WEST CHESTER, Pa. (November 5, 2010) -- Sacrifice along with many other words of inspiration were written on the legs and arms of the Kutztown University women's soccer team in red and black ink.
The Golden Bears turned in an effort to be proud of during a 1-0 setback to California (Pa.) in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) semifinals Friday afternoon at West Chester's South Campus Field. (BOXSCORE)
“Before the game we decided that we were all going to sacrifice our bodies and play hard this game,” Kutztown sophomore defender Kelly Rozembersky (Roxbury, N.J./Roxbury) said. “I think that with every game we grow and we're all working really well together.”
Even though it was a disappointing result, the Golden Bears (14-4-2 overall) went down attacking. After Cal's Kayla Fransko scored in the 54th minute, KU's fighting spirit never ceased and with each shot, their untiring efforts were showcased as they applied plenty of pressure late in the game.
Carolynne Kahl (Bethel, PA/Tuplehocken) almost had the equalizer for the Golden Bears. One of her shot attempts appeared destined to land in the left side of the net, but the ball shifted and ricocheted off the left post, leaving a loud “ding” sound that echoed across the field.
“We've been down 1-0 nothing in games before, we know how to dig back, and we knew that it was possible,” Rozembersky said. “We never gave up, we were just unfortunate.”
The Golden Bears outshot the Vulcans, 8-5 in the second half. In addition to Kahl's great chance, Crystal Zerbe (Myerstown, PA/Tulpehocken), Stephanie Borland (Hagerstown, MD/Hagerstown), and Shannon Pennock (Mansfield, N.J./Northern Burlington) also came close to scoring for Kutztown.
During the first half, the Golden Bear defense helped keep the game scoreless at intermission. Rozembersky had the play of the first half as her swift sliding tackle in the Vulcan box came at the perfect time. Her effort as she sacrificed her body prevented Cal from scoring early in the first half. The Vulcans challenged KU's defense but Chelsea Deeter (Langhorne, PA/Neshaminy), Laura Hearn (Wall, N.J./St. Rose), Rozembersky, and goalie Casey Behrendt (Palmyra, PA/Palmyra) guarded the net like soldiers protecting Buckingham Palace.
“Cal's a great team and when you get to this stage of the season you have to play great,” Kutztown head women's soccer coach Erik Burstein said. “We didn't play great, but we played well. In the second half we started to take chances, things started to happen, and when we started to believe we played a lot better.”
Cal advances to the championship where it will play West Chester, a winner over Slippery Rock on penalty kicks, for the PSAC title Saturday morning at 11 a.m.
As the buzzer sounded ending the game, the Golden Bears held their heads high because they know they will play at least one more match next weekend. KU should receive a bid to the NCAA Division II Atlantic Regional for the second straight season. The Golden Bears were ranked fourth in the latest regional rankings. The selection and pairings will be announced Monday night, on ncaa.com at 7 p.m.
The NCAA tournament is a brand new season. What games a team won or lost, or how one gets there is no longer relevant. The only thing that matters is staying there, and KU has its eyes on the prize. Kutztown doesn't know what the fate of its season holds, but the Golden Bears plan to continue to use teamwork, and persevere through adversity against whatever opponent gets in their way.
“There's not much that we're going to change going into the NCAA tournament,” Burstein said. “We just have to stay healthy and well rested. “We're going to give the kids sometime to get relaxed and get ready to play the next game.”
--KU--
