Frostburg State University Athletics

FROSTBURG, Md. – For the first time since 2023, the Frostburg State Women's Soccer team will advance to the MEC Tournament Championship Game after defeating Point Park 1-0 at home in the Semifinals on Wednesday.
 
FSU came into the game as MEC North Division champions at a 14-2-3 record, having advanced past Charleston (WV) 6-5 on penalties after a 0-0 draw in regulation during the quarterfinals. PPU earned the three seed in the North, going 13-5-1 on the year and defeating Glenville State 1-0 in their quarterfinal bout.
 
The Pioneers generated the first couple chances of the game after just two minutes, earning a corner kick from which Austyn Burkett had her header cleared off the line by junior Madison Hobson, then the follow-up from Jamie Spurrell was blocked by the Bobcat defense. After 10 minutes of back-and-forth possession, Frostburg kicked into gear with a flurry of chances over a three-minute spell. Senior Chelsea Pettyjohn laid a ball over for junior Rayiah Davis, who put her effort over the bar, then her twin sister Ana hit a rocket from 35 yards out that clipped off the top of the crossbar. Soon after, Hobson took a throw that was headed back by junior Cassidy Paige into the path of classmate Mollie Rebuck, as her left-footed blast was tipped onto the bar by keeper Nicole Kuchinski to keep things scoreless.
 
Rayiah Davis then had a pair of shots as a result of back-to-back corners, with one being deflected out and the next going wide. Point Park managed to get an effort off just before the 20-minute mark, with Julie Rusiecki's long free kick being collected safely by senior Mia Graff, as senior Madison Hinton also tried her luck on one but hit it high and wide. FSU's breakthrough finally came after 24 minutes, as another Hinton free kick was played by a Pioneer defender off of Paige and right into the path of Rayiah Davis, who calmly finished past Kuchinski for a 1-0 lead.
 
Searching for another score in quick succession, the Bobcats got a corner two minutes later, where Paige and junior Ainsley Wilson both had efforts blocked in front of goal. Off a follow-up set piece, Hinton planted a header wide before PPU created one of their best chances of the half, as Rebecca Pihlgren flicked a throw-in towards goal but couldn't get enough power on it to beat Graff.
 
In the final 12 minutes, the sides traded chances back-and-forth, as Frostburg nearly doubled the lead after junior Elena Fernandez made a great run down the right wing and crossed in for Rayiah Davis, whose left-footed shot nearly beat Kuchinski but the netminder got enough on it to take it out for a corner, which Davis then headed wide. Ana Davis then took another shot from deep that bounced once before reaching Kuchinski, as the Pioneers had three efforts all go well wide of the goal through Maya Figueroa, Payton Gibney, and Pihlgren. Sophomore Reese Rizzo then made a run into the 18 from the right side but couldn't beat Kuchinski from a tight angle, as Ana Davis hit one off the mark headed to halftime.
 
Point Park had the first opportunity of the second period, as Gibney got her head onto a long ball over top but was too far away to trouble Graff too much. 10 minutes later, Rusiecki hit another long free kick that took an awkward high bounce but was well-read by Graff to calmly collect. Frostburg then made their way up the field to generate a couple efforts, with Hinton firing one over the bar and Wilson doing the same a minute later.
 
Through the next half hour, PPU threw attack after attack at the Bobcats' back line but couldn't make much progress, as senior Ella Combs and junior Ridgely Houck regularly repelled each one. Taking every opportunity to wind the clock down, FSU used freshman Kelly Dougherty and Paige's pace down the right side to continuously hold the ball near the corner flag and prevent the Pioneers from making their way up-field. As the game entered the final 10 minutes, Dougherty would have the final effort of the contest, where she sprinted in behind Point Park's defense but ran out of speed having hit the edge of the box, dragging the shot wide of the mark. Frostburg wouldn't allow PPU to get another shot, as Graff and her defenders celebrated the clean sheet with the 1-0 final.
 
FSU held an 18-9 advantage in shots, with both sides putting five on target. In a couple of milestone moments, Graff's shutout was her 10^th of the season, which ties her with former standout Ashley Bilger's program record set in 2023. Additionally, Paige recorded her 10^th assist of the season, the most by a Bobcat since Stephanie Fazenbaker's 15 in 2012.
 
With the win, Frostburg improves to 15-2-3 on the year, while Point Park drops to 13-6-1. The Bobcats will next host the two seed in the North Division and No. 24 nationally ranked Fairmont State in the MEC Championship Game on Sunday, November 8 at 1 p.m. Information and updates will be posted to frostburgsports.com.