PSUA UPSETS CALVIN COLLEGE 6-5 AT SCHUPAN

Sunday, October 17, 2010

THERE COMES A MOMENT IN EVERY TEAMS SEASON THAT DEFINES A TEAM. SATURDAY AFTERNOON WAS THAT DEFINING MOMENT FOR THE PSUA LIONS. PLAYING WITH A SHORTENED ROSTER AND KEY INJURIES TO SOPHOMORES ROB MATTERN AND TYLER BAGAROZY, THE LIONS OVERCAME ADVERSITY AND BEAT THE HEAVILY FAVORED, AND 2-0 IN THE SCHUPAN TOURNAMENT, CALVIN COLLEGE 6-5. THE LIONS AND CALVIN WERE TIED AT 2 AFTER THE FIRST PERIOD ON TWO GOALS BY JAMSEY ROSSI. PATRICK KINCH ADDED ANOTHER 2 GOALS AND PSUA LED 4-2 AT THE END OF THE SECOND. CALVIN COLLEGE WOULD NOT GIVE UP AND IN THE THIRD WOULD TIE THE GAME AT FOUR. BY THIS TIME FANS AND OTHER TEAMS BEGAN TO GATHER AROUND THE ARENA TO CHEER ON THE UNDERDOGS FROM ALTOONA, PA. WITH THE GAME MOST LIKELY HEADED TO OVERTIME, CALVIN COLLEGE TOOK THE LEAD 5-4 WITH A MINUTE LEFT. THEN WITH A BLOWN 4-2 LEAD, POSSIBLY GOING 0-3 IN THE TOURNAMENT, AND LONG 8 HOUR BUS RIDE HOME, THE LIONS WOULD DO THE UNEXPECTED. SOPHOMORE PATRICK KINCK WOULD SCORE THE GAME TYING GOAL SIX SECONDS LATER. THE CROWD ERUPTED. TEAMS AND FANS BEGAN BANGING ON THE GLASS, CHEERING FOR PENN STATE. THEN JAMSEY ROSSI WOULD SCORE THE GAME WINNER WITH TWENTY EIGHT SECONDS LEFT TO UPSET CALVIN 6-5. ONE PARENT FROM ANOTHER SCHOOL SAID THAT IT WAS AN AMAZING GAME AND WAS LIKE THE OLYMPICS OF MIDLAND. BOTH KINCH AND ROSSI WOULD NET HATTRICKS IN THE GAME AND SOPHOMORE GREG JOHNSON WOULD ADD 4 ASSISTS. CHRIS RYAN WOULD ONCE AGAIN BACKSTOP THE LIONS TO A VICTORY WITH FORTY FOUR SAVES. OTHER NOTABLE PERFORMANCE WAS FRESHMAN DEFENSEMAN CHRIS KELLY WHO HAD AN OUTSTANDING TOURNAMENT. COACH LANTZ HAD THIS TO SAY AT THE END OF THE GAME. "THE VICTORY TODAY DID MORE FOR THIS TEAM IN BRINGING THEM TOGETHER AS A UNIT, THAN ANY OTHER GAME IN MY COACHING CAREER. WITH SUCH A SHORTENED ROSTER, THE TEAM NEEDED THIS WIN, AND IT WAS A SHAME FOR THOSE WHO DID NOT MAKE THE TRIP TO BE PART OF SUCH AN EXPERIENCE."