WEST CHESTER, Pa. – Senior Mackenzie Fuhrman (Lancaster, Pa./Manheim Township) ripped a shot that not only hit the back of the cage, but also sent the fourth-seeded Kutztown University field hockey team to a 3-2 overtime win at top-seed West Chester Friday afternoon in a Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference semifinal game.
 
The Golden Bears (14-5 overall) advanced to the PSAC championship game for the first time since 1988 and just the second time in program history after one of their most complete performances of 2019 on both sides of the field.
 
"We are beyond excited," said Fuhrman. "We just want to continue our season and now go back to the hotel and start planning for our next opponent. We're just so excited to be playing in the championship game and want to win it all!"
 
The Kutztown offense, led by All-PSAC First Teamer Fuhrman's goal and Third Teamer Alyssa Donato's (Cedarville, N.J./Cumberland Regional) two tallies, scored the most goals against the Golden Rams' (18-1) defense this season in also giving them their first defeat on the year. KU has five goals against West Chester in the two games played against each other this season. Every other team (17) has just seven. Senior goalie Kerri Hanshaw (Collegeville, Pa./Perkiomen Valley), who finished with six saves, and defenders Hadley Wiktor (Danville, Pa./Danville), Leigh Roselli (Romansville, Pa./Bishop Shanahan) and Juliana Borisow (Harleysville, Pa./Souderton) made it difficult on an explosive Golden Rams' offense all day long. West Chester entered the game with a conference-leading 88 goals scored, 31 more than the second-best offense East Stroudsburg, but KU did not give in.
 
It is the first win for Kutztown at West Chester since Oct. 13, 2015 and it snapped a 25-game home winning streak for WCU dating back to Oct. 5, 2017 (4-3 OT loss to LIU Post). It's the second straight season KU has beaten a top-ranked Golden Rams squad.
 
Roselli, an All-PSAC Second Teamer, had her hand in two of the three goals and now has six assists this season, tied for eighth-best in the conference. Senior Molly Bobjak (New Castle, Del./Padua Academy) also contributed an assist on the Fuhrman game-winner, and now has seven assists, which ranks seventh in the PSAC.
 
Donato opened the scoring when she stopped the rolling pass from Roselli's penalty corner pass and ripped a shot past West Chester's goalie for the game's first goal just 3:08 into the contest. The junior's goal gave the Golden Rams just their second deficit of the season. She then added her 10th goal of the year, tied for the team-lead, on a penalty stroke with just 3:06 remaining in regulation to tie the score at 2-2 and send the game to the overtime period.
 
The Maroon and Gold won a penalty corner a little over 2:00 into the overtime period. Roselli passed the ball across to the top of the circle where it was stopped then passed over to Fuhrman who ripped a one-timer that snuck by a few players and into the back of the cage as KU rushed the field in celebration.
 
"We knew if we capitalized on this corner we'd win, so it was important we executed our plan," said Fuhrman. "Leigh sent it in to Molly and then I one-timed it from her and it went in. It was a great setup."
 
Kutztown will next take on the winner of the second-seeded East Stroudsburg and sixth-seeded Millersville game, on Sunday, Nov. 10, at 12:05 p.m., in the PSAC Championship Game back at West Chester University. KU will be looking to win its first conference title.