Oct. 7, 2010
Friday at Northwestern: •
Sunday at Iowa: • BigTenNetwork.com Video
Game Notes • Twitter/Facebook
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - The Nittany Lion women's soccer team travels to the Midwest for two games against Northwestern (Friday at 8 p.m. ET) and Iowa (Sunday at 2 p.m. ET) this weekend. Both games will have live stats and be streamed live on the web.
Penn State has had dominating performances over the Wildcats and Hawkeyes over the years. PSU is a robust 16-2-0 all-time against Northwestern having won the past 13 in a row, while holding a 15-game winning streak over Iowa in all 15 matchups, outscoring the Hawkeyes, 58-8.
Penn State looks to rebound from a tough 1-0 overtime loss at rival Ohio State last weekend. The Nittany Lions suffered the loss after a miscue on the backline gave the Buckeyes the win in the 96th minute. Prior to that, Penn State won a gritty 1-0 game against Michigan State on Sept. 26 after Christine Nairn (Arnold, Md.) put away a penalty kick. Krissy Tribbett (Centennial, Colo.) earned the shutout in the win over the Spartans.
The complete game notes can be found HERE.
GAME NOTES
SCOUTING THE WILDCATS: Northwestern is 5-4-3 this season after a 1-1 draw against Michigan last weekend. Freshman Katie Allen is the most potent Wildcat offensive threat with five goals this season. In net, Carolyn Edwards has gotten the nod all season, seeing every minute of play with a 0.94 GAA, .769 save percentage and three shutouts.
SERIES HISTORY: Penn State has dominated Northwestern, winning 16 of 18 matchups including the last 13 in a row dating back to 1998. Last season, PSU scored two goals in the opening 13 minutes to win 2-0 on a rainy night at Jeffrey Field. Northwestern is 2-6 against the Lions in Evanston.
SCOUTING THE HAWKEYES: Iowa is having one of its better seasons in recent memory, going 7-3-2 so far in 2010 with a 0-1-1 mark in Big Ten play. Last week, Iowa lost at Wisconsin 2-0 after a shock 1-1 tie wtih Minnesota at home. Super sub Leah DeMoss leads the team in goals (5) and points (13) with three other Hawkeyes scoring three tallies. Emily Moran has seen all but 39 minutes in net sporting a 0.65 GAA, .837 save percentage with six solo shutouts.
SERIES HISTORY: The series between PSU and Iowa has been lopsided with the Nittany Lions winning all 15 games. Penn State took a dominating 4-0 win over the Hawkeyes at Jeffrey Field last year. Penn State has out-scored Iowa 58-8 all-time in the series and is a perfect 7-0-0 in Iowa City.
BIG TEN OPENING WIN: Penn State earned its first shutout of the season in a tense 1-0 win over Michigan State on Sunday, Sept. 26 at Jeffrey Field. Christine Nairn converted a penalty kick in the 20th minute for the deciding goal. Maya Hayes took a pass down the left wing and was brought down by MSU's Annie Steinlege, drawing the penalty kick. The spirited opening conference match saw 27 fouls combined from each team including four bookings. In the end, Krissy Tribbett's two saves in the final 90 seconds sewed up the victory for PSU who won their 17th straight Big Ten home opener (17-0-0) and upped their unbeaten streak against Big Ten competition to 10 (9-0-1).
BUCKNELL BREAKOUT: Penn State snapped its five-game skid in emphatic fashion with a 5-1 thrashing of Bucknell on Wednesday night at Jeffrey Field. Maya Hayes scored a first half goal before PSU unleashed a four-goal second-half barrage.  Hayes has now scored in each of her last three games. Danielle Toney led the Lions with two goals, while freshman Taylor Schram notched three points in the second half. Christine Nairn notched two assists from midfield, while Bri Hovington supplied her first collegiate point with an assist. Hayley Brock capped the scoring in the 76th minute as PSU improved to 14-0-1 all-time vs. Bucknell. The Nittany Lions are now 25-3-2 all-time when Toney tallied a marker and 29-2-1 all-time against Pennsylvania teams. Currently, the Lions are on a 24 game unbeaten streak against Keystone State foes.
PENNSYLVANIA DOMINANCE: Since starting its program in 1994, Penn State has become the premier women's soccer program in Pennsylvania. All-time, the Nittany Lions are an impressive 28-2-1 against its Keystone foes, with the only team ever defetating PSU being Villanova. In fact, the Lions are riding a 13-year unbeaten streak since its last loss, a 2-1 defeat at `Nova in 1997. PSU is currently enduring a 22-0-1 stretch, which includes a 13-0-1 mark against Bucknell.
INVITATIONAL REDUX: The Nittany Lions hosted the fifth annual Penn State Invitational last weekend, going 0-1-1. Friday's game saw an exciting tilt between two top 15 teams in Penn State and Virginia as the Nittany Lions took a lead 54 minutes into the game on a Hayley Brock marker off a helper from Tani Costa. Virginia equalized in the 88th minute to send it to overtime where the game ended in a 1-1 draw. On Sunday, PSU took the lead for the third straight time in 2010 when Danielle Toney scored her second of the season, only to see it be equaled by William & Mary minutes later. A 74th minute free kick goal from 40 yards out saw the Tribe leave Jeffrey Field with the win.
| Penn State Women's Soccer Thanks its Fans! |
PACKING THE JEFF: Penn State and Virginia entertained 3,921 at Jeffrey Field, a new women's soccer single-game attendance record at the facility. A strong showing from the student section of Nittany Nation made their voices felt throughout the matches, lifting the Nittany Lions. The previous record was 3,208 set in Aug. 2006 in a match against UCLA, a 2-1 Penn State win. Last year, Penn State ranked ninth in the nation in average attendance (1,198) and tops in the Big Ten.
GOAL FOR 13,000: Penn State has put together an ambitious promotion plan into place to see 13,000 fans see a women's soccer game at Jeffrey Field. Last season, the Lions set a new single-season attendance record with 1,138 people per game. A total of 14,378 joined the NIttany Lions, second most in the team's history in raw numbers. The 14,711 in 2005 still stands as the most. 13,000 in nine games (1,444 per game) would break last year's single-season record.
EXORCISING THE MOUNTAINEERS:  West Virginia has had Penn State's number since 2007. No more. Penn State broke its four-game skid against the Mountaineers with a thrilling 2-1 overtime win over the 24th ranked WVU squad. A 22nd-minute goal by Danielle Toney was equalized by Bri Rodriguez in the 34th minute. The two teams went into overtime, mostly due to WVU goalkeeper Kerri Butler's outstanding play (nine saves). Tani Costa took a Hayley Brock delivery, cut back and slotted a left-footed shot home for the victory with 49 seconds left in the first OT period. It was Penn State's first overtime win since Oct. 2008, first win over WVU since Nov. 2005 and the first win in Morgantown since Oct. 2003. The goal was Costa's first in college play in her collegiate debut.
NEXT TIME OUT: Penn State returns home next weekend for a hugely important set of games. The Nittany Lions host Minnesota on Friday, Oct. 15 at 7:00 p.m. Penn State is looking to achieve another attendance record against the Gophers by topping the Jeffrey Field women's soccer Big Ten single-game record. The current record stands at 2,366 for a Sept. 24, 2004 match against Indiana. Sept. 26's 1-0 win over Michigan State saw 1,692 fans support the Nittany Lions, which was the second largest crowd for a Big Ten women's soccer match at Jeffrey Field.
Two days later after the Wisconsin match, Penn State faces first-place Wisconsin for a Noon matchup on Sunday, Oct. 17. That game will be shown on Big Ten Network, tape delayed at 4:30 p.m.
For complete coverage of Penn State women's soccer, please visit GoPSUsports.com.
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--NITTANY LIONS--