WASHINGTON, D.C. – For the past four years Penn St.-Harrisburg has dominated its series with Gallaudet University in women's soccer. The Bison played the visiting Nittany Lions tough on a picturesque Saturday afternoon at Hotchkiss Field and lost 3-1 in the North Eastern Athletic Conference (NEAC) opener for both teams.

Penn St.-Harrisburg defeated Gallaudet 8-0 last season and had won four straight by a combined score of 24-1 since 2008.

There was a flurry of activity in the first 18 minutes of the game as three goals were scored. The Nittany Lions (2-2, 1-0 NEAC) got on the scoreboard first with a goal four minutes in when Rachel Stetler scored off an assist from Lyndsay Naughton. Penn St.-Harrisburg tacked on a second goal when Kara Hoy tallied her third goal of the season off a loose ball in front of the Bison goal at the 17-minute mark.

Gallaudet (1-4, 0-1 NEAC) answered 40 seconds later when the Bison got a corner kick opportunity on the right side of the Nittany Lion goal. Sophomore Katie Benz (Stafford, Va.) took the corner and sent a high cross to the far left post of the goal where fellow sophomore defender Elena Ciccarelli (Whitesboro, N.Y.) was in perfect position to head home the ball past goalie Janelle Hammond (two saves). The score remained 2-1 in favor of the Nittany Lions when the two squads went into halftime.

In the second half, Penn St.-Harrisburg scored a third goal off a rebound save made by senior goalie Kara Gulvas (Crown Point, Ind.), who stopped the shot by Nikki Francis, and where Fay Ansary stood to kick home the loose ball.

The Nittany Lions had a chance to add to their lead when Hoy took a penalty kick against Gallaudet but she missed. Gulvas finished the game with 14 saves as she faced 29 total shots and seven corner kicks. The Bison had four shots, three in the second half, against the stout Nittany Lion defense.

Gallaudet is in the midst of a five-game homestand and will host Washington Adventist on Wednesday, Sept. 19, at 7 p.m.