Feb. 28, 2009
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Coming off two dominating victories to start the 2009 season, the Penn State women's lacrosse team (2-0) will face its stiffest challenge thus far when Patriot League preseason favorite Colgate (2-1) visits Holuba Hall for a 1 p.m. non-conference match-up on Sun., March 1.
At halftime of the contest, members of Penn State's 1989 National Championship team will be honored in a special ceremony as part of the annual Alumnae Weekend festivities. Guided by Hall of Fame coach Susan Delaney-Scheetz, the Nittany Lions posted a 19-1 record, defeating Harvard, 7-6, to claim Penn State's fifth national title. On the field, the Lions were led by All-Americans Tami Worley, the team's leading scorer with 78 goals and 16 assists, Becky Vaughan, Tracy Mass, and Diane Whipple.
Last Wednesday, Penn State moved to 2-0 by crushing Bucknell at home, 18-5. After getting shutout in the season opener, senior midfielder Kerry Shea (Baltimore, Md.), a preseason All-ALC selection, came alive versus the Bison, totaling three goals, five draw controls, and four ground balls. Senior Marisa Lozano (Pittsburgh, Pa.) added four points on three goals and one assist while freshman Mary Dean (Wyncote, Pa.) (2 goals, 1 assist) and senior Amanda Longobucco (Sea Cliff, N.Y.) (1 goal, 2 assists).
Penn State has employed a balanced attack through the season's early onset, with three Nittany Lions, Marisa Lozano, Maria Valderas (Catonsville, Md.), and Jen Steadman (Sykesville, Md.), leading the team with five goals each. Four Lions share the team lead with three assists. Sixteen different players have netted goals while 17 have tallied points.
Colgate suffered its first loss of the season in its last outing, falling to No. 16 Cornell, 10-7. The Raiders held a 5-4 lead early in the second half but surrendered three consecutive goals to the Big Red, giving it a lead it would not relinquish. Junior attacker Brie Moran and freshman midfielder Courtney Miller headlined the Colgate attack, scoring two goals each.
Through its first three games of the 2009 season, Colgate has outscored its opponents 42-18, including a 16-1 pasting of La Salle. Sophomore midfielder Colleen Bubnack leads the offense with 10 points on six goals and four assists, while junior midfielder Meghan Lawler has a team-best seven goals.
Penn State is 8-0 all time versus Colgate and has dominated recent meetings, winning the previous three by a combined score of 48-10.
The Nittany Lions will be back in action in just two days, taking on Mount St. Mary's (0-2) in Holuba Hall at 6:30 p.m. on Tues., March 3. The meeting will be Penn State's first with a Northeast Conference opponent in the four-decade plus history of the program.