ERIE, Pa. – Despite a five-goal lead at halftime, IUP fell victim to a second half West Chester comeback, losing to the Golden Rams 12-11 in the semifinals of the 2016 Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Women's Lacrosse Championships on Friday evening.
 
West Chester (17-1) outscored the Crimson Hawks 9-3 in the second half, including a 7-1 run over the final 16 minutes to complete the playoff comeback. The Golden Rams advance to Sunday's PSAC championship game against Mercyhurst.
 
The Rams' Hannah Cowan scored the game-winner with 33 seconds left and a shot on goal with 14 seconds to play by IUP's Kim Hooven (Malvern, Pa./Great Valley) was blocked, sealing the win.
 
Freshmen Adriana Greco (Sound Beach, N.Y./Rocky Point) and Ally Burrows (Marcellus, N.Y./Marcellus) each scored three goals for the Crimson Hawks, who finished the season with a 13-6 overall record. Kim Hooven (Malvern, Pa./Great Valley) dished out a game-high four assists.
 
IUP sprinted out to a fast start, using a 5-0 run to take a 6-1 lead after the first 20 minutes to play. Burrows and Greco both netted two goals in the early going, with Hooven finding each rookie once and Tara Nicholas (Germantown, Md./Northwest) for a third.
 
Senior All-American Amy Weinberg (Clarksville, Md./Atholton) assisted on Burrows' second goal with 12:33 on the clock, tying her own IUP single season record of 67 assists.
 
The Rams followed with a pair of goals under 10 minutes to cut IUP's lead to three, but goals by Brittney Palardy (Perry Hall, Md./Perry Hall) and Carissa Smith (East Brunswick, N.J./East Brunswick) responded with back-to-back goals before the half to help the Crimson Hawks take an 8-3 lead into the break.
 
Each team scored twice in the first 13 minutes of the second half, with the Crimson Hawks still holding onto a five-goal lead.
 
West Chester started its comeback with just under 16 minutes to play, netting three goals over 2:18 to make it a 10-8 game. Smith scored with 10:22 to play to get IUP's lead back to three, but the Rams responded with a quick goal, and scored four straight for the win.
 
It was IUP's third PSAC semifinal appearance in the last four years, also dropping a one-goal decision to West Chester in 2013 (7-6).
 
For up-to-date game information, visit www.IUPAthletics.com and follow IUP women's lacrosse on Twitter @IUPCrimsonHawk and @IUPlacrosse.