While the Knights weren’t able to reach the next round, they achieved the next best thing come Monday when the NCAA awarded them a spot in the Division II tournament.

The Knights and the Warriors braced themselves last week for the tough battle that resulted in East Stroudsburg emerging 5-4 in overtime penalty kicks.

Gannon (13-3-2) held a definite edge over the Warriors throughout regulation. Outshooting East Stroudsburg (10-5-5) 6-2 in the first half and 16-5 in the second half was not enough for the Knights to finish with a win.

With both teams scoreless in regulation, the game went into two more scoreless overtime periods. Gannon finished with 27 shots in all, 10 of which were on goal.

The Knights’ saw their best scoring opportunity, in the 19th minute of regulation play when they created a one-on-one situation with the Warriors’ goalie Brittain Wagner. With a quick shot the Knights rang the ball off the post leaving the game stuck at 0-0 early in the first half.

With a regulation score of 0-0, both teams were forced to buckle down for two periods of overtime.

The PSAC quarterfinal game was sent into a penalty kick shootout.

East Stroudsburg won the game by hitting the mesh on all five shots while Gannon missed one of its five.

In the most recent poll, Gannon is ranked seventh in the National Soccer Coaches Association of America rankings, and is third in the NCAA Division II Atlantic National rankings.

After a tough loss Thursday, the Knights had one more shot to make their mark on Gannon history.

On Monday, the NCAA named Gannon a third seed, marking just the second time the Knights have made the tournament. They will play sixth-seeded West Virginia Wesleyan noon Friday at host West Chester University.

The Knights’ have the potential to continue achieving new highs in the 26-year history of women’s soccer.

BECKY HILKER

hilker001@knights.gannon.edu

The team, which fell out of the national rankings Tuesday and is third in the Pensylvania State Athletic Conference with a 6-3 record, lost to Mercyhurst University 4-2 Saturday.

The Knights had previously fallen to the PSAC’s Slippery Rock 2-1 on Oct. 24. The Rock sits in sixth place in the conference standings.

Despite their losses, the Knights secured their place in the upcoming Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC). The conference tournament final four will take place Saturday and Sunday at Mercyhurst.

Defender Jonathan Simmons said the team had a good opportunity coming up in the PSAC tournament to end the season on a strong note and build toward next year.

“I am very optimistic with our chances,” Simmons said. “I don’t see any reason why we wouldn’t play well and not play to our potential to compete on the national level.”

The Knights’ coach, Rob van Rheenen, said that the team’s strongest asset was cohesiveness, which he hoped would show in the team’s upcoming games.

“Playoffs are always unpredictable, any team can beat another team any day,” van Rheenen said. “Sometimes it is that little bit of luck you need but it will always take a team effort.

“We need to find a way to win our next games.”

Senior midfielder Tyler Hollingsworth said he was very proud of the team’s performance this season and looking forward to its next games.

“I think we’re the best team in the PSAC but it’s just mental,” Hollingsworth said. “I don’t see why we should lose.”

HIBA ALMASRI

almasri002@knights.gannon.edu

“We definitely came out hard to play,” senior Maggie Brinkman said.

Gannon quickly earned its only two goals of the game within the first five minutes of game play.

Earning her 12th Gannon assist of the season, freshman Mani Bruekner shot a corner kick directly to senior Jordan Rickan, who headed it straight into the net for her second goal of the season. Starting off strong at only 1:42 into the match, The Knights quickly showed they were ready for a fight.

Just 3 minutes, 1 second later, the Knights made it a 2-0 game. Freshman Sidney Morgan snagged her first career goal with a powerful shot to the bottom left side off a pass from sophomore Michelle Genetin. Not even five minutes into the game and Gannon was leading Shippensburg 2-0, but the Raiders were ready for a fight.

Entering the weekend the Raiders were ranked 10th and the Knights were ranked fourth in the NCAA Division II Atlantic Regional rankings.

Gannon was forced to play one man down after getting a red card late in the first half. The Knights defense and goalkeeper Brinkman kept Shippensburg off the board for the rest of the first half.

“No one gave up, everyone worked their butts off,” freshmen Sammy Valloud said.

Continuing to play with a man advantage for the last half of the game, the Raiders fought back early in the second half, with Cassie Armold scoring her first goal of the season to make it a one-goal game. The Raiders held an 8-4 shot advantage in the second half.

During the final 13 minutes of the game, Gannon shut down everything Shippensburg shot its way.

With three corner kicks and five shots on net, junior goalkeeper Sarah Geffel stood on her head stopping everything.

Shippensburg’s Kelly Bricker had a chance to tie the game at 2-2 with 39 seconds left when she shot high missing the net. “Hard work paid off for us in the end,” Valloud said.

Winning the game 2-1, Gannon let out a sigh of relief.

“It is not ideal to play a man down for a half,” Brinkman said. “I think my team showed character and perseverance.”

The Raiders outshot Gannon overall with a 15-12 lead, but only one out of those 15 shots slid by Brinkman and Geffel.

Shippensburg dropped to a 6-7-3 overall record, and Gannon, earning it second victory in a row, moved to 11-3-1 overall. Just one win shy of tying the 1998 record of 12 wins, the Gannon women’s soccer team of 2012 has its most wins in a season since 2008.

Preparing to continue the winning streak, the Knights take on sixth-ranked Slippery Rock University 4 p.m. Wednesday at Gannon University Field. Brinkman, Rickan, Sarah Deck, Jenny Jergel, Kara Prokopchak and Mary Reilly of the Knights are being honored as seniors prior to the home finale.

BECKY HILKER

hilker001@knights.gannon.edu

But when the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference-leading Vulcans came to play the fourth-place Knights for a critical game with conference playoff implications at Gannon University Field Tuesday, the Knights stepped up by blanking the Red Raiders 3-0.

“I think the girls wanted it,” coach Colin Petersen said. “Last year, they bullied us around pretty good so they wanted to prove themselves.”

Coming off a week-long hiatus, the rejuvenated Knights grabbed control of the game early. Outshooting Cal 7-1 at one point in the early going, Gannon snapped Cal’s scoreless streak 17 minutes into the game when sophomore Michelle Genetin  got behind the Cal defense on a throw-in from freshman forward Mani Brueckner.

“We definitely need the energy,” Brueckner said. “We knew this was a game that we should win and we could win and needed to win.”

From there, the defense took over.

Gannon (10-3-1, 7-3-1 Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference) stoned a Cal offense that had outscored opponents 10-0 in their previous three games.

Fifth-year senior Maggie Brinkman made seven saves and the Knights’ defense stopped the Vulcans’ diverse offense when it had to.

The Knights received an insurance goal early in the second half when Brueckner slid a free kick past a wall of defenders for her team-leading ninth goal of the season. Freshman Sammy Valloud helped ice the game with another score with five minutes remaining

Cal’s (11-3-1, 8-2-1) offense threatened throughout the second half but narrowly missed on a number of occasions, including hitting the post on a corner kick.

In defeating 15th-ranked California, the No. 22 Knights tallied multiple goals for the first time since beating Millersville University 6-0 on Sept. 28. Cal is tied with West Chester and Kutztown universities with 25 points for the PSAC top spot.

With 22 points, Gannon kept pace with Slippery Rock University for fourth place—the fourth and final spot to host a quarterfinal conference playoff game.

“In order for us to make a deep playoff run, we want that first home game, so we know that we need to win out,” Brueckner said. “Right now we can’t look too far ahead because we need to make the playoffs first.”

The Knights will travel to Shippensburg University 1 p.m. Saturday. The Red Raiders maintain a 6-6-3 overall record and 4-6-2 mark in the PSAC.

JOE CUNEO

cuneo001@knights.gannon.edu

On the other side entered Sammy Valloud streaking down the field.

Having competed against Valloud’s McDowell team while at Mars High School, Brueckner realized the irony.

“When she flew past the defenders, I just thought, ‘I’m really glad she’s on my team now and I don’t have to play against her anymore.’” Brueckner said.

The feeling is mutual for coach Colin Petersen, who has his Knights sitting with a 7-1 overall record as the No. 24 team in the latest Division II NSCAA Coaches poll, released Tuesday.

Coming off shutout wins over Edinboro and Mansfield universities Saturday, the Knights have now blanked every opponent but one this season. That game — East Stroudsburg University — represents the only blemish for the Knights, who are outscoring their opponents by a gaudy 22-3 margin.

This level of domination comes less than five months after the graduation of all-time leading scorer Amanda Sharbaugh.

In her place, a total of 12 freshmen now scatter Gannon’s roster, but it is Brueckner along with Erie natives Valloud and Kaitlyn Kissell who have found a niche as Gannon’s main scoring threats.

The twist: all three are freshmen who never as much took the same field as Sharbaugh.

“The frustrating part of coaching in college is that you realize every year that you’re going to lose part of your team and you don’t know what the team is going to be like year to year,” Petersen said. “I expected them to take this year to come and get used to the college game and the pace, but they’ve done a phenomenal job fitting in.”

Despite their inexperience on the field together, success is not new to these freshmen—nor are each other.

Last November, Kissell’s Villa Maria team met up with Brueckner’s undefeated Mars squad in the state playoffs. Mars crushed the Victors 8-0 en route to a runners-up finish.

Similarly, Valloud was captain for McDowell, a perennial AAA contender in District 10.

The list of superlatives is impressive for the teenage trio: Valloud leads the team with eight goals, while Kissell and Brueckner sit just behind with four and three, respectively.

But the Knights’ offensive identity wasn’t always clear.

“It was definitely a mystery to begin the season,” said Valloud, who also played club soccer with Kissell. “Colin said that everyone had to earn their spot and that it was up to us to prove ourselves.”

On Monday, Bruckner was named PSAC West Player of the week after she scored a pair of goals and dished out three assists to increase her conference-leading total to eight.

The honor was validation for Brueckner, who began the season as a midfielder. It wasn’t until she returned to her natural forward position against Bloomsburg University that she found the back of the net for the first time.

“I wasn’t as successful as a midfielder,” she said. “Playing under the lights, it gets your adrenaline going, and even before the game, I felt (Kissell and Valloud) had both stepped up their game and now it was my turn. I had to do what I was recruited for.”

Brueckner has since scored in each game but the loss and is just one assist short of Gannon’s single-season record in orchestrating the new and improved equal-opportunity offense.

“For the first time, we can thoroughly prepare for a team by playing 11-on-11 because we aren’t relying on just one player,” Petersen said.

The burden of picking up the slack offensively in the post-Sharbaugh era has also been mitigated thanks to the Knights’ stifling defense that has given up just three goals the entire season.

The Knights are now just one shutout within tying the school record for a season, despite being without starting goalie Sarah Geffel. She missed Saturday’s game against Mansfield due to personal reasons, but the Knights didn’t miss a beat without her—fifth-year senior Maggie Brinkman made four saves in her first action of the season after tearing her ACL in February.

“We definitely came into the season with the mentality to show them what it’s like to play for Gannon soccer,” Brinkman said. “With our team being so young, we made it a point to that every game is important and we don’t take any one lightly.”

But the Knights will have to continue to beat the odds, as they play without injured starters Erin Resosky (concussion) and Anna Colaizzo (knee) who are out for an indefinite period of time.

This, with the heart of the PSAC schedule looming, beginning with Millersville and West Chester universities this weekend.

With Friday’s game marking the halfway point of the regular season, the Knights are on pace to win more games than any other previous Gannon team.

But as these Knights have shown, they aren’t strangers to surprises.

“Whenever you lose players like Amanda Sharbaugh and Katie Urban, it’s going to have a big impact,” Petersen said. “It’s kind of funny though to see the player who you don’t know is going to come and step out of the shadow.”

JOE CUNEO

cuneo001@knights.gannon.edu

After 459 minutes and 31 seconds without giving up a goal, Gannon’s vaunte defense finally showed it wasn’t perfect.  East Stroudsburg University scored three goals en route to a 3-2 win against the Atlantic Region’s fourth-ranked Knights Saturday.

Kaitlyn Kissell, of Erie, scored her third goal of the season and cut the deficit in half with 2:03 left in the first half.  Then, with roughly 60 minutes of regulation left, another Erie native, Sammy Valloud, scored to bring the Knights within one goal.

But the rally came too little too late.  The Knights dropped to 5-1 overall and 2-1 in conference play.

The Knights will resume action 7 p.m. Wednesday when it hosts Edinboro University at Gannon University Field

ADAM BLAZEK

blazek005@knights.gannon.edu

So when the Gannon University junior began play in what would result in a third-place finish at Gannon’s Michael Corbett Invitational at the 5,800-yard Upper Course at Peek n’ Peak Resort, all she could do was smile.

“I just kept smiling and tried to stay positive while thinking about the shot I wanted to hit.” said Nagindas who carded a two-day total of 7-over-par after firing rounds of 75 and 76 at the par-72 course Sunday and Monday.

Nagindas was able to find the fairway, navigate the undulating greens and contend with a pesky wind despite the course’s best efforts to unnerve 79 competitors from 12 teams.

“This was one of the hardest courses I saw in my three years of college golf,” said first-year Gannon coach Abby Sorensen, who competed at Allegheny College for the past three seasons. “The greens were very fast; I can’t tell you how many players from other teams three- or four-putted.”

As a team, Gannon’s collective 661 also placed third behind champion Findlay University, which shot 632, and Wheeling Jesuit University (640). It was the Knights’ second third-place finish in as many events this year, having taken third among nine teams at the Mercyhurst Invitational Sept. 9.

Other notable Gannon competitors included junior Amanda Teodorsson who fired rounds of 79 and 85 to tie for ninth place, and senior Rhiannon Ray, whose pair of 83s were good enough for a 14th-place tie.

“We were a little disappointed with our finish,” Sorensen said “For the most part, our ball-striking was solid and I liked what I saw on the greens, but if we could’ve just eliminated some of the blow-up holes, we’d have had a better chance to win.”

For Nagindas, only two shots separated her from the winning pace set by Findlay’s Lauren Vogt and Wheeling Jesuit’s Kasey Frazier. Frazier took the overall title by winning the tiebreaker on the first playoff hole. Vogt squandered a two-stroke lead over Frazier after she shot an even-par on Day One.

“It was really all about course management,” Nagindas said. “I knew that if I could drive it 230 consistently, I would be in good position on the long par 4s and 5s.”

Nagindas finished her rounds with a bang by birdying the difficult par-4 18th both days, as this week’s performance comes a week after leading Gannon with a fourth-place finish at the Mercyhurst.

The Knights will return to action this weekend at the Clarion Invitational, where they will meet up once again with perennial power Wheeling Jesuit, who bested Gannon by 21 strokes.

“Even though they beat us this time, it will again be a matter of eliminating the holes that we blow up on,” Sorensen said.

JOE CUNEO

cuneo001@knights.gannon.com

This is the first time that the team has ever started off at 4-0, and in the process, they stand in fourth place in the region.

Equally as impressive as their ranking is the fact that they have not allowed an opponent to score yet this year, winning their games by a combined score of 12-0.

On the season, junior goaltender Sarah Geffel has registered 16 saves in  four straight shutouts, a school record. Freshman forward Sammy Valloud leads a balanced offense with four goals. Sophomore midfielder Michelle Genetin and sophomore midfielder Justine Rodrigues freshman forward have each chipped in a pair of scores as well.

Rodrigues’ first goal of the season couldn’t have come at a more opportune time, as her unassisted score in the 80th minute against Lock Haven University Wednesday was the difference in the Knights’ Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference opener.

The Knights followed up their win over the Bald Eagles with a 6-0 thrashing of Shepherd University at home Saturday. Valloud and Genetin each scored twice in the rout.

Gannon will attempt to continue its record start when it travels to take on Bloomsburg and East Stroudsberg universities Friday and Saturday.

ZACH NOGGLE

noggle001@knights.gannon.edu

Joe Cuneo contributed to this story

Surprisingly, scoring hasn’t been a problem in the post-Amanda Sharbaugh era, as the Knights first rocked Lake Erie College in their opener in a 4-0 contest. Freshmen forwards and Erie natives Kaitlyn Kissell and Sammy Valloud each scored a pair of goals to start their respective collegiate careers.

Redshirt senior Jordan Rickan scored her first career goal in the subsequent game against Ashland University, which ended in a 1-0 victory.

Rickan scored off a header from freshman forward Mani Brueckner during the 97th minute to give Gannon its most recent victory.

Rickan said her first career goal was long overdue. “What felt even better was the reaction from my teammates,” she said. “They expressed how proud they were and how deserving I was of that goal. That makes all the rehab worth it.”

The overall make-up of this year’s team is drastically different from last year’s squad. Freshmen flood this year’s team, accounting for 12 of the 25 total spots on the Knights’ roster. However, Rickan and five others will be returning for their senior seasons.

“I feel very blessed to be able to return as a fifth-year senior,” the veteran defender said. “It’s a privilege that I’m sure every athlete who finished their four years of eligibility wishes they had.”

Rickan didn’t play at all in 2011 due to an ACL injury she suffered to her right leg before the season.

“When I found out that I wouldn’t be able to play last year and my coach gave me the option to take a medical red-shirt, I didn’t hesitate for a second,” she said. “[Head coach Colin Petersen] and I didn’t even need to have a conversation about it. I knew I had to play out my last year.

“The recovery was tough but I had the support of my teammates, coaches, trainers and my family,” she said.

Rickan began her playing career for the Knights in 2008 and started all 19 games as a true freshman in that season.

This year, a pair of true freshmen have already started for the Knights. Kissell along with midfielder Mani Brueckner have made immediate impacts, as Brueckner has dished out three assists in her first two collegiate contests.

Rickan said the coaching staff has brought in an impressive recruiting class. “We have a very big freshman class and the upperclassman have done a great job making them feel welcome,” she said. “They bring a ton of energy and a variety of skill sets. I’m very excited for them as they start their soccer careers as a Knight.”

The Knights will have their first road test as they visit Lock Haven University at 1:30 p.m. on Wednesday. The team won’t return home until Saturday when they face Shepard University at 1 p.m. at Gannon University Field.

JACOB TARR

tarr003@knights.gannon.edu

The loss also ended the Knights’ hopes of making their second-ever appearance in the NCAA tournament field, which they failed to make as the committee chose the field Monday.

The Knights finished with 9-5-4 overall record and a 6-4-4 mark in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference, a drastic difference from last year’s 4-10-4 and 3-9-2 marks.

This season saw a myriad of fallen records courtesy of senior forward Amanda Sharbaugh. The Knoch, Pa., native scored 17 goals, surpassing Erin Cray (1997-2000) for the most goals scored in a single season and for a career at Gannon. She finished her four-year career with 51 goals to go along with 124 points, also a Gannon record.

“I’ll never forget the big wins and the tough losses,” Sharbaugh said of her career. “But what I’ll cherish the most are the life lessons I’ve learned that you can’t learn in a classroom and my teammates and coaches that I’ve made lifelong relationships with.”

Sharbaugh characterized this year as a good run.

“It was a memorable year, especially ending on our home field with a 5-0 win against Mercyhurst,” she said.

“I had amazing support around me and I was driven by my teammates.”

Coach Colin Petersen said he will miss her presence.

“Well the first thing that I’m going to miss is she’s just a great kid,” he said.

“She provides so much character to our team. She brings so much to our team. She’s kind of one of the those kids that come around once in a lifetime.”

Two of those teammates who Sharbaugh played alongside this year were freshmen, both of whom started every game for the Knights: forwards Michelle Genetin and freshman midfielder Justine Rodrigues.

Genetin finished the year with three goals and four assists and provided Sharbaugh with assistance on the frontline. Rodrigues recorded five goals and five assists, sitting only behind Sharbaugh for scoring the most points on the team in her first year.

“For me personally, I definitely felt myself getting better as a player towards the end,” Rodrigues said.

The midfielder originally entered the season as a forward, but transitioned well into the middle of the field after Petersen made some changes to the lineup.

Rodrigues said she and Genetin looked up to Sharbaugh.

“Coming in and hearing about them all through last year from the coaches and seeing their record, seeing Amanda’s record, it inspired us to want to play and work and be just like her,” she said.

The freshman midfielder said she is looking forward to next season with the talent returning.

“This year, it was only myself and Michelle, so we had to kind of  carry the weight of being freshmen on our backs between the two of us,” she said. “But next year it should be good.”

Gannon will replace six seniors, but will also in turn produce five more seniors for the 2012 campaign. “We have a pretty good core coming back,” Petersen said.

Of those seniors, only three were full-time starters this season. But senior midfielder Katie Urban and Sharbaugh together accounted for almost half of the offense in terms of goal scoring.

JACOB TARR

tarr003@knights.gannon.edu