Grantham, PA – No. 8 Messiah College field hockey put forth a valiant effort against the Division II No. 6 Shippensburg Raiders on Thursday night, but fell in overtime 1-0. Three minutes into the extra period, senior Katelyn Grazan scored from the top of the circle to give the Raiders the victory.
 
The game was uncannily similar to the last time these two powerhouses squared off; last season at Shippensburg, the teams also battled into overtime before the Raiders took a sudden-victory win. Last season, the overtime period lasted just 53 seconds, while tonight it took 2:50 for Grazan to set off the celebration.
 
The goal ended what was a very tight and also back-and-forth contest. Shippensburg outshot Messiah by an 11-6 margin, with the Raiders also collecting a 6-0 edge in shots on frame. The teams also combined for 13 penalty corners.
 
The Falcons' best scoring chance in the 29th minute, when Taylor Holt sent a penalty corner feed in to Lindsay Bower on the left side. Even as a defender blocked her shot, the rebound fell right to Moriah Pfautz, who blasted a chance high over the net.
 
Shippensburg also created some opportunity in the Falcons' end, but Shelby Landes' four first-half saves kept the game 0-0. The second-half was an even greater defensive battle, as Messiah could not muster a shot and Shippensburg only managed three. 
 
The highlight of the period for the Falcons came in the 64th minute, when a Raider shot was ripped on goal and Landes made a fantastic glove save in the top left-hand corner of the cage.
 
In the final minutes of regulation Shippensburg began to hold more territory, and as mentioned, it wasn't long before they broke through off the square feed from Emily Barnard to Grazan.  
 
Bower led the Falcon attack with two shots and Landes was very solid in goal for Messiah en route to five saves.
 
Messiah (0-1) will take the field next on Saturday when they travel to Haverford College. The game is slated to start at 12:00 p.m.