Sept. 10, 2009
Game Notes • UConn Classic Central
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Still in search of its first win in September, the No. 24/23 Penn State Nittany Lions will look to snap a two-game losing streak when it takes part in the UConn Soccer Classic in Storrs, Conn. The Nittany Lions will face No. 8/10 Wake Forest at 5:00 p.m. on Friday and take on Boston University at 11:30 a.m. on Sunday at Joseph J. Marrone Stadium.
UCONN SOCCER CLASSIC
No. 24/23 Penn State Nittany Lions (2-3-0)
vs.
No. 8/10 Wake Forest Demon Deacons (6-0-0) // Boston U. Terriers (2-1-2)
September 11 • 5:00 p.m. // September 13 • 11:30 p.m.
Joseph J. Marrone Stadium (8,574) • Grass • Storrs Conn.
GAME STORIES
• The Nittany Lions travel to Connecticut for the UConn Soccer Classic
• Penn State faces two teams for the first time in Wake Forest & Boston U.
• PSU is looking to snap a two-game losing streak on Friday, was shutout for first time in 2009 against Rutgers
• Danielle Toney was the first person to score against Florida State on Friday.  It was just the second time in her Nittany Lion career that Penn State lost when she scores. PSU is 16-2-1 all-time with a Toney goal.
GAME NOTES
LASTTIMEOUT: Penn State dropped its two games last weekend at Florida State (2-1) and Rutgers (1-0) at home. The Nittany Lions were led by Alyssa Naeher, who made eight saves in the two games. Danielle Toney scored the lone goal vs. Florida State; assists were made by Katie Schoepfer and Christine Nairn.
SCOUTINGTHEDEMONDEACONS: No. 8/10 Wake Forest (6-0-0) heads into the UConn Soccer Classic riding some major momentum on a six-game winning streak. The Demon Deacons have yielded just two goals in 2009, while notching 19 of their own. Leading the way up front are Jill Hutchinson (6G, 2A) and Kaley Fountain (5G, 4A), each with 14 points. In net, Laura Morse (6-0, 0.40 GAA) has conceded just two goals with one shutout. She has been part of four combined shutouts this season.
SCOUTINGTHETERRIERS: Boston University (2-1-2) hit the road for the second consecutive weekend after back-to-back double-overtime draws at Loyola (1-1) and West Virginia (0-0). The Terriers are winless in their last three games, which include a loss at Boston College (2-0) on Sept. 2. BU is averaging just one goal a game, but allowing opponents only 0.6 per game. The Terriers are led by Farrell McClernon and Jessica Luscinski who each have two goals. Janie Reilly (1-1-0, 0.40 GAA) has split time in net with Annie Tooley (1-0-2, 0.68 GAA).
LOSING STREAK: The Nittany Lions are currently going through a two-game losing streak for the first time back-to-back losses to James Madison (1-0) and Notre Dame (3-1) in 2008. This is the farthest into the season Penn State has been below .500 since 2006 when the Nittany Lions started 1-2-2.
FIRST SHUTOUT: Rutgers blanked Penn State, 1-0, on Sunday. It was the first time PSU was shutout since a 1-0 loss to Ohio State on Oct. 31, 2008. The shutout breaks a streak of eight-straight games with a goal.
UCONN COMEBACK: Penn State needed a little late-game magic to pull off its second win of the year over UConn, 3-2, on August 31. The Huskies maintained a 2-1 lead through 75 minutes, despite being out-shot, 30-6. Nikki Watts keyed the comeback win with a goal and an assist and Christine Nairn provided the game-winner with a header for her first collegiate goal in the 79th minute. Danielle Toney's 16th minute goal was her second of the year.
TONEY SCORES, PSU WINS: Danielle Toney accounted for the last four game-winning goals before the UConn game. Penn State is 16-2-1 (.868) all-time when Toney records a goal, but just 20-13-1 (.603) when she doesn't.
WVU UPSET: The No. 8/5 Penn State women's soccer team fell to No. 14/17 West Virginia, 2-1, on Aug. 29 at Jeffrey Field. Katie Schoepfer made a clever cut to her left foot and snuck the ball into the right-side of the net past Kerri Butler (five saves) for the equalizer just over 12 minutes from the half-time whistle, but WVU prevailed on a 58th minute strike. Alyssa Naeher made three saves.
OPENING NIGHT WIN: Penn State beat then-No. 9 Virginia, improving to 5-1 all-time against UVa. Danielle Toney scored a seventh-minute goal on an end-to-end run off a Virginia corner kick. The marker came just minutes after hitting the post in the third minute. Toney's offense kept UVa off-balance, as three other changes from the junior went begging, as she was one-on-one in each of her chances. Alyssa Naeher made four saves, all in the first half, for the Lions to preseve the shut out.
NINE IN A ROW: Penn State has now won nine-straight home games when they're the season openers.  The shutout victory was the first season-opening home win since 2000, when the Lions beat George Mason, 3-0. Overall, Penn State improved to 14-2-0 in home openers.
DECORATED LEADER: As if being a two-time First Team All-American and U-20 World Cup Champion wasn't enough, Alyssa Naeher added the title "captain" to her résumé. Naeher will serve as the team's lone captain during the 2009 campaign. Naeher was named the Golden Glove winner at the World Cup in Chile, leading the Americans to the championship.
ALL-BIG TEN RETURNERS: Penn State boasts a core group of returning All-Big Ten recipients from a year ago. Alyssa Naeher earned First Team accolades along with Katie Schoepfer. Meghan Gill was a Second Team honoree, while Emma Thomson returns as an All-Freshman mention. Danielle Toney came on late in the season in 2008, earning the Offensive MVP of the Big Ten Tournament.  Naeher was the Defensive MVP.
STELLAR SPRING: The PSU women's soccer team didn't slack off this spring going 7-0-1 in exhibition matches stateside. Of the eight games, four were against 2009 opponents. Penn State defeated West Virginia (3-1), Virginia (2-0) and Rutgers (1-0), while tying Bucknell (1-1). Other matches included wins over Villanova (2-0), Penn (2-0), Maryland (4-0) and Messiah (3-0).
LIONS BACK IN THE RANKINGS: After falling Âout of the final rankings for the first time since 1994, Penn State was tabbed 12th in the NSCAA Coaches' Poll on August 12. After highs of 8th (NSCAA) and 5th (SA), PSU is now at 24th an 23rd, respectively.
OS LEÕES DE NITTANY EM BRASIL: At the end of May, the Penn State squad embarked on a two-week trip to Brazil. All but four members of the squad, including recent graduates, made the trip the South American country known for its soccer. The Nittany Lions participated in three full-field exhibitions, a fustal tournament as well as a beach soccer tournament. The squad also got to venture about the country and see the sights and sounds of Brazil in the cities of São Paolo and Rio De Janeiro.
FIRST GOAL: Nine new freshmen join the Nittany Lion roster, many of whom are accomplished players above and beyond the high school level. One such newcomer, Christine Nairn, scored her first goal at the top international level with the U.S. National Senior Team in July. The freshman scored the lone goal in a 1-0 friendly win over Canada on July 22 in Charleston, S.C. It was Nairn's second cap with the full team.
MONTHLY WINS: September has been Penn State's most successful month historically. The Nittany Lions have won 102 games, but dropped just 21 contests in 15 years. PSU has seven games in September, two at home. So far, the Lions are 0-2. Penn State went 2-1 in August.
GOLDEN NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS: Two Nittany Lions, sophomore Krissy Tribbett and freshman Maddy Evans, won the U.S. Youth Championships with their respective club teams this summer. Tribbett's Colorado Nike Rush squad won the U-19 division, capturing its second consecutive title in double overtime. Evans' team, the FC Bucks Vipers, won the U-18 division, 1-0, on Evans' game-winner in the 52nd minute. Evans' five goals earned her the the Golden Boot Award.
TROPHY CANDIDATES: Alyssa Naeher, Christine Nairn and Katie Schoepfer were named to the M.A.C. Hermann Trophy watch list on August 11. The trio represent the second straight time the Nittany Lions see three of their own on the preseason list.
PACK THE JEFF: Penn State athletics organized its biggest soccer promotion in history as the efforts to fill Jeffrey Field for the season opener vs. Virginia. The goal was to have fans be a part of the largest crowd in stadium history, which would mean having more than 3,208 spectators present, the record set in a 2006 match against UCLA. In the end, 3,098 fans came out to see the Lions beat the Cavaliers, the second-largest crowd ever.
GARCIA, GILL OUT FOR SEASON: Bri Garcia and Meghan Gill suffered season-ending injuries prior to the team's first game vs. Virginia. Garcia has been out since May with an ACL tear, while Gill is done for the season with an ACL and a meniscus tear, which happened during preseason training camp.
TOUGH SCHEDULE: The Nittany Lions will tackle 10 NCAA Tournament opponents from a year ago. In all, eight teams ranked in last year's final NSCAA poll are on the Lions' schedule. Five of those teams will visit Jeffrey Field, while one more, Brigham Young, will be in University Park for the Penn State Invitational, but won't play the Nittany Lions.
RULING THE ROOST: The Big Ten coaches' preseason predictions were released on Aug. 12 and Penn State was tabbed to claim its 12th-straight Big Ten title. Michigan State was No. 2 and Illinois No. 3.
NEXT WEEK: Penn State will receive a full week of rest before tackling the Dukes of James Madison on Jeffrey Field, Sunday, Sept. 20 at 1:00 p.m. Following the JMU game, the Nittany Lions travel to Bucknell (Sept. 23) for their final non-conference game of the season before a road trip to East Lansing, Mich. kicks off the Big Ten slate at Michigan State (Sept. 27) on the Big Ten Network.
All the games at the UConn Soccer Classic will have GameTracker coverage from Joseph J. Marrone Stadium in Storrs, Conn. Fans can also track the team through Twitter @PSUWomensSoccer.
Want to win an autographed 2009 team poster? Bid on this and other exclusive Penn State merchandise now by clicking here: .
For complete coverage of all the Nittany Lion women's soccer this season, go to www.GoPSUsports.com/sports/w-soccer.
Follow Penn State women's soccer on Twitter: @PSUWomensSoccer.
--NITTANY LIONS--