KUTZTOWN, Pa. -- For the first time in 2023, the Kutztown University women's soccer team (14-1-5, 12-0-4 PSAC East) was defeated, falling to Gannon (15-3-2, 13-2-1 PSAC West) 2-0 in the PSAC Semifinal Friday night at a chilly Keystone Field.
The potent Gannon offense, which leads the PSAC in goals, was helped by a couple of self-inflicted mistakes by the Golden Bears in their defense end. Brooklyn Respecki intercepted a pass out of the back in the 13th minute and slid it to Grace Emanuel to open the scoring for Gannon. Then in the 35th minute, KU was playing out of the back again and its pass was picked off by Logan Nicklas, who scored to make it 2-0 Gannon. Despite playing on the front foot for the majority of the second half, the Golden Bears struggled to generate any real scoring chances as the Golden Knights held on for the 2-0 win.
Gannon outshot the Golden Bears 13-8 in the game, but KU had the 4-3 shots on goal advantage. KU also had the advantage in corner kicks (4-1). It was a chippy game at times between the two sides, with Gannon committing nine fouls compared to KU's five. Both Joslyn Stoltz (Levittown, Pa./Calvary Christian Academy) and Gretchen Oslick saw yellow cards for rough tackles in the contest.
Katelyn Economopoulos (Grantville, Pa./Lower Dauphin) led the way for KU with three shots, two of which were on goal. She arguably had the Golden Bears' best look at goal, but her shot from distance was well saved by Morgan Sinan. Lexy Endres (Medford, N.J./Shawnee) and Maura Day (Huntington Valley, Pa./Abington) were the other Golden Bears with a shot on goal, while Stoltz and Isabella Rossetti (Cherry Hill, N.J./Cherry Hill East) had one shot each. Respecki and Emanuel combined for nine of Gannon's 13 shots in the game.
Cassandra Baker (Harrisburg, Pa./Central Dauphin) got the start in goal for KU, but was replaced by Emme Wolfel (Pottstown, Pa./Pottstown) in the second half, who made one save. Sinan made four saves for Gannon.
The Golden Bears' spectacular unbeaten run comes to an end at 19 games, the longest in program history. It's also the first time all season that KU allowed two or more goals in a game. It's only Gannon's second-ever victory over the Golden Bears in 13 attempts dating back to 2010. The Golden Knights will play West Chester in the PSAC Championship, on Sunday, Nov. 12 at Keystone Field. That kick-off is set for 1 p.m.
The Golden Bears still have the NCAA Tournament to look forward to. KU entered the weekend No. 2 in the Atlantic Region and is sitting pretty for the program's third straight berth to the big dance. Last season, KU made a run to the Atlantic Region Final despite being eliminated at the first time of asking in the PSAC Quarterfinal. The Golden Bears will learn their fate in the NCAA Selection Show, which will take place Monday, Nov. 13 at 6:30 p.m. That will be streamed on NCAA.com.
