Aug. 30, 2008
COLLEGEVILLE, Pa. - The No. 6 Penn State field hockey team's defense held No. 8 Old Dominion to without a shot as the Nittany Lions came away with a 2-0 victory Saturday afternoon at Ursinus College's Eleanor Frost Snell Alumnae Field.
The Nittany Lion offense over-powered the Monarchs with 20 shots, 17 of which were on goal. Allison Scola (Hummelstown, Pa.) tallied a goal and an assist in the opening-game victory.
"Shutting out Old Dominion says a lot about our defensive tenacity," head coach Charlene Morett said. "We were able to contain them by outletting our back, and it worked well for us in the end."
Penn State contained possession for much of the first half - out-shooting the Monarchs 12-0 - but Old Dominion's goalkeeper Kelly Driscoll kept it a stalemate with eight saves after the first 35 minutes.
The Nittany Lions missed out on several scoring chances until one of Penn State's 13 penalty corners connected for a goal. Scola took a Jenny Purvis (Maple Glen, Pa.) pass on the top of the key and relayed it inside the circle to Jessica Longstreth (Richboro, Pa.) who ended the stalemate with a tip and provided Penn State with a one-goal lead with 15:20 left in the game.
Scola added her third point of the afternoon when off of a penalty stroke with 7:39 remaining in the contest.
Penn State's offense sparked in its opening game after losing four of its five leading scorers from last season's national runner-up team.
Morett said: "Everyone showed up. It was a nice blend of experience out there and it proved to be consistent. Scola was a huge spark for us today."
Driscoll finished the game with 13 saves for the Monarchs. Penn State held a 13-1 advantage on penalty corners.
Penn State will take on No. 2 Maryland in its home opener Monday at 5 p.m.