WEST CHESTER, Pa. - The No. 18 Bloomsburg women's soccer team dropped a 1-0 decision on the road against No. 21 West Chester Saturday afternoon.

The Huskies (9-3-2, 6-3-2 PSAC East) settled into the match during the second half, but ultimately conceded the lone goal to the Golden Rams (10-1-3, 7-1-3 PSAC East) in that time frame. Bloomsburg put up a fight as time ticked off the clock, unable to string together the precise attacking sequence to find the equalizer.

How It Happened:
The first 45 minutes of action belonged to West Chester, with the home side maintaining a constant stream of pressure and play directly into its offense. The result was a 14-0 shot advantage for the Golden Rams in the first half. 

Senior goalkeeper Samantha Merklin (Effort, Pa./Pleasant Valley) was active and vigilant to begin the contest, making four of her 10 saves in the opening half. In addition to the shots, the Huskies' backline remained poised in the face of mounting pressure from the eight corners drawn by West Chester.

With halftime to collect their breath, Bloomsburg began to settle into the match. The team had its best showing to that point in the afternoon during the first five minutes of the second half. Anika Krasnai (Lancaster, Pa./Manheim Township) eventually recorded the team's first shot for the Huskies with a well-intentioned but unsuccessful effort from distance. 

After a flurry of shots and 68 minutes of game time, the home side finally found the breakthrough. Cutting in from the left wing, Kianna Barber had time and space to line up a shot across the face of the goal, surprising the Bloomsburg defense as it floated into the top right corner.

The final efforts going forward for the Huskies in the dwindling moments of the match were powered by a blend of youth and experience on the press. Freshmen Haley Bull (Bloomsburg, Pa./Central Columbia), Caydence Feehan (Shamong, N.J./Seneca), and Bria Savage (Harpers Ferry, W. Va./Jefferson), along with upperclassmen Laci Bell (Baltimore, Md./Sparrows Point), Anna Dalesandro (Robesonia, Pa./Conrad Weiser), Krasnai, and Emma Wilkinson (Smithtown, N.Y./Smithtown West), were involved in the last-ditch efforts to find an equalizer that never came. 

Number of Note: 
10+ - Merklin and the entire Bloomsburg defense have had great showings over the course of the 2025 season. Through 14 games this season, only one opponent has forced the Huskies' senior shot stopper to make double-digit saves, that side being the Golden Rams.

On the Horizon:
The Bloomsburg women's soccer team returns to Steph Pettit Stadium for its final home game of the regular season, a 4:00 p.m. kick, against Kutztown on Wednesday, October 29.