West Chester - 2010 PSAC women's soccer champions
Story Courtesy of West Chester Sports Information
Box Score
West Chester, Pa. – Penalty kicks were the order of the weekend for West Chester University’s women’s soccer squad as the Golden Rams successfully defended their Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference title with a thrilling 4-3 verdict over visiting California (Pa.) in a penalty kick shootout at South Campus Field on a sunny, but cold Saturday afternoon.
West Chester and Cal each played 110 minutes of scoreless soccer, including two overtime periods, before the shootout finally decided a champion.
West Chester (17-1-2) won a PSAC record fourth conference championship and will most likely maintain its No. 1 seed in the Atlantic Region over second-seeded Cal (18-1-2), securing home field advantage for the first three rounds and the quarterfinals of the NCAA Division II Women’s Soccer Tournament, which begins next Friday. The field of 48 will be announced Monday evening at 7 p.m. The Golden Rams, who will host one of two three-team pods in the Atlantic Region, will receive a bye in the first round.
Sophomore goalkeeper Lyndsie Bernardini (Elmer, N.J./A.P. Schalick) was named the tournament most outstanding player on the strength of two spectacular saves, one in regulation time and the other in overtime, as well as her efforts during two penalty kick shootouts Friday and Saturday.
Senior co-captain Jessica Bennett (Littlestown, Pa./Gettysburg) secured title No. 3 in her four-year career by banging home the deciding kick in the fifth and final round of the shootout. Bennett’s blast was so hard that Cal goalkeeper Paula Jackson didn’t even move to try to save it.
Classmate Sarah Oswald (MaCungie, Pa./Emmaus) put West Chester up 1-0 after round one when her shot to the lower right side trickled through Jackson’s arms and into the net. Cal’s Carly Work missed wide left on the first shot of the shootout. Teammate Kristen Orrett then tied things up at 1-1 in the second round, and that is the way it stood after Jackson saved Devon Swaim’s attempt.
However, freshman Kim Shoup (Berwyn, Pa./Conestoga) converted her try in the third round for WCU, and Cal’s Sara Di Benedetto’s shot to the left side was knocked away by Bernardini.
Senior Lara Bodenstab (Unionville, Pa./Unionville), who had delivered the clinching goal on Friday, put West Chester up 3-2 in the fourth round with a successful blast to the right side of Jackson that froze the Vulcan’s keeper. Cal’s Tonya Fabian tied the shootout at 3-3 in the fifth round, before Bennett sent everyone home happy with her conversion that followed.