The No. 2-ranked Shippensburg University field hockey team scored a goal in each half Wednesday to get past No. 1 Kutztown, posting a 2-0 shutout over the Golden Bears on a cloudy afternoon at Andre Reed Stadium.
 
Shippensburg (5-0) and Kutztown (5-1) continued the trend of excellent field hockey matches between the two teams over the last six seasons. Wednesday's contest was a deliberately-paced affair that featured just nine combined shots on goal.
 
The two goalkeepers: redshirt-junior Emma Albee and KU graduate Mia Kepler, combined for five of their seven saves in the first quarter. Three of the match's seven penalty corners also occurred in the first quarter.
 
Just one minute into the second quarter, SU worked its way to the left edge of the KU scoring area and sent a ball into the crease directly into harm's way. The feed from junior Agus Garibaldi eventually found the stick of senior Nya Gilchrist, who slammed it home to give the Raiders a 1-0 lead that lasted into the fourth quarter.
 
With just less than 10 minutes remaining, after a foul on a ball that hit a foot, Garibaldi took advantage of an immediate restart, dribbled into the scoring area and fired a quick shot that Kepler deflected with her stick but rolled right into the goal for what proved to the match's final 2-0 margin.
 
The second half featured just two penalty corners (both by KU in the third quarter) and just two combined shots on goal. Overall, shots on goal finished 6-3 in SU's favor.
 
Albee made three saves to record her fourth shutout in five matches this season. She has yielded just one goal through the season's opening 300 minutes.
 
Wednesday marked the first meeting between the two teams since last year's national semifinals in which KU converted a penalty stroke with three minutes remaining to claim a 2-1 victory en route to its national title. The teams played three times last season, including a 1-0 SU overtime victory in last year's PSAC Semifinals.
 
Wednesday's game was a non-conference contest scheduled by the two teams – the two teams will play their league matchup on Tuesday, Oct. 15 at Robb Sports Complex.  
 
Next up for Shippensburg will be an 11 a.m. Saturday match against Slippery Rock at Robb Sports Complex.