Ticket Information: Tickets for the game will be $7 for adults, $3 for senior citizens and students with I.D., and $1 for kids ages 2-12.
Storyline: The Golden Bears clinched the third seed in the tournament following a 15-5 record in the regular season and have now qualified for the tournament five times in the past six seasons. California (PA) secured the sixth and final seed in the Atlantic Region following a 12-4-4 record this season. The winner will advance to the second round of the tournament to face second-seeded West Chester University (16-2-1) on Sunday, Nov. 16 at 12 p.m.
Last Time Out: The Golden Bears surrendered a late goal to fall 1-0 to top-seeded East Stroudsburg in the PSAC Championship game last Saturday, while the Vulcans were knocked out of the tournament by ESU in a dramatic semifinal contest.
Last Meeting: The Golden Bears met the Vulcans, who were ranked 16th in the nation at the time, on their home field in the seventh game of the regular season. KU triumphed 2-0, which kick started its program-record-breaking nine-game winning streak.
Atlantic Region Outlook: Four Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) teams earned entry into the field of 48 squads. East Stroudsburg was granted the No. 1 seed and will face the winner of No. 4 Notre Dame (Ohio) and No. 5 West Virginia Wesleyan. Notre Dame and W. Va. Wesleyan will play on Friday. The Warriors' second round game will be played on Sunday, Nov. 16 at 1 p.m.
National Recognition: The Golden Bears entered the national rankings four weeks ago at No. 23, and have since jumped up to No. 16 in the final poll of the season. 2014 marks the seventh consecutive year that the Golden Bears have been featured in the national poll.
(National Rankings) NCAA Tournament History: Kutztown has earned its second-consecutive berth into the NCAA Tournament and the fifth in the past six years. Last year, KU earned its first-ever win in the tournament with 2-0 victory over West Chester in the first round.
Familiar Faces: In last year's NCAA Tournament, the Maroon and Gold drew West Chester in the first round before falling to California (PA) in the second round. This time around, Kutztown will have to get through the Vulcans in order to meet the Golden Rams.
High Honors: Senior
Sam Costello (Westfield, N.J./Westfield) became the first Golden Bear in KU women's soccer history to be named the PSAC Athlete of the Year this season. KU had a PSAC-high three first-team selections, as juniors
Diana Malanga (Lavallette, N.J./St. Rose) and
Sam Busillo (Lincoln University, Pa./Avon Grove) joined Costello on the top team.
(All-PSAC Release) Streaks and Shutouts: The Golden Bears set a new program record with nine consecutive wins this season. The Kutztown defense recorded nine shutouts during the regular season and one in the postseason, including a four-game stretch where they outscored their opponents 10-0.
Costello Finishing Strong: After starting the year off without a point in the first six games, Costello has tallied at least one point in nine of her last 13 games. Costello leads the conference in goals per game (.706), points per game (1.71), and ranks third with four game-winning goals. She recently took sole possession of fourth place in school history with 73 career points and her 26 career points tie her for fourth in KU history.
Between the Pipes: Freshman goalkeeper
Deanna Messner (Willow Grove, Pa./Archbishop Wood) has been rock solid in net for the Golden Bears in her inaugural campaign, tallying 72 saves and eight shutouts. Messner's 0.76 goals-against-average is fifth best in the conference and her 15 wins this season is the second best in school history.
Scouting the Vulcans: The Vulcans will be making their sixth-consecutive appearance in the NCAA Tournament. In 2013, Cal-U received a bye in the first round and defeated KU 6-1 in the second round, before getting blanked 3-0 by Slippery Rock in the Atlantic Region Final.
The Vulcans earned four All-PSAC selections in forward Chelsea Crockett (1st team), midfielder Erin Hogan (1st team), defender Megan Politowski (2nd team), and forward Janelle McCann (3rd team).
McCann's 13 goals this season is the best in the PSAC and ranks 28th in the country, but the Vulcans will have to cope without her services in the first round due to an ejection in the PSAC semifinal setback. Crockett is not far behind with 11 goals, and her six game-winners are the best in the PSAC and ninth in the country.
Sophomore goalkeeper Meghan Jayes ranks sixth in the PSAC in goals against average (0.77).
Next Up: The winner will advance to the second round of the tournament to face second-seeded West Chester on Sunday, Nov. 16 at 12 p.m. The advancing teams from both Atlantic Region sites will play in the third round next weekend at the highest remaining seed. The Atlantic Region will also serve as host of this year's quarterfinals against the top-remaining seed from the East Region in the NCAA Tournament.
Scouting the Golden Rams: Senior midfielder Carly Yost and junior back Erika Schrock were named to the All-PSAC first team, and sophomore forward Kara Parvel was named to the second team. In goal, sophomore Alex Srolis has started all 19 games and is third in the PSAC in goals against average (0.68).
WCU ranks second in the PSAC in goals for (2.37 per game) and allowed (0.68 per game).
