Box Score

Sunday (2 p.m.) ESU vs. Mercyhurst
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$10 adults
$5 children and seniors
Free - students with PSAC ID
no complimentary admission passes (except for PSAC all-event passes)

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EAST STROUDSBURG - East Stroudsburg University continued its pursuit of its first PSAC Tournament championship in school history with an 11-9 win over IUP in the semifinals on Saturday afternoon at Whitenight Field, setting up a match-up with defending champ Mercyhurst for the conference title on Sunday at 2 p.m.

ESU (16-2), the No. 1 seed, won its 11th straight game, surging past IUP (11-7) after falling behind 3-0 through the first 20 minutes.

The Warriors rallied to tie the game at 3-3 going into halftime, then shook off a goal nine seconds into the second half with an 8-2 run to pull away.

Five players scored two goals - freshman midfielder Hana Cicerelle (3 assists), senior attack Lauren Green (2 assists), junior midfielder Alicia Stratten (2 assists), sophomore attack Brooke Fritz and junior midfielder Chessie Rahmer. Sophomore attack TJ Jefferis also added a goal.

Freshman goalkeeper Tatyana Petteway, named first team All-PSAC and the PSAC Freshman of the Year earlier this week, made 10 saves and held IUP to 1-for-7 on free position shots. Petteway entered as the NCAA Division II leader in save percentage (.557).

ESU, under second-year head coach Xeni Barakos - the two-time PSAC Coach of the Year - will play in the PSAC championship game for the fourth time in program history. The Warriors were runner-up in 1985, 1986 and 2000.

ESU extends its school records for wins (16) and winning streak (11), posting its second straight win over IUP. The Warriors knocked off the Crimson Hawks, 16-8, to claim their first-ever PSAC regular season title last Saturday. IUP advanced with a 5-4 win over Slippery Rock in the first round on Tuesday.

Ally Burrows, named first team All-PSAC as a sophomore, had two goals and three assists to lead IUP. She entered with 52 goals and five assists this season.

The Warriors, who produced eight All-PSAC selections, got six goals and five assists from players who weren't named all-conference - showcasing the depth of an attack that has seven players with at least 20 goals and 30 points.

IUP controlled the game early, with Burrows scoring from Katie Martyn 3:32 into the game, setting up a goal by Lauren Robinson midway through the first half and taking a 3-0 lead on a goal by Kim Hooven, assisted by Kelly Shields, at the 14:01 mark.

ESU finally got on the board with 9:32 left in the first half, as Stratten scored from Cicerelle, for the first of three goals in a three-minute stretch. Jefferis scored from Stratten, and Green scored on an assist from Cicerelle to tie it at 3-3 with 6:32 remaining.

The score remained deadlocked at halftime, before Adriana Greco (38 goals, 11 assists) scored from Carissa Smith nine seconds into the second half after IUP won the draw control.

ESU answered back with two quick goals - Rahmer at the 29:17 mark and Stratten 15 seconds later, both on free positions - to give the Warriors their first lead of the game at 5-4.

IUP tied it on a free position goal by Martyn, the only time the Crimson Hawks beat Petteway on a free position shot, with 27:06 remaining.

ESU scored six of the next seven goals to take a commanding 11-6 advantage with 12:10 left, and then held off IUP down the stretch.

Cicerelle had the go-ahead goal, assisted by Green, and set up Fritz for a 7-5 lead at the 23:15 mark, with the goals coming 22 seconds apart.

Hooven scored from Burrows to get IUP within 7-6 with just under 20 minutes left, but the Warriors scored the next four in a five-minute stretch - Cicerelle on a free position, Rahmer from Green, Green from Stratten and Fritz unassisted.

It remained 11-6 for almost eight minutes, before Smith scored for IUP with 4:19 remaining. Martyn and Burrows scored to pull the Crimson Hawks within 11-9 with 2:03 left, but ESU ran out most of the rest of the clock to seal the victory.

ESU sophomore midfielder Emma Rufolo, the PSAC Athlete of the Year with 31 goals and 14 assists, didn't have a point but recorded one caused turnover and three ground balls.

Sophomore defender Natalie Jacobs had three caused turnovers and two ground balls, senior defender Bethany Cunningham had two caused turnovers and three ground balls, and Cicerelle and Stratten had two caused turnovers each.

The Warriors had 13 caused turnovers overall and forced a slight 19-18 edge in turnovers. ESU posted a 29-27 edge in shots, while IUP had a 12-10 margin in draw controls.

Free position opportunities provided much of the difference, with ESU going 3-for-8 and IUP 1-for-7.

IUP, which reached the PSAC Tournament for the sixth straight year and made its fourth semifinal in that stretch, was denied its first-ever PSAC championship game appearance.

Mercyhurst (13-4), the No. 3 seed, won the first semifinal with a 13-12 (OT) victory over No. 2 seed West Chester (12-5). The Lakers scored the final five goals to reach their fifth PSAC championship game in the last six years. They led 3-0, then fell behind 7-3, before rallying in the final 10 minutes of regulation. Carly Zimmerman, a first team All-PSAC selection, had the game-winner.

ESU's eight all-conference selections announced Thursday were Rufolo (Athlete of the Year), Rahmer and Petteway on the first team, with Green, Jefferis, senior midfielder Emily Fitzsimmons and senior defenders Cunningham and Kerry Mulcahy on the second team.

ESU won the first meeting vs. Mercyhurst this season, a 16-10 win on April 15 with Petteway making 22 saves.

In the NCAA Division II Tournament discussion, ESU was ranked No. 3 in the South Region in the most recent rankings released on Wednesday. The top six teams in both the North and South regions will be selected for the national tournament on Sunday night at 8 p.m. on ncaa.com.