to Millersville for Conference Matchup with Marauders

WEST CHESTER at MILLERSVILLE
Game Details: 6:00 p.m. | Thursday, Oct. 17
Location: Millersville, Pa. | Chryst Field at Biemesderfer Stadium
Game Links: Watch | Live Stats

GOLDEN RAMS TRAVEL TO MILLERSVILLE FOR CONFERENCE MATCHUP
• West Chester (7-4, 1-2) returns to action Thursday evening when the Golden Rams travel to PSAC rival Millersville (6-5, 2-2) for a game under the lights. West Chester is currently ranked sixth in Division II by the NFHCA coaches. Millersville enters the contest unranked, though they have been ranked at times during the season.
• West Chester is coming off a tough-fought, 3-1, defeat at the hands of No. 1, and still undefeated, Shippensburg University a week ago. The Golden Rams were all knotted up with the Raiders at 1-all early in the final period. However, Shippensburg scored twice in a little under two minutes to put some distance between them and the upset-minded Golden Rams.
• Millersville allowed a goal in the final period that proved to be the difference in a 1-0 loss to No. 3 East Stroudsburg its last time out. The Marauders have lost three games by a 1-0 score – all to teams ranked among the Top 5 in the country – including the matchup earlier this year with West Chester.
• Both Millersville and West Chester enter Thursday night's showdown with plenty of rest. It has been eight days since either of these schools have stepped on the field opposite an opponent. Both are fighting for a spot in the postseason tournament of the highly competitive Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference.

PLAYOFF PICTURE TAKING SHAPE
• With seven games left in the regular season, the conference playoff picture is starting to take shape. Six teams qualify for the PSAC Tournament. Right now, three of those six spots are seemingly set as the top three teams in the league have separated themselves from the rest of the pack. That leaves five teams fighting for the remaining three spots.
• West Chester is one of those five teams lumped in together, and though they would be on the outside looking in if the season ended today, the Golden Rams play three of the other four schools in the mix. Additionally, West Chester has also beaten all four of the other schools already this year. Unfortunately, the Bloomsburg win was a non-league match. The Huskies beat the Golden Rams in the game that counted in the league standings.
• Everything is still very much in front of them as they come down the final stretch of the schedule. West Chester is 3-3 in one-goal games and has played two of the top teams in the standings to a one-goal outcome. The Golden Rams were just on the wrong side of those two outcomes.
• Millersville's season has very much mirrored that of West Chester. The Marauders are one of the five teams fighting for three spots in the tournament. The 'Ville has also played quite a few one-goal games, including four against teams ranked in the Top 6 in the country at the time.
 
WEST CHESTER vs. MILLERSVILLE – THE ALL-TIME SERIES
• West Chester holds a 16-11 mark against Millersville in the all-time series, including winning seven of the last 10 meetings between the rivals. The Golden Rams came out on top, 1-0, at Vonnie Gros Field on Sept. 17. In fact, the last five contests between these two have been one-goal games, including three of those five seeing just one goal scored in the tilt.
 
WEST CHESTER vs. MILLERSVILLE (SEP. 17, 2024)
• Adriana Palumbo scored the game's only goal in the third quarter to lead sixth-ranked West Chester to a 1-0 victory over visiting Millersville in a non-league field hockey contest at Vonnie Gros Field Tuesday.
 
West Chester avenged a 1-0 defeat at the hands of Millersville from a year ago at Vonnie Gros while improving its winning streak to four games following a season-opening loss.
 
Palumbo swept a crossing pass from Paige Wolfe into the cage on the near post in the 35th minute, and goalkeeper, Ryan Curley, made the tally stand as she completed her second shutout in the last three games.
 
The Golden Rams outshot the Marauders, 16-3, and held a 9-2 advantage in corners for the game. Curley was called upon to make two brilliant saves off one of Millersville's corner opportunities. They were the only two saves she was called on to make. Her counterpart for Millersville, Kerstin Koons, made seven stops in the Marauders' cage.