Sophomore Brooke Zeiders tipped in a goal with 1:51 to play on Wednesday, propelling the No. 1 Shippensburg University field hockey team to escape with a 1-0 victory at No. 3 Millersville in a Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) showdown at the Biemesderfer.
 
Shippensburg (13-1, 6-0 PSAC) won its eighth straight match in large part to the effort of its defense, a unit which recorded its 10th shutout in 14 matches this season. Redshirt-sophomore Ally Mooney was credited with six saves, including several diving stops and another on a 1-v-1 play, to keep the game scoreless.
 
Millersville (10-3, 4-2) blitzed the Raider cage at various points in the contest, posting a 7-6 advantage in penalty corners and an 8-1 advantage in shots on goal. Senior Suzanne Muller made a defensive save on a lofted shot in the second half, and junior Morgan Gantz also prevented a goal with a defensive save.
 
Shippensburg's tally occurred on its only shot on goal of the contest. Muller sent in a long entry from well outside the scoring arc, and Zeiders made a lunging re-direct that sent the ball into the goal. It's the fifth goal of the year for Zeiders, and her fourth in the last five contests.
 
The Raiders did have other scoring chances in the contest, but had several shots blocked or thwarted by Marauder defenders during penalty corners. Overall, Millersville posted an 11-5 margin in shots.
 
Mooney improved her goals-against average (GAA) for the season to 0.22, and enhanced her save percentage to .935. The six saves are tied for the second-most she has had to make in a match this season.
 
Wednesday's match featured the two stingiest defenses in NCAA Division II in terms of goals allowed (Shippensburg – 4, Millersville – 7).
 
Shippensburg returns to action at 5 p.m. Saturday on the road at Mercyhurst.