Aug. 31, 2007
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - No. 7 Penn State led 1-0 at halftime, but after two second-half Tennessee goals eventually dropped a 2-1 decision to the home-standing Lady Vols. The women's soccer team next meets unranked Central Florida on Sunday at 10:30 a.m.
"We had the opportunity to play in Tennessee's opening night of the their new stadium and give credit to Tennessee for their effort, their energy and enthusiasm throughout the game," said first-year Penn State head coach Erica Walsh. "I thought Aubrey Aden-Buie did a good job, she played all 90 minutes tonight, and Megan Monroig scoring off the bench right after she came in, I thought she had a very good performance. Sheree Gray also performed well.
"I think at this point, we're still in preseason mode and a bit young and inexperienced. So a lot of good things came out of this for us to work on."
After scoreless play through the first 40 minutes, the scoring was broken open by Penn State freshman Megan Monroig (Northumberland, Pa.) when in the 41st minute she curled the opening goal of the Nittany Lions' 2007 season past Lady Vol keeper Jaimel Johnson.
The score remained a 1-0 Penn State advantage until Tennessee's Tanya Emerson took a cross from Mick Ingram and made the deposit into the upper right corner in the 58th minute. The Lady Vols put another goal on the board when Ingram scored herself on an unassisted goal in the 69th minute to put Penn State behind 2-1. In spite of pressure from the Nittany Lions, Tennessee held on for the one-goal, season-opening win.
Penn State keeper Alyssa Naeher (Seymour, Conn.) took the loss with seven saves. Despite giving up the game's first goal, Johnson got the victory, making four saves along the way. Junior Sheree Gray (Toms River, N.J.) and senior Aubrey Aden-Buie (Allentown, Pa.) had three shots each for the Nittany Lions' offense.
Penn State meets Central Florida on Sunday at 10:30 a.m. to finish off its action in the First Tennessee Lady Vol Classic. The Nittany Lions then travel to No. 16 Connecticut on Thursday, Sept. 6, for the first NSCAA College Soccer Match of the Week this season. The game will be broadcast live on Fox Soccer Channel at 8 p.m.
--NITTANY LIONS--