GAME OVERVIEW· Millersville ended 2013 with the nation's stingiest defense, and it has continued in 2014 as the Marauders have blanked each of their first two opponents. The most recent opponent was No. 2 Shippensburg. The Marauders handed Ship its first regular season home loss since 2008--a streak of 49 games. Millersville has outscored its opponents 7-0 on the season and returns to Chryst Field at Biemesderfer where it has won 10 consecutive games and shut out its opponents for a streak of 537:59. Kutztown is upset minded after knocking off Bloomsburg in double overtime on a penalty stroke by Rayann Fink. It was Kutztown's second win over Bloomsburg in the last 31 years.
SERIES HISTORY· The series between Millersville and Kutztown dates back to 1975. Millersville dominating the early in the series, going 17-12-3 from 1975-2002. But from 2002-2011, Kutztown won 18 in a row. Millersville has turned the tables in the last two seasons. Coinciding with the Marauders' back-to-back trips to the PSAC Championship game are three consecutive wins for the Marauders. Two of those wins have come by shutout. The Marauders won by a 2-0 score at home last season espite owning a 22-5 advantage in shots and a 14-5 edge in corners. Kutztown managed just two shots on goal.
Champayne Hess and
Arianna Grays scored the goals for Millersville. Hess has four career goals against the Golden Bears.
THE LAST MEETING
· Champayne Hess and
Arianna Grays scored first half goals and the Millersville defense took care of the rest. The Marauders notched their ninth shutout and 16th win of the season in a 2-0 win over Kutztown. Kutztown's scoring opportunities were few. The Golden Bears took three consecutive corners 10 minutes into the second half. Of the two shots taken, one was blocked and the other was turned away by
Emily Litchford for a defensive save. Kutztown managed just one other shot on goal, and
Lauren Sotzin made the stop for her eighth shutout of the season and 16th since the start of 2012.
PRODUCTIVE START FOR YOUTZ
· In just two games, senior
Alicia Youtz has two goals and two assists for a team-leading six points. She scored two goals and an assist in the opener and then assisted on the team's lone goal against Shippensburg. Youtz is well on her way to a career year as a senior. After totaling one assist as a freshman and two goals as a sophomore, Youtz totaled five goals and five assists as a junior, ranking seventh on the team in points. Her 0.774 shots on goal percentage was fourth on team. Youtz started last season quickly as well. She scored a goal in the opener and assisted in the win over Mercyhurst. She had two goals and an assist in the first four games of 2013.
MAKING A DEFENSE· With career record holder for wins
Lauren Sotzin anchoring the defense, the Marauders have blanked both of its opponents in 2014, giving the team 14 shutouts in its last 24 games. Sotzin is six shutouts short of the Millersville record. Sotzin ranks first among all collegiate goalkeepers regardless of division in career save percentage (0.831) and goals against average (0.87). The runner-up for Sotzin's save percentage mark is Yale's Heather Schlesier at 0.797. Sotzin is the only collegiate player with a career goals against average under 1.00. No. 2 on the list is Dulcie Davies of Stanford (1.10). The separation is even greater among Division II keepers. The closest to Sotzin's 0.87 is Stonehill's Elizabeth Genovese at 2.15.
SCOUTING KUTZTOWN· Kutztown is entering its second season under Marci Scheuing, who led the program to a 7-10 record in 2013. Scheuing earned a master's degree from Millersville and is also married to former Millersville baseball player Matt Scheuing. After losing its opener by a 4-3 score, Kutztown topped Kutztown by a 4-3 score. Kutztown holds a 38-22 advantage in shots, averaging 19 per game. 28 of those shots have been on goal. Anna Behm leads the team with three goals, having scored at least one in both games. She has taken 15 of the team's 38 shots and placed 12 on goal. Behm was an All-PSAC selection as a freshman in 2012. Kutztown has already used three different goalkeepers. Kayla Denlinger started the opener and allowed two goals. Chardonnay Hope has been the most productive, playing 128:42 and stopping nine shots while allowing four goals.
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