Penn State Harrisburg has opened eyes throughout the Capital Athletic Conference this season. Picked to finish last in the CAC, the Lions took this to heart and shocked everyone by battling game in and game out to finish second in the regular season and advance to the conference championship. Unfortunately, the Blue and White's stunning season did not have a fairy tale ending as the five seed Christopher Newport, #20th in the country, tamed the Lions 3-1 on their home turf Saturday November 8th.
Newport was able to take an early lead thanks to a Ryan Balfour rebound strike in the 19
th minute that beat Harrisburg's goalkeeper
Brandon Hoover (Lancaster, Pa. / Pequea Valley) after making the initial first save. Despite an even played first half, the Lions were unsuccessful finishing off their chances while the Captains capitalized on both of theirs for a 2-0 lead going into the half.
Penn State Harrisburg refused to go down without a fight and also made some positive line up adjustments in the second half.
Jon Willingham (Harrisburg, Pa. / Sci-Tech High) moved to the forward position and made an immediate impact. The Blue and White dominated play from the start of the second and Willingham inspired the team and the crowd with his fourth goal of the season in the 60
th minute to make the score 2-1.
As time wound down the Lions continued to push forward for the equalizer. Unfortunately the Captains took advantage on the counter attack as Jalen Brown scored his 18th goal of the season with an impressive strike from outside the 18 yard box to get themselves the breathing room they needed.
The Lions still have hope to continue this magical season with an at-large bid into the NCAA tournament or a shot at the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) tournament. We will know what future road lies ahead for the Harrisburg on Monday November 10th as both tournaments will hold their selection shows.
