SLIPPERY ROCK, Pa. — Clarion (0-5-1, 0-2-1) battled hard in a 2-1 setback against Slippery Rock (3-2-0, 3-0-0) on Wednesday at James Egli Field, with goalkeeper
Sage Sherk's eight saves and
Sofia Barba's first-half goal standing out in the effort.
The match opened with Sherk under pressure early, turning away multiple attempts to keep the Golden Eagles level. Slippery Rock struck first in the 23rd minute on a finish from Marissa Salisbury, but Clarion showed resilience. Just over 10 minutes later, Barba equalized in the 36th minute, capitalizing on a corner kick after the initial shot was blocked and drilled the rebound into the lower left corner to make it 1-1 at the break.
Out of halftime, Sherk again came up strong with stops on Lindsey Price and Libby Zacharyasz to keep Clarion in contention. The Golden Eagles pushed forward, as
Marisa Colondrillo forced a save from goalkeeper Leah Allman midway through the half.
The deciding moment came in the 83rd minute when Miley Kariotis converted for Slippery Rock. Clarion continued to press late, with Colondrillo testing the net once more, but the Golden Eagles couldn't find a second equalizer before the final whistle.
Sherk finished with eight saves while facing 22 shots across 90 minutes. DiMauro contributed two shots with one accurate, and Colondrillo added two strikes, both of which were on goal.
