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KUTZTOWN, Pa. -- The last time the Kutztown University field hockey team faced West Chester on Vonnie Gros Field, they pulled off a stunning upset of the top-ranked Golden Rams in the 2019 Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) semifinals.

The Golden Bears are hoping history will repeat itself later today at 4 p.m. when they travel to West Chester for a nationally-ranked matchup in the PSAC quarterfinals. West Chester enters this year's tournament as the third seed, while Kutztown may be flying under the radar as the sixth and final team in, despite playing some of its best hockey of late.

Since a tough 5-1 loss at Millersville, Oct. 6, KU has posted a 3-4 record, but three of those losses came by one goal --two in overtime-- to top-five nationally ranked teams and the other came to a desperate IUP squad playing for its postseason lives. The Golden Bears took No. 1 Shippensburg to overtime, Oct. 9, before falling 2-1. They dropped a hard-fought 1-0 decision at No. 5 East Stroudsburg, Oct. 13 and had No. 2 West Chester on the ropes late in regulation just last Wednesday before the Golden Rams tied the game on a penalty stroke goal with 1:48 remaining and captured the win late in double overtime.

Kutztown relishes the underdog role and will be a tough out for any opponent. This is the team's third straight trip to the postseason under head coach Marci Scheuing and fourth since 2015. In 2019, Kutztown defeated Mansfield in the quarterfinals for its first PSAC tournament victory since 1988 and backed it up with the overtime upset of West Chester, which ended up being the Golden Rams' only loss in a national championship season. KU fell to East Stroudsburg, 1-0, in just its second championship game appearance ever (1988).

Graduate student midfielder Alyssa Donato (Cedarville, N.J./Cumberland Regional) leads the Golden Bears in goals (13) and points (31), while her three game-winning goals are tied for the team lead with Rachel Dusman (Chambersburg, Pa./Chambersburg). Dusman has a team-high 75 shots and ranks second on the team in both goals (10) and points (24).

Kutztown has played fantastic defense in front of goalie Katie Dotterweich (Douglassville, Pa./Daniel Boone), ranking eighth in Division II in goals against average (1.20) and ninth in scoring margin (1.60). Dotterweich holds DII's ninth-best GAA at 1.17 and is 16th in save percentage at .765.

While the Golden Bears are in search of their first PSAC title, their quarterfinal opponent has climbed that mountain four times, all within the last eight seasons. West Chester, the 2017 and 2018 conference champion was attempting to "three-peat" before Kutztown ended its run in 2019.

The Rams (13-3, 7-2 PSAC) are the nation's fourth-highest scoring team at 3.79 goals per game and feature a pair of standouts in freshman midfielder Valerie van Kuijck and graduate student defender Caitie McNamara. McNamara leads the PSAC and ranks third nationally with 0.69 assists per game, while her five defensive saves are second-most in the PSAC and tied for fifth in DII. At the offensive end, van Kuijck is third in the conference and fourth nationally in both goals per game (1.00) and points per game (2.38).

Tickets for today's game can be purchased at the gate. Adult admission is $10, students are $5 and students from PSAC member institutions are free with valid ID. No comp tickets are available and only PSAC passes will be honored. The game will be carried live on the PSAC Sports Digital Network (link above) for fans unable to attend.