Sept. 11, 2007
University Park, Pa. - The Penn State field hockey team will once again look for its first home win of the season as it plays the second contest of a three-game homestand on Wednesday afternoon against Temple at 4:00 p.m. on AstroTurf Field. The Nittany Lions (3-2), who are ranked No. 7 in the country will be meeting the Owls (4-2) for the first time since 2005.
After a 29-year run in which the Nittany Lions and Owls played every year since 1977, the series took a year off last year. Penn State has won the last 10 meeting with Temple and leads the all-time series 26-6-2 as Temple has only won once in State College, that coming in 1984. The Owls' last win in the series came in 1995.
Penn State will be the third ranked opponent for the Owls this year, who fell to Michigan but defeated future Penn State opponent Syracuse for their first win over a ranked team since 2002 on Sunday. Temple, who is currently receiving votes in the STX/NFHCA Top 20 poll, will be the first of two straight opponents for the Lions from the Atlantic 10 this week, as the Nits will also take on West Chester on Friday at 6:00 p.m.
The Nittany Lions are coming off a five-game stretch to begin the season that saw them take on five straight NCAA Tournament teams from last season, going 3-2 in that stretch. Following the two home games against unranked teams this week, Penn State will face No. 1 North Carolina on the road on Sunday.