GRANTHAM, Pa. – In its first trip to the MAC Commonwealth Championship game in program history, the No. 3 seed Arcadia field hockey team fell to No. 1 seed Messiah, 6-0 on Saturday afternoon.
 
The Knights fall to 14-6 on the season, while Messiah improves to 19-0. Messiah won the national championship in 2016, and were runners up in 2017.
 
The Falcons, who are ranked No. 2 nationally, struck first in the 13th minute, when Taylor Wiederrecht picked up a deflected ball and slid it past Arcadia goalie Ashton Evans, to give the Falcons a 1-0 advantage.
 
Messiah added a second goal in the 16th minute, when Megan Wetzel fired a shot from the top of the circle following a penalty corner, to take a 2-0 lead.
 
Arcadia's deficit stretched to three in the 22nd minute, when Kristen Musser was awarded a penalty stroke for Messiah, and beat Evans to give the Falcons a 3-0 lead.
 
Evans kept the game within reach late in the first half, making a string of saves in tight in the 33rd minute, to keep the Knights within three heading into halftime.
 
The Falcons added three second half goals, taking the win.
 
IN GOAL: Evans played the first 51:02 for the Knights, making eight saves and allowing four goals. Allison Nikolaus came on in relief, playing 11:15, allowing one goal and making two stops. Catherine Bergmueller played the final 7:43 and did not face a shot on goal. For Messiah, Shelby Landes played 56:18 and Megan Bomba played the final 13:42 with nether facing a shot on goal.
 
BY THE NUMBERS: The Knights did not register a shot in the contest, while the Falcons had 16 shots on goal … Evans' 8 saves were a season high … The Knights did not have a penalty corner opportunity in the contest. The Knights' nine saves are the second most they have accumulated in a game this season ... Gabby Sedares registered one defensive save for the Knights.