WEST CHESTER, Pa. -- Alyssa Donato (Cedarville, N.J./Cumberland Regional) and Olivia Blasone (East Berlin, Pa./Bermudian Springs) scored fourth-quarter goals as third-ranked Kutztown nearly overcame a three-goal deficit against top-ranked and unbeaten West Chester in a 3-2 Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference defeat Wednesday afternoon.

Kat Roncoroni and Caitlin Kelly tallied for the host Golden Rams in the opening 18:19 as they built a 2-0 lead while outshooting Kutztown 8-1 in the first half.

West Chester (17-0, 9-0 PSAC), which hadn't allowed more than one goal in a game this season, looked to put the Golden Bears in a nearly insurmountable hole early in the fourth quarter when Marre Corver found the back of the cage off a corner to make it 3-0.

But much like they've done all year, Marci Scheuing's team refused to submit. Little more than two minutes after Corver's goal, Donato answered for KU (11-5, 6-3). The junior midfielder took advantage of a WCU infraction and carried the ball to the right end line off the restart before backhanding a shot short side on Golden Rams' goalie Claire Nelson.

Kerri Hanshaw (Collegeville, Pa./Perkiomen Valley) turned away Caitie McNamara off a Golden Rams' corner for one of her five saves with 6:35 to go, keeping it 3-1. Kutztown got its shot at a corner soon thereafter, but Nelson stopped Donato's attempt from the top of the circle and Emma Velez knocked aside Leigh Roselli's (Romansville, Pa./Bishop Shanahan) follow up attempt at the right post.

Less than 20 seconds later, the Maroon and Gold were rewarded. On the ensuing restart from the 25-yard line, All-America midfielder Mackenzie Fuhrman (Lancaster, Pa./Manheim Township) raced by a defender to the right side of the shooting circle and blasted a pass across the goal mouth where Blasone tipped it past Nelson to bring Kutztown within a goal with just over five minutes remaining. The goal was Blasone's first in a Kutztown uniform.

Fuhrman's assist was the 28th of her career --and team-leading eighth this season-- tying her for third in program history with Shannon Daggett, who registered 28 helpers between 1994-97.

Despite solving Nelson, who had only given up five goals in 16 games coming in, twice, the Golden Bears ran short on time to find the equalizer.

West Chester finished with a 16-6 shot advantage and doubled up the Bears in shots on goal, 8-4. Roselli's late fourth-quarter corner was KU's only attempt of the game, while the Golden Rams had six. West Chester avenged last year's 2-0 loss at Kutztown when it was also the top-ranked team in NCAA Division II.

Kutztown closes the regular season Saturday at 11 a.m. against Indiana (Pa.), which will come into Andre Reed Stadium desperate for a win with its postseason hopes on the line. There will be plenty of urgency for the Golden Bears, too, who now know they'll face Mansfield in the PSAC quarterfinals next Tuesday.

The Golden Bears can lock up the No. 4 seed and a home quarterfinal game with a victory over IUP or Mansfield loss to West Chester.