Oct. 22, 2007
University Park, Pa. - The Penn State field hockey team will make the short trip east on Route 45 on Tuesday to play their final non-conference game of the regular season as well as their final regular season road game when the Nittany Lions take on Bucknell in Lewisburg, Pa. Game time is 7:00 p.m. between the Nittany Lions and Bison.
This will mark a renewal of one of the most-played series in Penn State field hockey history. Bucknell was Penn State's opponent in its second game in program history back in 1964 and the teams met almost every year with only a few exceptions from that point until 1991. After the 1991 season, the schools did not meet again until 2000 and they met six straight years from 2000-2005 before taking a one-year hiatus last year.
Although it has been a frequently-played series, Penn State has dominated the series, as the Nittany Lions hold a 29-2-2 advantage in the all-time series and having won the last 26 straight meetings, the longest winning streak against a single opponent for Penn State. Bucknell's two wins in the series came in 1969 and 1970.
Bucknell (7-8, 0-4 Patriot League) has lost five of its last six games entering Tuesday's game. The Bison have three common opponents with the Nittany Lions. They fell to Ohio State, who the Nittany Lions will play on Friday, 6-1 the first weekend of the season, and also lost to Lock Haven 6-2 in September. They will also play Lafayette, who Penn State defeated 1-0 two weeks ago, this weekend.
Penn State (10-6, 2-3 Big Ten) will be looking to snap a two-game skid that has seen it drop consecutive games to top 10 opponents Michigan State and Iowa. In fact, all six of Penn State's losses have come to teams that are currently ranked in the top 10.
Kiersten Wood will be looking to make it seven straight games with at least one point in Tuesday's game as she has recorded a point in six straight games. Allison Scola has a point in five of the last seven games.
Tuesday's game will be available on a live internet video feed on Bucknell's athletics website, BucknellBison.com. There is a fee for this subscription-based service.
Following Tuesday's game, the Nittany Lions will make the short drive back from Lewisburg and begin preparing for Friday's regular season finale against Ohio State. That game will be televised live on the Big Ten Network and it will also be the Code Blue event of the season for the field hockey team.