No. 23 Slippery Rock women’s soccer fell to Millersville University in a chilly quarterfinal contest on Tuesday, 4-0.
It would not take long for the Marauders to find the back of the net, after midfielder Lia Francis opened the scoring less than four minutes following the opening whistle.
Despite the early disadvantage, Slippery Rock would threaten soon after when freshman Abby Paterline found herself one-on-one with Millersville goalkeeper Sabrina Zimmerman in front of the goal. A deflection from Paterline was met with an even better save from Zimmerman, keeping the Marauders in front.
Paterline, who recorded a goal and an assist in SRU’s previous contest against Seton Hill University, was named as one of the SRU Athletes of the Week on Monday.
Not long after, a lengthy pass from Millersville’s Melanie Love found Aubrey Strohecker ahead of a pair of SRU defenders, before a difficult shot ran past the outstretched hand of Leah Allman.
Shots from SRU’s Sophia Palmero and Libby Zacharyasz were met by Zimmerman, continuing her dominance between the pipes.
“We didn’t capitalize on those chances,” said Slippery Rock head coach Noreen Herlihy. “[Millersville] scored on their chances, and we’ll have to take it on the chin and look to regroup, which we will.”
Strohecker would again find herself behind the the White and Green defense following a perfectly-placed pass from Isabel Coy, before a strong shot found the left side of the net, putting Millersville ahead by three.
Despite the deficit heading into the locker room, the total shots were even at seven apiece between both teams.
A pair of difficult saves by Allman to start the second half kept The Rock in the game.
“She did very well to keep those two great saves,” said Herlihy. “The wind was a big factor today. [Millersville] was a little bit more direct in how they played, they’re shooting from distances, and the wind takes it.”
Millersville’s offense wouldn’t be able to keep silent for long, however, after a shot from Isabel Coy at 62:18 extended the lead to four.
Neither team would be able to find another score before the conclusion of the game, with Millersville coming out on top.
“We couldn’t be more proud. We’ve been on such a great run,” said Herlihy.
Despite the loss, Slippery Rock’s season still has life.
“We still feel our body of work that we’ve done in the entire season is good enough to get an NCAA [Tournament] bid,” Herlihy said. “We have to sit back now and wait.”
The Rock will find out on Nov. 17 if they made one of the five at-large bids into the tournament for the first time since 2019.
