UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa.; November 5, 2006 ?C Penn State won its fourth Big Ten Tournament Title Sunday with a 3-1 victory over Illinois to complete the sweep of the Big Ten in 2006. With an 8-1-1 conference record the Lions won their ninth consecutive Big Ten title earlier this year and with its Big Ten Tournament Title marked the fourth year that the team has swept the conference titles.
??I am very excited to win the Big Ten Tournament,?? said Penn State head coach Paula Wilkins. ??It has been a very long time since we have been back here (as the champions). I am very happy with my team and their performance today. Illinois is a very good team and they fought us to the end. I give huge credit to their team and to what they have done this season. I am looking forward to the NCAA Tournament next week and I think this win will definitely help us out in the seeding. We are peaking at the right time and I hope the selection committee sees that we battled through injuries early on and now we have some people healthy. I think this win will also help the team1s confidence.??
In a battle of the Big Ten??s best, No. 2 seed Illinois blinked first. Senior Sarah Dwyer (Califon, N.J.) waited on a pass from junior forward Aubrey Aden-Buie (Allentown, Pa.) in the middle of the field. Perfectly placed, she hesitated long enough to get the Illinois defender on her heels and then accelerated toward the goal. Dwyer placed the ball into the left side of the net and gave No. 1 seed Penn State a 1-0 lead at 21:14.
Illinois tied it up in the 38th minute when 2006 Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year Ella Maser bent in a corner kick that got by Alyssa Naeher (Seymour, Conn.) to knot the game at 1-1.
Things started to get more physical as the first half wound down with a Penn State player being carded shortly after the Illinois goal and the Lions earning a penalty kick when Katie Schoepfer (Waterford, Conn.) got taken down in the box. Sophomore midfielder Allie Long (Northport, N.Y.) converted the penalty kick, giving the Nittany Lions the lead again 39:02 into the game.
??Credit to Penn State, they have some great goal scorers and finished their chances,?? said Illini head coach Janet Rayfield. ??I think we had a couple chances had we put them away we??d have made it an even closer and more exciting game. I think you saw one of the top women??s soccer games here in State College today.??
Penn State added one more goal to its total when Aden-Buie found Schoepfer for her first score in six games. Aden-Buie passed it from the left side of the box to Schoepfer who tapped it in for her eighth goal of the year.
Play remained intense through the final 45 minutes, but the ending score remained the same, a 3-1 Big Ten Tournament final victory for the Nittany Lions. Penn State's Big Ten Tournament title is the fourth in program history and the second under five-time Big Ten head coach Paula Wilkins. The nine-time conference champions last won the Big Ten Tournament in 2001 and also won the tournament in 2000 and 1998 at Jeffrey Field.
The Nittany Lions and the Illini ended the game with very comparable statistics. Both teams finished with 21 shots, however the Lions wound up with a 7-6 edge in shots on goal. Naeher ended the day with five saves. With the help of Penn State??s defense, led by Big Ten Tournament Defensive MVP Ali Krieger (Dumfries, Va.) and junior All-Big Ten selection Denay Riley (Washingtonville, N.Y.), Naeher held off the pesky Illinois offense throughout the game.
The Illini attempted nine corner kicks, with the Lions finishing with five. The Illini??s Lindsey Carstens wound up with four stops in goal.
Aden-Buie was selected as the Big Ten Tournament Offensive MVP, while fellow Lion Krieger was named the Big Ten Tournament Defensive MVP. Aden-Buie, Dwyer and senior captain Krieger all represented Penn State on the Big Ten All-Tournament Team.
The NCAA Women??s Soccer Selection Show will be aired on Monday, Nov. 6, on ESPNews between 3 p.m. and 4 p.m. Penn State has been selected for the NCAA Tournament the past 11 straight years.
2006 Big Ten Women??s Soccer All-Tournament Team
Ella Massar, Illinois
Emily Zurrer, Illinois
Jessica Boots, Indiana
Megan Tuura, Michigan
Jeanette Lorme, Northwestern
Lara Dickenmann, Ohio State
Aubrey Aden-Buie, Penn State
Ali Krieger, Penn State
Sarah Dwyer, Penn State
Shauna Stapleton, Purdue
Kara Kabellis, Wisconsin
Offensive MVP: Aubrey Aden-Buie, Penn State
Defensive MVP: Ali Krieger, Penn State