MANSFIELD, Pa. – Freshman Elizabeth Clemmer (Coopersburg, Pa./Southern Lehigh) scored the game-winning goal with no time left on the clock to lift the Crimson Hawks to a come-from-behind 3-2 victory at Mansfield on Tuesday afternoon.
 
The win completed the frantic comeback as the clock ticked down, as IUP scored three goals in the final 10 minutes to erase Mansfield's 2-0 lead.
 
Senior Madelyn Mullen (Chester Springs, Pa./Owen J. Roberts) got the ball rolling, scoring with 9:31 to play off a penalty corner, beating Mansfield goalie Brittany Ryan to her left side to make it a 2-1 game. It was Mullen's second score of the year.
 
Less than two minutes later, junior Selena West (Chambersburg, Pa./Chambersburg) tied things up with her first goal of the year, beating Ryan again to her left off a pass from classmate Matti Reightler (Bethlehem, Pa./Bethlehem Catholic).
 
Now with the game tied, the offensive tries ramped up for the Mountaineers (3-2), who peppered the IUP defense and senior goalie Alyssa Lerda (Wexford, Pa./Pine-Richland) with six shots over a three minute span. The Crimson Hawks blocked three of those shots, while Lerda saved two and another sailed wide as the game remained knotted at 2-2 heading into the final three minutes of play.
 
As time wound down, West tried what might have been the final shot, but after a save by Mansfield's Ryan, Clemmer deflected the ball into the cage as the clock hit zeros to seal IUP's crazy comeback.
 
All of the game's scoring came in the second half, with Mansfield scoring in the 47th and 55th minutes. Even with a scoreless first half, the game featured a high volume of shots with the Mountaineers (22) and Crimson Hawks (17) combining for 39.
 
Lerda tied a season-high eight saves on 22 shots faced, while freshman defender Madison Youst (Reinholds, Pa./Conrad Weiser) picked up a defensive save in the first half.
 
Up next
The Crimson Hawks, now 2-3 on the season, return home this weekend to host No. 7 Kutztown (4-1) at George P. Miller Stadium. The Saturday start time is 5 p.m.
 
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