| Carey Maser came up with a big defensive save in the second half vs. Michigan State, helping the No. 6 Nittany Lions to their 2-1 victory. |
Box Score
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. October 15, 2005 - Penn State rallied from a 1-0 deficit on Saturday vs. No. 15 Michigan State, and pulled out an exciting 2-1 win over the Spartans. Sara Cahill (Virginia Beach, Va.) scored the game-winning goal off a pass from Britney Long (Lancaster, Pa.) in the 53rd minute. Shaun Banta (Gibbsboro, N.J.) also scored for the Nittany Lions.
Penn State found itself in the rare position of being behind on the scoreboard when the Spartans' Jessica Miller took the ball at the top of the circle, turned and fired a shot into the back of the cage in the second minute of the game.
It was the only goal the Nittany Lions gave up in the contest, as they held Michigan State to six shots the rest of the way. Penn State, meanwhile, tallied 11 shots in the game.
Banta evened things up at the 13:12 mark when she dribbled in from the left side, beating several defenders before slapping the ball in for the score.
In the second half, with the game knotted at one goal apiece, Penn State appeared to take a 2-1 lead off a goal from a penalty corner play. The referees ruled a foul and waved off the goal. After discussion on the field with both coaches, the call stood and play resumed. Penn State regrouped, and several minutes later took the 2-1 lead off Cahill's score.
Once again Penn State's defense proved why it is the No. 1 unit in the Big Ten, giving up just one shot in the second half. Senior goalkeeper Megan Akstin (Poughkeepsie, N.Y.) tallied two saves in the contest. Her counterpart, Christina Kirkaldy, recorded three. Carey Maser (Medford, N.J.) also came up big, recording a key defensive save in the second half.
The win pushed Penn State's record to 14-1, and 4-0 in Big Ten play. The Nittany Lions have now won 14 straight games, one away from the record of 15 straight, set in 1993. The 4-0 Big Ten record is also the team's best start in conference action since 2000, when the team also opened up league play with four straight wins. Michigan State falls to 9-6 on the year.
Penn State will stay at home for a 6 p.m. matchup vs. Bucknell on Tuesday before playing its final home game of the year on Saturday, Oct. 22 vs. Ohio State at noon. The team then finishes the regular season on the road, first at Indiana on Friday, Oct. 28 and then at North Carolina on Sunday, Oct. 30.