Immaculata, Pa. - (11/2/2024) - #5 Gwynedd Mercy University (6-10-2, 2-5 AEC) traveled to #4 Immaculata University (7-9-2, 2-3-1 AEC) to take part in the Atlantic East Conference (AEC) Championship Tournament first round. The Red and Gold came out of the gate with a fantastic pace and applied the pressure early to the Mighty Macs. Junior midfielder Natalie Morris (Boyertown, Pa.) surged the Griffins to an early 1-0 lead (8:46) with a beautiful shot past the goalkeeper. Going into the second half Gwynedd Mercy still led 1-0, but a goal from Immaculata (66:09) tied things at one apiece. Just like in the 2023 season 90 minutes in the first round of the AEC Championship Tournament was not enough and two overtimes were needed where the Mighty Macs found the game-ending goal at 106:39 (2-1) ending the Griffins 2024 season.  

Griffin Highlights:  

• Junior goalkeeper Natalie Gablein (Philadelphia, Pa.) was sensational in net for the Red and Gold. She did not allow for any second chance opportunities throughout the match and her vocal leadership helped the defense suffocate the Mighty Macs' offense. Gablein finished with a new career-high 17 saves in the loss (2-7-2).  
• Morris and senior forward Bethany Beinlich (Forksville, Pa.) finished with a team-high four shots. Beinlich came so close to a game-winning goal at 104.12 when her shot was just a tad bit too high and hit the crossbar.  

Gwynedd Mercy finished the 2024 season with a 6-10-2 record and a 2-5 (AEC) record.