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PSAC Tournament at ESU
Friday: 1pm - ESU 3, California 2
Friday: 3:30pm - Kutztown 4, West Chester 2
Saturday: 6pm - PSAC championship game

Tickets: $7 for adults, $2 for students (PSAC students are free with valid student ID)

Box Score  l  Photo Gallery

EAST STROUDSBURG - East Stroudsburg University scored two goals in the final 10 minutes to rally past California for a 3-2 win and a spot in the PSAC women's soccer championship game on Friday afternoon at Eiler-Martin Stadium.

ESU (19-1) won its 19th straight game and advanced to the championship game for the first time since 1998, getting a game-tying goal by senior forward Courtney Keller with 9:47 remaining before a California own goal with 5:01 left put the Warriors ahead, 3-2.
 
The Warriors advance to play Kutztown in the PSAC championship game on Saturday at 6 p.m. The Golden Bears posted a 4-2 win over West Chester, getting two goals and an assist from Sam Costello, the PSAC Athlete of the Year. Kutztown is looking for its PSAC title in school history and has been runner-up in 2004, 2005, 2009 and 2011.

ESU will play for the third PSAC championship in program history, previously winning in 1994 and 1997. Kutztown handed the Warriors their only loss, 1-0, in the season opener on Sept. 4.
 
ESU, ranked No. 3 in this week's NSCAA Division II poll, survived a rough start after scoring the game's first goal to knock off California, which had won two of the last three PSAC championships.

Junior forward Sammi Jo Hughes gave ESU a 1-0 lead 4:08 into the game, finishing a rebound after sophomore midfielder Shea Neal had a header saved by California goalkeeper Meghan Jayes.

California (12-4-4) came back with two goals in the next six minutes - both by forward Janelle McCann - and held the 2-1 lead for the next 70 minutes. ESU had trailed for just 66 minutes during the 2014 season.
 
With the wind playing a significant factor, ESU held a 10-1 advantage in shots in the second half going with the wind. The Warriors outshot Cal, 8-7, in the first half and held an 18-8 margin in the game.
 
Freshman back Amanda Vojta assisted on Keller's game-tying goal in the 81st minute, playing a long pass from the right wing into the six-yard box, where Keller ran onto the ball and headed it past Jayes to tie the game at 2-2.

The Warriors took the lead less than five minutes later, when California back Megan Politowski headed the ball back past Jayes, who was coming up to meet it.

Cal's McCann was sent off in the 82nd minute with her second yellow card of the game, after Keller's game-tying goal and before the winning goal.

Vojta's assist was her 16th of the year, setting ESU's single-season record. Jenn Russo had 15 in 1995 and 14 in 1994.

ESU freshman goalkeeper Jules Harris, the PSAC leader in goals against average (0.44) and save percentage (0.896) entering the weekend, had five saves for the Warriors.

ESU scored the game-winning goal in the 70th minute or later for the ninth time in 19 victories this season.

The win sets up ESU's fourth appearance in the PSAC championship game in program history, and first since making the final in three of the conference's first five seasons - winning in 1994 and 1997, and finishing as runner-up in 1998.


GAME NOTES
* ESU's 19-game winning streak is the 2nd-longest in PSAC history.
* West Chester won 23 straight games in 2006, and California won 16 straight in 2013.

* Hughes' goal is her 7th of the season and the 15th of her career, the most among active Warriors.
* Keller's goal is her 7th of the season and the 12th of her career.

* ESU had a school record-tying 5-game shutout streak ended in the 7th minute.
* The Warriors had a shutout streak of 477:16 since late in the second half of a 2-1 win over Chestnut Hill on Oct. 22.

* ESU's longest shutout streaks since 2003:
477:16 - 2014
464:38 - 2010
404:42 - 2013
384:19 - 2011

* ESU advanced to the semifinals with a 5-0 win over IUP on Tuesday.

* ESU entered the weekend ranked No. 1 in the official NCAA DII Atlantic Region rankings. West Chester is #2, Kutztown is #4 and California is #8.  The top 6 teams that comprise the Atlantic Regional will be announced on Monday night at 7 p.m.

* ESU is ranked No. 3 in the NSCAA DII poll for the 2nd straight week, and the top 10 for the 5th straight week.
* There are 228 schools that sponsor women's soccer at the DII level.
 
* ESU head coach Rob Berkowitz was named PSAC Coach of the Year on Wednesday. ESU had a PSAC-best six all-conference selections in So. M Shea Neal and Sr. B Lexie Peveraro (1st team), Sr. F Courtney Keller, So. B Laurel Neira and Fr. GK Jules Harris (2nd team) and Fr. B Amanda Vojta (3rd team).

* ESU improves to 4-1 in PSAC Tournament home games.
* ESU improves to 8-6-2 in all PSAC Tournament games (11th appearance - 2 championships - 1994, 1997)
 
* ESU is in the PSAC Tournament for the 5th time in 8 years under Berkowitz, and advanced to the semifinals for the 4th time (2007, 2008, 2012, 2014)

* Friday's two games are the PSAC's combined highest-scoring semifinals (11 goals) since the conference went to a two-semifinal format in 2001. There were 10 combined goals in semifinals in 2003 and 2011.

* ESU improved to 2-0 this year when trailing at halftime. The Warriors were 2-28-7 when trailing at half in Berkowitz's first 7 years.
* ESU remains 56-0-4 under Berkowitz when leading at halftime (10-0 this season).