INDIANA, Pa. - IUP field hockey is returning to the postseason as the Crimson Hawks upset No. 6 Kutztown 1-0 in the regular season finale Saturday night to earn a berth in next week's Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Championships. 

Claire Murphy scored the game-winner in the 54th minute, deflecting a shot by Rory Cahill to the bottom right corner of the cage. Kutztown dominated the game offensively, outshooting IUP 14-3 while also owning a 10-2 advantage in penalty corners. Amanda Zaner tallied her fourth shutout of the season with seven saves.

The Crimson Hawks will make the program's ninth all-time PSAC tournament appearance and the first since 2016. It will be the fifth postseason appearance under head coach Gary Agard, who also took IUP to the conference tournament in 2011, 2012, 2013 and 2016.

IUP faced a must-win game in the regular season finale, entering the day in a three-way tie with Mansfield and Slippery Rock for the final postseason spot. Remaining in that three-way tie would have given Mansfield the berth based on tiebreakers. Both the Mounties and The Rock lost earlier on Saturday, putting a "win-or-go-home" tag on the game for the Hawks. 

The Hawks go into the tournament as the fifth seed, leapfrogging Kutztown based on the head-to-head tiebreaker. IUP will play at fourth seed Millersville at 6 p.m. in Tuesday's quarterfinals. 

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