By Alex Kurtz, Sports Editor
Freshman defender Marley Clendenin’s goal in the 87th minute and successful attempt on the fifth and final penalty kick earned Susquehanna a 5–4 win in penalty kicks to capture their first Landmark Conference title on Saturday, Nov. 3 in Selinsgrove.
Scranton came into the tournament as the first seed from the conference while the River Hawks were the second seed. The two had previously faced off on Oct. 20, where the Royals won 1–0 on the road.
Susquehanna defeated Catholic 2–0 on Oct. 30 to earn their birth in the championship game.
The Royals were the first to get on the board in the title game, as freshman midfielder Steph Lowrey tapped in a rebounded shot from senior forward Jamie Hreniuk to make the score 1–0 Scranton 13 minutes into the game.
Susquehanna would have two shots after the Lowrey goal, but neither freshman forward Anna Werner or senior midfielder Emily Sullivan were able to connect on their attempts.
Scranton would go into halftime with a 1–0 lead.
Both teams would find shots to be at a premium in the second half. Royals’ junior defender Rebecca Russo would find a great chance in the 70th minute, but River Hawks sophomore goalkeeper Madison Welliver would make a crucial save to keep the game within one score.
Finally, the River Hawks would find a break on Clendenin’s goal in the 87th minute. After getting a pass from Sullivan, Clendenin would put the ball in the back of the net from 21 yards away to tie the game 1–1.
“The play leading up to the goal was incredible,” Clendenin said. “There were five passes and 39 girls that made it all possible and everyone gave every last bit of energy that they had.”
Regulation would end soon after and the game would be sent into overtime. Neither team though would be able to score during the first or second overtime periods. Normally, the game would end in a tie, but since it was a playoff game each team would attempt penalty kicks to determine the Landmark Conference champion.
Both teams would make their first three shots in the shootout before Susquehanna finally caught a break. Hreniuk, who took the shot that was rebounded back to Lowrey for Scranton’s goal in regulation, hit the crossbar on her shot. If the River Hawks could hit their next two shots, they would be conference champions. They would do just that.
Senior forward Kate Cantrell would hit her shot and Clendenin would seal the win soon after on the fifth shot to seal the River Hawks’ first Landmark Conference championship.
“It seemed destined and now we are on to the next great opportunity,” Clendenin said.
Welliver finished with six saves on the afternoon, and Clendenin had two shots on goal.
With the win in the conference final, the River Hawks received an automatic invitation to the NCAA tournament where they were slated to play the Rochester Institute of Technology on the road on Saturday, Nov. 10.
“To finally bring SU a championship as a senior just made it that much more gratifying,” Sullivan said. “It made us all really proud to represent the school and be a part of this team.”
The Tigers come into the tournament 11–5–3 on the season and are coming off a loss in the Liberty League Tournament championship game to No. 10 William Smith College.
Game time for the River Hawks is 1:30 p.m.