West Chester at East Stroudsburg
Game Details: Saturday, September 14th I 1:30 P.M.
Location: Gregory-Douds Field at Eiler-Martin Stadium (East Stroudsburg, Pa.)
Game Links: Live Stats I Watch
Series: 33-13-6
West Chester Links: News I Roster I Schedule I Stats
ESU Links: News I Roster I Schedule I Stats
Last Time Out
West Chester raced out to a 3-0 victory over Shippensburg in its PSAC East and home opener on a picture-perfect Wednesday afternoon at Rockwell Field. Kaitlynn Haughey (Philadelphia, Pa./Penn Charter) opened the scoring with a free-kick goal from distance in the 27th minute before Jacqueline Graham (Toms River, N.J./Toms River North) doubled the lead with a perfect chip over the charging keeper just three minutes later to give the Golden Rams a 2-0 lead at the break. In the 59th minute, Alyson Cutter (Warrington, Pa./C.B. South) stretched the lead to 3-0 after a pair of assists from Haughey and Faith Matter (Middletown, Pa./Middletown). West Chester continued to generate chances as the second half continued but found some bad luck along the way as the Golden Rams saw two shots hit the crossbar and another hit the post to keep the lead where it was at 3-0. Defensively, Grace Keen (Lincoln University, Pa./Avon Grove) made four saves on four shots in the first half and did not face a shot in the second half after the Golden Ram defense stiffened and prevented the Raiders from managing any strong chances after the halftime break.
Scoring in Balance
Offensive firepower has not been in question for the Golden Rams through their first two games of the season, as four different players have scored a goal, led by two goals already from senior captain Alyson Cutter (Warrington, Pa./C.B. South). Faith Matter (Middletown, Pa./Middletown), Kaitlynn Haughey (Philadelphia, Pa./Penn Charter), and Jacqueline Graham (Toms River, N.J./Toms River North) all have one goal to their credit on the year. Five Golden Rams have registered an assist already this season, as Matter leads the way with two, while Haughey has one along with Lauren Corless (Old Bridge, N.J/Old Bridge), Victoria Pungello (Jackson, N.J./Jackson Memorial), and Lauren Reimold (Chester Springs, Pa./Downingtown East).
Chasing History
Following the convincing 3-0 victory over Shippensburg in its PSAC East opener and home opener on Wednesday, head coach Betty Ann Kempf Townsley is now just one win shy of her 400th career victory as a collegiate head coach. When Kempf Townsley reaches this milestone, she will become just the 18th active head coach to do so at any level of NCAA women’s soccer and one of just four active DII coaches to reach this plateau.
Hello Coach
As Kempf Townsley goes for win No. 400, she will have to defeat a former player from her days at the helm of Seton Hall in ESU head coach Meagan DeWan. DeWan is a 2007 graduate of Seton Hall and was a four-year member of the Pirates, who earned Big East honors and led the Pirates in assists and points as a junior in one of Kempf Townsley’s final years at the helm of the Pirates. Kempf Townsley finished her career at Seton Hall with 103 wins in 13 seasons, with 26 of those wins coming with DeWan on her roster.
Road Trip!
Today is the first of a stretch, which will see West Chester play on the road three times in the next four games to end September. West Chester will play at home vs Millersville next Wednesday afternoon but will visit Mansfield on September 21 at 6 p.m. and Lock Haven on September 29 at 2 p.m.
Series History
West Chester holds a 33-13-6 lead in the all-time series vs. ESU after splitting the regular season series a year ago and defeating the Warriors in the quarterfinals of the PSAC Tournament once again. In 2023, West Chester defeated ESU by a 1-0 final on Rockwell Field before falling to the Warriors 3-0 in East Stroudsburg in early October, marking the first time since 2019 that the Golden Rams had lost to the Warriors.
Scouting ESU
East Stroudsburg also enters play a perfect 2-0 on the year after opening its season with a 2-0 victory over Slippery Rock on Sunday afternoon and defeating Bloomsburg in its PSAC East opener on Wednesday. On Wednesday, the first half was tight between the Warriors and Huskies as both teams managed eight shots, but the contest remained tied for 45 minutes. Bloomsburg had the better of the play in the second half, but it was East Stroudsburg who scored the lone goal of the game in the 78th minute after Maddie Lamb found redshirt junior Abby James in space to give the Warriors the 1-0 advantage they needed to open PSAC East play with a victory. Bloomsburg ended the match with an 18-13 lead in shots, although ESU was more accurate, ending the match with an 8-5 lead in shots on goal. Emmy Clarkson (2-0) registered her second shutout of the year and 16th of her career after making four saves to halt the Husky offense.
Offensively, ESU has seen three different players find the back of the net this year as James scored the winner on Wednesday, while Nia Chinapoo scored the winner vs Slippery Rock, and Sophia Lowery added another in the victory over Slippery Rock. Chinapoo and James also provided assists in the season-opening triumph, while Lamb added her first assist of the year on Wednesday. In goal, Clarkson appears to have picked up where she left off a year ago, starting the year with a pair of shutout victories, making five saves throughout those two triumphs.
