UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa.; October 31, 2006 - Ranked No. 12 nationally, Penn State (12-4-3, 8-1-1 Big Ten) is set to host the Big Ten Tournament this weekend for the first time since 1998. The Big Ten champion Nittany Lions earned the No. 1 seed in the tournament after capturing their ninth-straight title with an 8-1-1 conference record.
All-session tickets, which include admission to all tournament games, are on sale now and may be ordered through the Penn State ticket office by calling 1-800-833-5533 or locally at 814-863-1000.
Tickets are $15.00 for all-session adult passes and $10.00 for youth, senior citizen and student all-session passes. All ticket orders will carry a $2.00 handling fee.
Single day passes will be sold at the gate during each game. Adult tickets purchased the day of will be $6.00 each, with youth, senior citizen and student tickets $4.00 each and a group rate set at $3.00. Groups are defined as 10 or more persons. There are no age requirements for members of the groups.
2006 Big Ten Women??s Soccer Tournament
Thursday, November 2
10:30 a.m. #3 Purdue vs. #6 Ohio State
1:30 p.m. #2 Illinois vs. #7 Wisconsin
4:30 p.m. #1 Penn State vs. #8 Northwestern
7:30 p.m. #4 Indiana vs. #5 Michigan
Friday, November 3
4:30 p.m. #3/6 seed vs. #2/7 winner
7:30 p.m. #1/8 winner vs. #4/5 winner
Sunday, November 5
1:30 p.m. Tournament Final
Monday, November 6
CSTV to televise Tournament Final at 2 p.m.
Livestats Audio on Tournament Central for Penn State Games... Any game Penn State is involved in this weekend at the Big Ten Women's Soccer Tournament will be carried via live audio on www.GoPSUsports.com with play-by-play man Justin Weyman.
Livestats Available on Tournament Central... All of the Big Ten Women??s Soccer Tournament games this weekend will be available via livestats on www.GoPSUsports.com, your official source for Penn State athletics. Click on the Tournament, which will take you to all Gametracker links, boxscores, quotes photos and more!
The Penn State/Northwestern Series... Penn State holds an 12-2-0 lead over the visiting Wildcats in the overall series. The Lions beat the Wildcats, 2-1, on Oct. 22 this season at Jeffrey Field to clinch the Big Ten title. The Lions?? last loss to the Wildcats came in 1998 in Evansville. Penn State and Northwestern have only met one time in Big Ten Tournament action. That 2001 meeting at Purdue was also in the quarterfinals. Penn State won 3-0 and moved on to win their second Big Ten Tournament title. Big Ten Tournament History... The fight to the Big Ten Tournament title is a fierce one and the Lions are no stranger to just how tough it is. The nine-time Big Ten champs have won the conference tournament only three times (1998, 2000 and ??01) and have made the final only two other times.
Penn State holds a 7-2-3 (.625) record in quarterfinal games, including last year??s 3-3 tie at Michigan when the Lions did not advance after a 4-2 penalty kick deficit. Of the three ties in tournament action (1994, 2003 and ??05), Penn State has never advanced after penalty kicks.
In the semifinals, the Nittany Lions are 5-2-0 (.714), reaching the round of four last in 2004 at Ohio State. Penn State eventually lost a tight match to the host Buckeyes, 2-0, that year.
In tournament final match-ups, Penn State is 3-2 (.600) overall with their most recent title in 2001 (at Purdue). The Lions also won the 1998 tournament title at Jeffrey Field and captured the 2000 tournament title at Illinois.
The Nittany Lions as the No. 1 Seed... The Nittany Lions have been the No. 1 seed in the Big Ten Tournament the past nine years and have a cumulative record of 13-3-2 (.778). In that time, Penn State has won the tournament title three times, made it to at least the semifinals five times and been part of the Big Ten Tournament final on five occasions (1998-2001 and 2004). Every time the Lions have made it to the semifinals when seeded No. 1 they have then advanced to the tournamant finals.
Penn State vs. the Tournament Field?? Penn State racked-up a 5-1-1 record vs. the other seven teams in the Big Ten Tournament field this year. The Nittany Lions beat No. 3 seed Purdue (Oct. 6, 2-0 at Purdue), No. 5 seed Michigan (Sept. 24, 3-0 at Jeffrey Field), No. 6 seed Ohio State (Oct. 15, 1-0 at Jeffrey Field), No. 7 seed Wisconsin (Oct. 20, 3-0 at Jeffrey Field), and No. 8 seed Northwestern (Oct. 22, 2-1 at Jeffrey Field). Penn State played to a scoreless tie in the Oct. 8 meeting with No. 4 seed Indiana in Bloomington. The only Big Ten loss this year for the nine-time championship came at Illinois when the No. 2 seed Illini used a goal in the 84th minute to beat Penn State, 3-2.
Penn State Series History vs. the Rest of the Field... Should Penn State win its quarterfinal match-up with Northwestern, here??s a snapshot of the Lions?? series history with the rest of the field:
~ The Series with Illinois... In a 16-game old series, Penn State holds a 14-2-0 record against the Illini after falling 3-2 in their only Big Ten loss this year on Oct. 1. The Lions?? only other loss vs. Illinois came in 2002 when they fell 4-3 to the Illini in the Big Ten Tournament in East Lansing. Overall, Penn State is 4-1 vs. Illinois in Big Ten Tournament action.
~ The Series with Indiana?? The Lions lead the Hoosiers 14-1-1 in the all-time series. Penn State had won its last 11 matches vs. Indiana until tying the Hoosiers earlier this season, 0-0, in Bloomington. The only loss for Penn State vs. Indiana was at the 1996 Big Ten Tournament on neutral ground in Columbus, Ohio. The Lions dropped a 1-0 decision that day. Penn State is 1-1 overall vs. IU in Big Ten Tournament action.
~ The Series with Michigan... The Nittany Lions own a 11-3-5 advantage over Michigan after a 4-1 victory over the Wolverines earlier this season. The last Big Ten Tournament meeting, a 3-3 tie in last year??s quarterfinals in Ann Arbor, stands as one of the only small blemishes on Penn State??s 23-0-2 record in 2005. Penn State and Michigan played to a draw through two overtimes before the Wolverines advance on penalty kicks, 4-3. The tie was one of only two on the year, which included a 0-0 tie with Portland in the national semifinals. The Nittany Lions had no losses during the 2005 season. The Wolverines and Lions have met 19 times, marking the most frequently contested Big Ten series for Penn State. Next to Ohio State, who has beaten the Lions four times, Michigan has the most wins of any Big Ten team vs. the Lions (3).
~ The Series with Ohio State... Penn State holds a 12-4-0 lead over the Buckeyes in the all-time series. Penn State won this year??s meeting with the Buckeyes 1-0 at Jeffrey Field on Oct. 15. The Lions?? last loss to the Buckeyes was on Nov. 7 2004 in the Big Ten Tournament final in Columbus. Penn State holds 2-1 advantage over the Buckeyes in tournament match-ups. OSU has more wins (4) over Penn State then any other Big Ten school.
~ The Series with Purdue?? After a 2-0 win in West Lafayette this year, Penn State leads the series with Purdue 6-1-1. The Lions have won the past three meetings with the Boilermakers, with the only loss of the series coming on Sept. 26, 2003, in West Lafayette. The 3-1 loss was the Lions?? only conference loss that year en route to its sixth Big Ten championship. Penn State has never met Purdue in the Big Ten Tournament.
~ The Series with Wisconsin... Penn State holds a 13-1-3 lead over the Badgers in the overall series. The Nittany Lions defeated Wisconsin 3-0 earlier this year. The Lions?? last loss to the Badgers came in the Big Ten Tournament in 2003, which was held in Madison, Wis. Penn State is 2-1-1 overall in tournament action vs. the Badgers.
Lions Win Championship with 8-1-1 Record?? Penn State used an 8-1-1 conference record to capture its ninth straight Big Ten title. After a pair of perfect Big Ten seasons, the eight wins and one tie (25 points) was the lowest win total the Lions used to clinch the title since their 2001 championship season that was also an 8-1-1 record. The lowest total to yield the Lions a conference crown? Penn State??s first of the nine they own in 1998. That year, Penn State took it all with a 7-1-1 mark (23 points) before Purdue joined the field.
Penn State Puts 13th-straight Winning Big Ten Season in the Record Books?? The Lions?? 8-1-1 conference record marked the 13th consecutive winning season for the Lions, keeping them perfect as a program. The nine-time Big Ten champions, Penn State has never
Lion Big Ten Regular Season History
1994 5-2 T2nd 1995 4-2-1 3rd 1996 5-1-1 2nd 1997 6-2-1 3rd 1998 7-1-1 1st 1999 9-0-1 1st 2000 10-0-0 1st 2001 8-1-1 1st 2002 9-1-0 1st 2003 9-1-0 1st 2004 10-0-0 1st 2005 10-0-0 1st 2006 8-1-1 1st
Lions?? Championship Streak Noteworthy... By clinching the 2006 Big Ten title on Oct. 22, Penn State pushed its championship run to nine-straight. The streak is now tied with Indiana women??s tennis for the second-longest in Big Ten women??s championship history. Northwestern tennis has a chance to make it a three-way tie this spring, and sits third with eight consecutive titles. The conference is celebrating its 25th Anniversary of Big Ten Women??s Championships this year.
LONGEST BIG TEN CHAMPIONSHIP STREAK
12, Michigan Swimming & Diving (1987-98)
9, Penn State Women??s Soccer (1998-Present)
9, Indiana Tennis (1987-95)
8, Northwestern Tennis (1999-Present)
Reaching New Heights... In the final regular season weekend, the Lions won their 100th Big Ten regular season game since entering the conference in 1994. Over the past 13 years, Penn State has won nearly 87 percent of its conference games and has posted a mark of 100-12-7 all-time, after a 8-1-1 overall record this year.