Sports

Clarion comes up short against Kutztown

The Clarion Golden Eagles women’s soccer team defeated Millersville 1-0 on Friday. The win was their fourth PSAC victory which sets the school-record for PSAC wins.

Freshmen Jordan Bahr received a cross from senior Jill Miller from the left side of the field.

Bahr then volleyed the ball from the right side of the goal and finished just above the goalkeeper in the 24th minute.

The goal was Bahr’s third of the season. Bahr and fellow freshmen Amanda Lewis have produced seven of the 15 goals this season.

“Coming into the job late after the recruiting year was finished meant the freshmen class was a total unknown,” head coach Rob Eaton said.

“For Jordan to contribute three goals, as well as Amanda Lewis contributing four goals, it has really taken the burden off of Jill Miller’s shoulders, and bodes well for future
years.”

Senior goalkeeper Jenna Kulik got her third shutout of the season and 11th of her career. Millersville (1-7-1, 0-5-1 PSAC) had 11 shots, but only five hit the target.

“Jenna continues to pull off a goal saving effort each and every game,” Eaton said.

“She is performing very consistently, and has been a great confidence boost at the back of our defense.”

Clarion (4-3-3, 4-2-2 PSAC) is unbeaten in five consecutive games.

“I think the main reason we are playing so well this year has a lot to do with our new coach,” said Miller.

Coach Eaton is in his first year at Clarion, but brings a lot of experience to the team.

“He came in and really made the team believe that we could turn the whole program around. He taught us how to play as a team, which was probably one of the most important
things we were missing.”

The Golden Eagles dropped their first match in six games this past Saturday at No. 13 West Chester 4-0.

The last loss for the team was September 18.

West Chester (10-1, 8-1 PSAC) outshot Clarion 18-4.

West Chester struck in the 16th minute to take the 1-0 lead.

They tallied goals in the 58th, 77th and 84th minute.

Sarah Oswald had one goal and one assist to lead West Chester.

“To play tough against West Chester was a tremendous feeling,” Eaton said.

“For long stretches we dominated the play, and the 0-4 result was actually a lot closer than the score-line suggests.”

Kutztown University defeated Clarion 1-0 on Tuesday October 12. The goal was scored in the 38th minute by Julia DiFerdinando.

Clarion’s Amanda Lewis almost equalized late, but her shot hit the goalpost in the final minutes of the game at Kutztown.

Clarion has five games left remaining on the schedule, and the team wants to finish the season on a good note.

“Sticking together as a team all the way to the end, staying healthy and playing as hard as we can every second of every game is important for us to finish on a high note,” Bahr
said.

The Golden Eagles look to back on the winning track when they return to action at 1 p.m. Saturday when they host Mansfield University.

It will be student appreciation day down at Memorial Stadium.