CLARION, Pa. – Clarion (3-10-2, 3-7-2) displayed resilience against surging Slippery Rock (10-3-0, 10-1-0) before falling 1-0 by a late score on Wednesday evening at Memorial Stadium.
The Golden Eagles' offense pressed early with two shots by
Evelyn Cook and
Paige Brewer in the opening minute. The defense then held up against a barrage of shots as Slippery Rock put on pressure.
Sage Sherk was a brick wall in the net as she made multiple saves.
Clarion struggled to get into the offensive side of the field against the Rock's defense until late in the first half, when
Nadia Gill and Cook got off shots. With both goalies standing tall in the nets, the score was even 0-0 after 45 minutes of play.
The second half started with a massive save by Sherk as Slippery Rock had a defenseless shot from point-blank range. The Golden Eagles' defense continued to hold the Rock at bay, only allowing two shots on goal. Clarion had a chance in the 62nd minute as Cook had a clean shot that a defender just saved.
Clarion continued to struggle to create offense as the Rock's defense stiffened, but they still put on pressure by getting into the box. In the final eight minutes,
Nathalie Twigg made the defensive play of the night with a massive save inside the box, preventing a possible goal. Then Slippery Rock's Libby Zacharyasz scored in the 84th minute off assists from Marissa Salisbury and Lillian Snyder.
Sage Sherk anchored the defense, finishing with nine saves out of a total of 24 shots.
Nadia Gill and
Paige Brewer were able to push with scoring opportunities, and
Evelyn Cook got a shot on goal.
