Grantham, Pa (Nov. 4, 2017) - A late comeback attempt by #2 Alvernia University (13-8) fell short as #1 Messiah College (19-0) took a 2 -1 win to take the MAC Commonwealth Field Hockey title on Saturday afternoon at Messiah.
Messiah used back-to-back goals that occurred just over a minute apart to take a 2-0 lead in the first half.
Late in the 20th minute, Alvernia's defensive stand broke as Messiah's Kezia Loht broke the 0-0 tie. Loht picked up a deflection off of Alvernia keeper
Emma Beamesderfer, and sent a hard shot in off the left post.
Just over a minute later, the Falcons scored again. Messiah's Carissa Gehman gained control of the ball following a scramble in front of the goal. Gehman sent a shot in between a defender's legs and into goal off the right post.
The Golden Wolves held Messiah scoreless for the rest of the game.
Coming out of the half, the Golden Wolves came alive. Alvernia was able to gain offensive control of the ball, and put up a strong defensive stand.
Early in the second half, Beamesderfer made several spectacular saves to keep the Golden Wolves in the game and hold the Falcons to a scoreless second half.
With just over 13 minutes remaining, Alvernia was granted a penalty stroke opportunity. Junior
Taylor Dorrin sent a strong shot into the left side of the goal. Messiah's keeper, Shelby Landes, went with the ball, but Dorrin's shot was fast enough to get by Landes and cut Messiah's lead to 2-1.
Alvernia was able to control the ball in its offensive half several times in the remaining minutes of play, but the Golden Wolves were unable to get off any shots and Messiah held on for the 2-1 win.
Beamesderfer finished the day with nine saves.
With the win, Messiah earned its 11th consecutive MAC Commonwealth title, and its 16th in program history. The Falcons will move on to the NCAA DIII tournament, where they will look to defend their 2016 title.
???????Alvernia will look to extend its season with a possible ECAC bid, which will be announced on Monday.
#1 Messiah 2, #2 Alvernia 1
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