No. 6 West Chester Welcomes No. 3 ESU and IUP to Vonnie Gros Friday and Sunday

WEST CHESTER vs EAST STROUDSBURG
Game Details: 6:00 p.m. | Friday, Sep. 20
Location: West Chester, Pa. | Vonnie Gros Field
Game Links: Watch | Live Stats
Web Stream: Sports Fan Base Network (SFBN)
 
WEST CHESTER vs INDIANA (Pa.)
Game Details: 1:00 p.m. | Sunday, Sep. 22
Location: West Chester, Pa. | Vonnie Gros Field
Game Links: Watch | Live Stats
Web Stream: Sports Fan Base Network (SFBN)


GOLDEN RAMS CONTINUE CHALLENGING HOMESTAND WITH ESU AND IUP
• West Chester (4-1) hosts a pair of Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) opponents this weekend as part of its non-league slate while also concluding a four-game homestand when the Golden Rams host East Stroudsburg on Friday night under the lights before welcoming Indiana (Pa.) to Vonnie Gros Field on Sunday. West Chester opened the four-game stand with a 2-1 victory over then-No. 8 Bloomsburg. The stand continued earlier this week with a 1-0 triumph over current No. 8 Millersville on Tuesday.
• West Chester is ranked sixth in the country in the latest NFHCA Division II poll. The Golden Rams' opponent on Friday is also nationally ranked in that poll. East Stroudsburg, a national finalist a year ago, comes in tied at No. 3 with Assumption while IUP is unranked. West Chester debuted in the preseason poll at No. 6 and stayed there when the first in-season poll was released on Tuesday.  
• West Chester and East Stroudsburg are both 4-1 on the season and both lost to Assumption on the same weekend of the season opener. The Golden Rams are on a four-game winning streak since while ESU is on a three-game winning streak and coming off a 10-2 win over Saint Thomas Aquinas College earlier this week.

ABOUT ESU
• Reigning NFHCA National Player of the Year Jady van Gils posted a career day against STAC with a career-high three goals and one assist. Her seven points bested her previous high of five points set against Saint Anselm in the season opener. She paces ESU with 16 points through five games.
• Minke Klijn totaled two goals and one assist for five points – a career high. She now has 10 points this season on four goals and two assists.
• Allyson Forman tallied a goal and distributed a pair of assists for four points. She ranks second on the squad with four goals and has contributed a team-best four assists.
• ESU head coach Sandy Miller recorded her 500th career victory with the road win. Miller, who is in her 40th season, joins elite company as just the third NCAA Division II head coach and the 13th in NCAA history to reach the milestone.
 
ABOUT IUP
• IUP opened the 2024 campaign 1-2 with a win over Belmont Abbey and losses to then-No. 7 Mount Olive and No. 8 Millersville. The Crimson Hawks played at Pace on Saturday following an 11-day hiatus. Sunday's tilt against West Chester is IUP's second game in as many days this weekend.
• The Crimson Hawks, picked eighth in the PSAC preseason coaches poll, bring back the majority of their roster for 2024 under the direction of third-year head coach Kelly Terwilliger. Jess Davidson is a returning two-time All-PSAC and All-America selection looking to continue her production up front on attack. Davidson has 23 goals and 49 points in two seasons with IUP, ranking fourth in the league in goals/game in 2023. Sydney Schmouder chipped in three goals during her debut collegiate season in 2023.  
• Anita Planella is back in goal for IUP, starting in 15 of 16 games last season with 49 saves. Julia Barto, Taylor Yeager, Taylor Whitehead and Cat Zaladonis all return with game experience on the defensive end. 
 
WCU GOALKEEPER RYAN CURLEY NAMED NFHCA DIVISION II DEFENSIVE AOW
• Ryan Curley (Malvern, Pa./Great Valley), graduate student goalkeeper, added NFHCA Division II Defensive Athlete of the Week honors to her weekly list of accomplishments when the National Field Hockey Coaches Association announced its national award winners sponsored by Victory Sports Tours.
• Curley, who was also named the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference Defensive Athlete of the Week on Tuesday, picked up wins on back-to-back nights with a 5-0 shutout over Adelphi on the road Thursday and a 2-1 victory over No. 8 Bloomsburg at home Friday. Curley made seven saves in the two games while allowing just one goal in 120 minutes of action.
• Curley shutout Bloomsburg for 59 minutes, before the Huskies spoiled the bid in the final minute and put an end to Curley's 120 consecutive shutout minutes streak. Bloomsburg entered the game undefeated and averaging nearly five goals per game. But, Curley shut them down, including stopping a penalty stroke in the first quarter.