Nov. 8, 2009
EAST LANSING, Mich. - Penn State field hockey senior Amy Bonenberger and junior Ali Meves have been named to the Big Ten All-Tournament Team as announced following Sunday's championship game which saw Michigan State top Indiana, 3-2. Bonenberger assisted on both goals during the Nittany Lions' 2-1 upset over 12th ranked Ohio State while Meves finished with eight total saves. It marks the second Big Ten All-Tournament honor for Bonenberger, who was also named to the 2007 team.
While fellow captains Laura Cahill and Bethany Marvel were named to the All-Big Ten Second Team on Thursday, the third captain was honored on Sunday for a strong postseason performance. Bonenberger finished with a career-high two assists on Thursday while serving as the backbone of a strong defense that only allowed four total goals against a pair of nationally ranked squad. The Palmyra, Pa. native finishes her career with 23 points on eight goals and seven assists.
Meves was incredible in goal with five saves as part of Thursday's triumph over the second-seeded Buckeyes while making three more against No. 18 (and third-seeded) Indiana. Against the Hoosiers, she made a pair of incredible successive saves late in the first half to keep the score tied. The junior from Lower Gwynedd, Pa. finished the season with a Big Ten leading 108 saves, the first time a Penn State goalkeeper reached triple digits since 2003.
The Nittany Lions finish the season 7-13 highlighted by three wins against nationally ranked squads, including two against rival Ohio State. After a tough start to the season, Penn State posted a 5-5 record in the last 10 games, including those three wins over ranked foes. It also advanced to the Big Ten Semifinals for the fifth consecutive season and in doing so, became only the second No. 7 seed in Big Ten history to win a game in the conference tournament. The Nittany Lions also defeated Ohio State twice in a season for the first time since 2007 and for only the second time in the last 10 seasons.
Check back to GoPSUsports.com and the Penn State field hockey twitter page throughout the offseason for continued news and notes on the Nittany Lions.
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