The score of games can be deceiving sometimes. That is the case for the Rock’s 4-0 loss to No. 2 West Chester. The game was highly contested the whole way through, until some late breakdowns helped The Golden Rams secure the victory.
It took just four minutes for the 0-0 tie to be broken by West Chester’s Cameron Smith. It was the only goal that would be scored in the first three quarters of action. The Rock was able to hold West Chester offense to that one goal in the first half, as the defense was able to hold off The Golden Rams attempts for more.
In the first half, West Chester took ten shots and Rock goalkeeper Grace Burker was able to make four saves to keep the deficit at one. Burker had a good game and faced a lot of shots. The shot differential was ten to three in the first half.
Those three shots were only shots The Rock was able to take all game. West Chester played stellar defense, but so did Slippery Rock, and that was why the game stayed 1-0 until the fourth quarter.
The Rock’s offense was never able to get it going, and because of that the pressure was put on the defense to make stop after stop. In the second half, The Golden Rams took 13 shots, and eventually they were able to break through in the fourth quarter.
Valerie van Kuijck scored to put West Chester up 2-0, and after that they put two more in the net in next four minutes. The next came from Montana Ott and the final came from Sophia Morrison.
The big takeaway from the game though is the play of The Green and White’s defense. They were able to shut down West Chester’s explosive offense for three quarters, and that put them in the position to be able to win the game. A highly contested game against the No. 2 ranked team is big for The Rock.
Things don’t get easier for The Rock after this. Slippery Rock will face five more ranked teams over the course of the season. They’ll return to action to face Indiana (Pa.) on the road on Wednesday. The teams faced only ten days prior, and The Crimson Hawks were able to pull out a 5-1 win over Slippery Rock. Now, The Rock will have a redemption game as they look to get back to .500.
