Box Score

SHIPPENSBURG, Pa. – Three goals in a six-minute span over the first and second halves propelled the No. 4-ranked Shippensburg University field hockey team to a 3-0 shutout of defending national champion and No. 1-ranked West Chester in its home opener on Saturday afternoon as SU avenged last season's 3-0 NCAA quarterfinal loss to the Golden Rams the last time it played on its home turf.

The Raiders (4-0) were in control offensively throughout the afternoon, finishing with a 20-9 shot advantage over the Golden Rams (1-1).

Twelve minutes into the game, both teams and all fans were forced out of Robb Sports Complex for a lightning delay that lasted 40 minutes and saw brief heavy rain fall. Play resumed, and nine minutes later – at the 33rd minute – junior transfer Taylor Bender sparked the Raiders' (4-0) scoring rally.

Bender found the back of the cage off an assist from senior Sam Langone, who gathered the rebound in front of the cage off a missed shot from junior Bre White.

The Raiders extended their lead to 2-0 just over two minutes into the second half, when Bender scored her fourth goal of the season on an unassisted strike. White added her team-leading eighth goal of the year under a minute later when she made a move in front of the cage and found herself with a one-on-one situation with WCU's (1-1) goalkeeper.

White led all players with eight shots, while goalkeeper Ciarra Delost played the entire game and finished with three saves.

Before the game, the team honored the memory of longtime Shippensburg coach and administrator Jane Goss, who passed away this summer. The players wore t-shirts in her memory during the pregame and a table of memorabilia was on display during the contest.

Shippensburg dealt the Golden Rams their first loss since they dropped a two-overtime decision to LIU Post in the PSAC quarterfinals last October. After its defeat of SU in November, West Chester advanced on penalty strokes against Bloomsburg in the NCAA semifinals before defeating UMass-Lowell, 2-1, in the national championship game.

The Raiders will face off against Slippery Rock on Tuesday at 4 p.m. from Robb Sports Complex.