Box Score
MANSFIELD, Pa. - Taking a 2-1 lead in the match with only seven minutes remaining, the Gannon women's soccer team was unable to seal the win over the Mansfield Mountaineers on Saturday afternoon at Karl Van Norman Field. Scoring with only 10 seconds remaining in regulation, the Mountaineers forced an extra session. The Mountaineers completed the comeback win with a goal in the 96th minute for a 3-2 win over the Lady Knights. The Lady Knights fall to 9-7-1 overall and 9-6-1 in Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) action and the Mountaineers move to 5-11-1 and 4-11-1 in the conference.
With this afternoon's loss, the Lady Knights will be on the road in the PSAC Quarterfinals as the seventh seed. The Lady Knights will travel to second-seed Slippery Rock on Tuesday, Nov. 5 for a quarterfinal meeting between the two teams with kickoff set for 5:30 p.m.
Leading the Lady Knights' offense were sophomore Mani Brueckner (Valencia, Pa. / Mars Area) and senior Maddi Buckham (Copley, Ohio / Copley) with an unassisted goal each. Senior goalkeeper Sarah Geffel (Apollo, Pa. / Kiski Area) compiled seven saves in the loss.
In the 33rd minute of play, the Mountaineers opened the scoring with a close-range shot by Danielle Shelters off a pass from Danielle Lentz to take a 1-0 lead.
With the clock ticking and the Lady Knights trailing 1-0, neither team managed to take control of the match with over 50 minutes of scoreless action. The Lady Knights tied the contest at 1-1 in the 84th minute with a deflected shot. Buckham ripped a shot from 20 yards with the ball deflecting in for her first career goal.
The Lady Knights managed to strike once again in just over a minute, Brueckner gave the Lady Knights a 2-1 lead in the 85th minute. The sophomore went in on a breakaway against Mansfield goalkeeper Alana Krieger, beating her from 10 yards to the left side.
Facing a one-goal deficit with just over five minutes remaining, the Mountaineers capitalized on three straight fouls by Gannon to move down the field. With only 10 seconds remaining, Karyn Anseimo took a free kick with the ball being knocked in by Danielle Murray to tie the contest at 2-2, forcing the extra session.
Only 34 seconds into the extra session, junior Justine Rodrigues generated the first shot of overtime, pushing her shot just high over the crossbar. The Lady Knights' second opportunity was blown dead with an offside call in the 93rd minute.
Following a shot by Mansfield, the Mountaineers buried their next chance of the extra period in the 96th minute. From 30 yards out, Kelsey Chapman put the ball into the left upper ninety to give the Mountaineers a 3-2 rally win with an unassisted goal.
Mansfield finished with a 19-15 advantage in shots. Gannon was unable to capitalize on seven corner kick opportunities compared to four for the host Mountaineers. The match was heavy fouls with a combined 33 whistles between the two squads. Gannon registered 17 with Mansfield accounting for 16.
The Lady Knights entered the match in sixth place with the Mountaineers tied for 14th, missing out on a spot in the PSAC Tournament. Since their first year of eligibility in the PSAC in 2003, the Mountaineers have yet to earn a berth in the conference tournament. California (Pa.) has already locked their spot as the top seed, while Slippery Rock will be the second seed.
Gannon concludes the regular season with the loss this afternoon. Next up, the Lady Knights will move on to the PSAC Tournament with a quarterfinal meeting with second-seed Slippery Rock on the road with kickoff set for 5:30 p.m.
