Erie, PA- The Mercyhurst Women's Soccer team departs for Kutztown, PA to participate in the PSAC semi-finals against West Chester University. After securing a quarterfinal round victory against Seton Hill, the Lakers will square up against the #2 seed in the East. Mercyhurst has an overall record of 16-2-1 and plans to use their balanced attack to advance to the PSAC championship game on Sunday.
Scouting West Chester:
West Chester University has a 12-3-3 overall record and a conference record of 11-3-2. A year ago, West Chester went 23-1-1 and advanced all the way to the NCAA Championship game, before losing to Western Washington University.
This year's squad doesn't score a ton, averaging under two goals per game, but they don't allow many goals either. Opposing teams are averaging under a goal a game against the West Chester defense. Similar to the Lakers, West Chester has multiple goal scorers. Led by Senior Faith Matter, who's tallied 9 goals and 9 assists on the year, the West Chester offense is one that brings plenty of post-season experience. On the defensive side, Grace Keen locks it down. With an 84% save percentage, Keen has only allowed 14 goals in 18 games.
Laker Leaders:
The West Chester defense, and their ability to keep the ball out of the net is really going to be tested going up against a Laker offense that is relentless in finding a way to put points on the board. Averaging nearly 3 goals a game, Mercyhurst has scored a total of 56 goals this year, while only allowing 10.
The offensive attack is led by the PSAC West Athlete of the Year, Karah Van Horn. The Granville, Ohio native is a prolific goal scorer who has recorded 8 goals to go along with 11 assists so far this season. Corinne Morgan has also been a force for the Lakers. As a true Freshman, Morgan leads the team with 11 total goals. Other key players who bring offensive fire power include Camille Bultel, Madison Hoover, and Teagan Mehalko. It is noteworthy that on any given night, Mercyhurst can find game changing production from numerous players. So far this season 14 different players have scored at least one goal.
Mercyhurst is equally as prevalent on the defensive end. Led by current and former defensive players of the year in Maddie Elbro and Taryn Baxter, scoring goals against the Mercyhurst defense seems to be a rarity. Posting 13 shutouts this season, now is the perfect time for the Laker defense to perform their best.
PSAC Tournament
With the remaining games being played at Kutztown University, the two semi-final games are scheduled for Friday, November 10th. The winners of the two games will play in the PSAC championship game on Sunday, November 12th. For a full look at the bracket please click here. To watch the games live and can visit here.
