Oct. 7, 2011
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - BLOOMINGTON, Ind.; Oct. 7, 2011 - The Penn State field hockey team (10-3, 3-0) picked up its eighth straight victory on Friday afternoon in a 6-2 winning effort over the Indiana Hoosiers. The Nittany Lions now have the program's longest winning streak since 2005, when that team strung together 17 straight wins.
Junior Kelsey Amy (Sweet Valley, Pa.) and sophomore Ashtin Klingler (Selinsgrove, Pa.) each scored two goals on the day. Sophomore Brittany Grzywacz (Collegeville, Pa.) and freshman Taylor Herold (Fredericksburg, Va.) also netted goals for Penn State. Junior Ayla Halus (Hershey, Pa.) made seven saves.
Just 1:47 into the game, Penn State was rewarded a penalty corner. Sophomore Whitney Reddig (Lititz, Pa.) played a ball in to Amy, who knocked it in to give Penn State a quick 1-0 lead.
Indiana would attempt to respond over the next six minutes, recording four shots. The Hossiers' leading scorer Morgan Fleetwood first attempted a shot that went wide of the net at 3:37 in. Following that, Jaclyn Zumidio had her shot on goal saved by Halus. Fleetwood followed with a shot shortly after, which was saved by Halus as well.
Penn State did not have as many opportunities as Indiana in the first half, but the Nittany Lions would capitalize when their chances came. The Lions were handed another penalty corner opportunity. Reddig played a ball in to freshman Laura Gebhart (Mount Joy, Pa.), who set the ball up. Grzywacz sent a nice drag flick by the goalie to give Penn State a 2-0 lead with 34 minutes remaining in the half.
Just 39 seconds after Penn State's second goal, Halus made another save on Stefani Day's shot to keep the Hoosiers in check. After Halus recorded her fourth save of the game 10 minutes later, Penn State would score its third goal. The goal came from Klingler, scored her second goal of the season on a fast break to give the Lions a 3-0 lead headed into halftime.
In the second half, the Hoosiers made things interesting. Ten minutes into the period, Morgan Fleetwood scored Inidana's first goal to cut the Penn State lead to 3-1. Breana Moeljadi then trimmed down the lead to 3-2, as she scored her seventh goal of the season on a deflected penalty corner.
With more pressure on them, the Lions would answer with three-straight goals to shoot down the Indiana momentum. Klingler netted her second goal of the game. She drove the ball down the field herself, shot the ball and deflected it off a defender for the score. Amy scored her second goal of the game, as her shot was also deflected of a defender and snuck in. Herold scored in the 65th minute to give Penn State a 6-2 lead.
Penn State will continue its three-game road trip as it travels to Lafayette on Tuesday. The Nittany Lions then trek to Michigan on Oct. 16.
Penn State hosts the 2011 Big Ten Field Hockey Tournament from Nov. 3-6. Tickets for the Big Ten Tournament can be purchased by contacting the Bryce Jordan Center ticket office at 814-865-5555. All session passes are $18 for adults and $12 for students/senior citizens. Single session tickets will run at $8 for adults and $5 for students/senior citizens. Groups of 15 people or more may also purchase tickets at $12 for all session passes and $5 for a single session.
Check back to GoPSUsports.com for continued Penn State Field Hockey updates throughout the 2011 season.
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