KUTZTOWN, Pa. -- Just over 72 hours after meeting in the regular season finale, Kutztown and East Stroudsburg will face off on Keystone Field once again, Tuesday, May 2, at 4 p.m., in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference quarterfinals.

The stakes were high when the Bears and Warriors took to the field last Saturday --Kutztown's 16-14 win earning it the right to host the quarterfinal-- but they'll be even higher this time around with a spot in the semifinals up for grabs.

This is unchartered territory for Kutztown and second-year head coach Kristen Nicholson. The Maroon and Gold are making their first conference tournament appearance since rebooting the program in 2008 and have had an astounding eight-win improvement this season following a 4-13 campaign in 2022.

Kutztown showed that it could rise to the challenge in a pressure-packed situation, scoring the final three goals in Saturday's game to defeat the then 13th-ranked Warriors for just the second time in 21 games --and first time since 2013.

The Golden Bears feature the third-highest scoring offense in the PSAC at 14.06 goals per game. The talented sophomore duo of Sam Graf (Wayne, N.J./Wayne Hills) (49) and Lailah ElBouazzaoui (Bridgewater, N.J./Bridgewater-Raritan) (48) have already set new career-highs in goals and are rapidly approaching their first 50-goal seasons after putting up 40+ as freshmen. Graf also has the third-most draw controls in the league with 6.44 per game (103 total).

Junior attack Emma Meakim (Hatboro, Pa./Upper Moreland) leads all PSAC players with 57 assists and is second in assists per game at 3.56.

A major part of the formula for Kutztown's offensive production has been its protection of the ball. Kutztown's 16.56 turnovers per game rank fourth in the league.

The Bears' defense has excelled too, allowing just 153 goals, fourth fewest in the conference. Kutztown is one of six teams yielding less than 10 goals per game. Goalie Jenna Blesson (Sparta, N.J./Lenape Valley Regional) ranks fifth in the PSAC in goals against average (9.94) and seventh in save percentage (.454).

East Stroudsburg's Emily Mitarotonda is a force to be reckon with as the Golden Bears saw first hand last Saturday. She scored seven times and amassed 11 draw controls to carry the load for the Warriors. On the season, Mitarotonda ranks second in the conference with 66 goals and sixth with 5.12 draw controls per game.

Warrior goalie Riley DiFiore is among the league leaders in save percentage (second, .550), saves per game (fourth, 10.35) and goals against average (fourth, 9.23).

East Stroudsburg is the defending PSAC champion and reached the national championship game before falling to UIndy last season.

The winner of Tuesday's quarterfinal will travel to East No. 1 seed West Chester, where the unbeaten and nation's top-ranked Golden Rams will host the semifinals (Friday, May 5) and championship game (Sunday, May 7).

Kutztown or East Stroudsburg will face West No. 1 seed Seton Hill in the semifinals at 4 p.m. Friday. West Chester will take on the winner of West No. 2 IUP vs. West No. 3 Mercyhurst in the preceding semifinal at 1 p.m.

The championship game is scheduled for noon Sunday.

Tickets for Tuesday's quarterfinal game at Kutztown are $10 for adults, $5 for students (K-12) and free for students from PSAC member institutions with valid school ID. Tickets can be purchased online HERE, or at Keystone Field prior to the game.