Sept. 19, 2010
WEST CHESTER, Pa. - Sophomore Kelsey Amy (Sweet Valley, Pa.) continued her red-hot offensive week to lead the 15th-ranked Penn State field hockey team (5-2) past West Chester (3-4) by a score of 3-1 on Sunday afternoon, marking the Lions' fourth straight victory.
Amy played a direct role in manufacturing each of the three goals, all of which coming in the first half, in the two-goal road decision over the Golden Rams on a sun-splashed day in West Chester. Amy notched a goal and two assists, giving the sophomore four goals during Penn State's three victories this week.
Amy's production on offense, coupled with another stout first half performance from redshirt sophomore goalkeeper Ayla Halus (Hershey, Pa.) in the cage and the Nittany Lion defense now sends Penn State into the Big Ten season with a great deal of confidence.
Nittany Lion head coach Charlene Morett earned her 401st career victory on Sunday afternoon. Morett eclipsed the 400 mark after the Lions downed Temple on Saturday afternoon. She became just the fourth coach in NCAA Division I history to reach 400 victories in field hockey history.
The NIttany Lion offense wasted little time putting pressure on West Chester in Sunday's intra-state battle. Penn State earned four penalty corners in the first three minutes of the game before freshman midfielder Brittany Grzywacz (Collegeville, Pa.) found the back of the goal first at the 4:19 mark with her second goal in as many games on an assist from Amy following a penalty corner.
Just shy of six minutes later, Amy found the back of the net on an unassisted goal as the first half clock read 10:09. Amy's score was her team-high sixth of the season. Leading 2-0 in the 11th minute, the Nittany Lion offense was not quite done in an aggressive start to the first half.
In the 14th minute of action, freshman Lauren Purvis (Maple Glen, Pa.) tallied a goal on another assist from Amy. Purvis' third goal of the season set the scoreboard at 3-0, just 13:48 into the contest. Penn State's early surge sent the Lions into the locker room in command of the ballgame.
West Chester netted its only goal of the afternoon in the 46th minute of action with Halus resting on the bench. The redshirt sophomore has not allowed a goal in three straight games. It was another superb defensive performance from Lion back line. West Chester's second half tally set the score at 3-1, which capped the scoring on Sunday.
Penn State dominated the final numbers, out-shooting West Chester by a 29-8 margin. The Lions also tallied 14 penalty corners to seven from the Golden Rams.
But it was the stout first half that fueled the Lions to the two-goal victory on Sunday afternoon. Playing their third game in five days, the Lions now head into a five-day layoff before kicking off the Big Ten portion of its schedule. The Nittany Lions return home on Sept. 24 to kick off the Big Ten season against Indiana riding a four-game winning streak.
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