SLIPPERY ROCK, Pa. – No. 15 Kutztown delivered the performance of a lifetime Friday afternoon at Mihalik-Thompson Stadium, erasing a four-goal deficit to hand undefeated No. 4 East Stroudsburg its first loss of the season, 10-8, and punch their ticket to the PSAC Championship Game for the second time in three years. The Golden Bears (14-5) are now one win away from their first conference championship in 43 years.
Kutztown trailed 6-2 after the first quarter against the top-ranked team in the Atlantic Region and the fourth-ranked team in the nation. But instead of folding, the Golden Bears found another gear. They stormed back with a suffocating defensive effort and relentless offensive pressure, outscoring the Warriors (18-1) 8-2 over the final three quarters in the highest-ranked victory in program history.
The Bears came out firing with the first two shots of the game in the opening 90 seconds, but East Stroudsburg struck first at 13:19 and added another at 10:36 to jump ahead early. Kutztown finally broke through at 8:07 when senior defender
Rowan Hall (Sloatsburg, N.Y./Suffern) scooped up a loose ball off an ESU clear and found
Katie Yocum (Hanover, Pa./South Western) in the circle. Yocum buried her 63rd goal of the season—second all-time in a single season at Kutztown—to cut the deficit to 2-1. East Stroudsburg answered at 6:23, but Kutztown refused to go away. Just 58 seconds later, Yocum was awarded a free-position shot. Her initial attempt hit the post, but junior
Madison Wenner (Marmora, N.J./Ocean City) pounced on the rebound and buried it past the ESU goalkeeper to make it 3-2. The Warriors closed the first quarter with three unanswered goals, sending the Golden Bears into the second down 6-2 and staring at an uphill battle against an undefeated powerhouse.
What happened next will go down in Kutztown lacrosse lore. The second quarter belonged entirely to the Golden Bears, who exploded for five unanswered goals to take their first lead of the game. The dynamic duo of Wenner and Yocum ignited the rally at 13:40, with Yocum cutting through the circle and finishing her second goal off a Wenner feed. At 11:12,
Alexis Plesic (Hanover, Pa./South Western) found
Lauren LaMorte (West Islip, N.Y./West Islip) on the crease, and LaMorte rolled around her defender to bury Kutztown's fourth goal. Yocum earned her hat trick on a free-position conversion at 5:24, and Wenner tied the game at 6-6 with a fearless drive through traffic at 3:26. Then, with just 43 seconds remaining in the half, Yocum delivered the dagger—giving Kutztown its first lead of the day and sending the Golden Bears into halftime with a stunning 7-6 advantage after outscoring the Warriors 5-0 in the quarter.
East Stroudsburg made a goalie change to start the third quarter, and the Warriors came out desperate. They won the opening draw and tied the game just 30 seconds in, 7-7. ESU controlled the ensuing draw and charged downfield for another scoring chance, but senior
Summer Davis (Beach Haven, N.J./Southern Regional) had other ideas. Davis forced her third caused turnover of the game, pushing her season total to 57—a new program record for caused turnovers in a single season. After more than nine minutes of back-and-forth play, East Stroudsburg converted a free-position shot to reclaim the lead, 8-7, at 6:52. But Wenner answered right back at 4:25, completing her hat trick off a Yocum assist to send the teams into the fourth quarter tied at 8-8.
After 5:54 of tense fourth-quarter play, Kutztown finally broke through. Plesic drove toward the net and found
Isabella Montuori (Bohemia, N.Y./Connetquot) wide open in front, and Montuori buried it to put the Bears up 9-8. The duo connected again just over a minute later on a nearly identical play, extending the lead to 10-8 with 6:25 remaining. East Stroudsburg rallied with two shots over the next three minutes, but senior goalkeeper
Marisa Bragg (Ringoes, N.J./Hunterdon Central) rose to the occasion in the biggest game of the season, turning both away to preserve the two-goal cushion. The Golden Bears' defense locked down in the final minutes, holding the Warriors scoreless in the fourth quarter. It was Davis who sealed the victory, forcing her fifth caused turnover of the game in the final moments to run out the clock and send the Golden Bears into a frenzy of celebration.
Despite being dominated in the draw circle 16-4, Kutztown found ways to create possessions and capitalize on opportunities. The Golden Bears forced 14 turnovers while committing just 11, and dominated the ground ball battle 21-12. Senior goalkeeper Bragg was sensational, making 10 saves on 18 shots on goal while East Stroudsburg's goalies combined for seven saves on 17 KU shots. The Warriors outshot Kutztown 35-24, but the Golden Bears made their chances count when it mattered most.
No. 15 Kutztown will face No. 7 Slippery Rock in the PSAC Championship on Sunday at 1 p.m., marking the first meeting between the two programs since 2019. Slippery Rock advanced after knocking out defending PSAC champion West Chester, 13-7, in the first semifinal Friday afternoon. The Golden Bears have already made history this season, recording 14 wins: the second-most in a single season in program history. Now, they're one game away from even more: Kutztown's first PSAC championship title since the program was reinstated in 2008, and the program's first conference crown in 43 years.Â
Â
