Front Royal, VA – The Crusader women's soccer team defeated the Central Penn Knights 4-0 in the Eastern States Athletic Conference (ESAC) Championship on October 30, 2023.
The Crusaders came out with intensity, maintaining possession from the beginning of the game. In the 12th minute, Catherine Thomas (Junior/Corpus Christi, TX) slipped a through ball to Rachel Grande (Senior/Buffalo, NY), who placed the ball past the goalie into the back of the net. Throughout the rest of the half, the Crusaders continued to dominate and pepper shots on goal but were unable to score again.
In the second half, the Crusaders similarly were able to maintain possession and attack the Knights' keeper. In the 70th minute, Theresa Luckey (Freshman/Front Royal, VA) connected with Megan Lovar (Sophomore/Odenton, MD) to score the Crusaders' second goal. Then, 4 minutes later, Colleen Kosten (Junior/Warrenton, VA) assisted Thomas, who gave the Crusaders the lead 3-0. Then, in the 81st minute, Luckey scored her second goal and the final goal of the game off a through-ball from Thomas.
This strong 4-0 win was also the Crusaders' last home game of the season, and so seniors Virginia Stahl (Senior/Front Royal, VA), Gracie Russo (Senior/Manassas, VA), Erin Hatley (Senior/Grand Rapids, MI), Christy Rodriguez (Senior/Mission Viejo, CA), and Rachel Grande (Senior/Buffalo, NY) were honored after the game for their hard work throughout the past 4 years.
Up next – The Lady Crusaders will find out on November 8 if they have a bid to the USCAA National Tournament. If they are invited, they will have games in Pittsburgh, PA, during November 16-20.