Box Score
BLOOMSBURG, Pa. – Mackenzie Gebhardt scored the game's only goal 21:25 into the first half, as Bloomsburg topped East Stroudsburg University by a 1-0 final on Sunday to end the Warriors' season in the second round of the NCAA Division II tournament.
The Huskies (16-2-3) advance to take on West Virginia Wesleyan in the Atlantic Region final next Friday. ESU, which qualified for the national tournament for a fifth-consecutive season, wraps up the year with a final record of 15-7-1.
"To go a goal down against them early made it extremely difficult," head coach
Rob Berkowitz said. "We were chasing the game the rest of the way, but I thought the team responded well in the second half. We created some chances, we just weren't able to find a goal."
The Warriors outshot the Huskies by a 7-5 margin in the second half after trailing 11-1 at the intermission. Sophomore
Haley Skove came closest to an equalizer in the 50th minute, firing a shot from the center of the box which beat goalkeeper Jenna Hawkins but bounced straight off the crossbar.
ESU had two additional scoring opportunities off free kicks in the 75th and 81st minutes. The first attempt by junior
Jessica Woodbyrne was sent wide, and the second went into the arms of Hawkins. Senior
Alex Pickett had the final shot on goal for the Warriors with 8:21 remaining, but her low attempt was stopped by Hawkins in the middle of the goal.
Pickett concludes her ESU career ranked sixth in team history in both goals (31) and points (81). A three-time All-PSAC and two-time All-Region honoree, she had four of ESU's eight shots on the afternoon.
Already missing their second leading scorer in junior
Monica Wood (8 G, 2 A) due to injury, the Warriors were forced to further shuffle their lineup after freshman Phillipa Borjesson was lost in the opening 10 minutes of the first half.
"We didn't get the result we wanted, but it certainly wasn't for a lack of effort," Berkowitz said. "The team fought as hard as they could, even with a lot of players asked to play out position. I give a lot of credit to our athletic training staff for piecing everything together these last few weeks."
The Huskies controlled play for a majority of the first half. Gebhardt's goal, her fifth of the season, was tucked into the right corner following a cross on the right side by Nicole Verano. Bloomsburg, ranked No. 5 in the most-recent United Soccer Coaches DII national poll, picked up its 15th shutout in 21 games this season.
Nicole Abbott,
Carly Abbott and
Danielle Curran join Pickett in wrapping up their collegiate careers, with the Warriors continuing a run of unprecedented success during their four years with the program.
"The senior class has contributed so much, making four conference finals and advancing past the first round of the NCAA tournament all four years," Berkowitz said. "We lose some key players next fall, but it's something that we've dealt with before. We have a good core group coming back that's gained some valuable experience. The future looks good."
