July 31, 2012
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Penn State head coaches Erica Walsh and Bob Warming and their teams will co-host an afternoon of soccer activities on August 12 at 2 p.m. to officially kick off the 2012 season. Scheduled events, all of which are free to the public, include a youth clinic and an autograph session. Any kids in eighth grade or younger are invited to attend.
The clinic will be a formal and fun time for youths to meet the team and receive instruction from two of the foremost coaches in collegiate soccer and their staffs. Walsh, who has won a Big Ten title in each of her five years in Happy Valley, is assisted by Ann Cook (sixth year), Tim Wassell (third year) and Joel Bancroft (first). Warming, who is entering the 2012 season with 406 wins in his career, is assisted by second-year coaches Bo Oshoniyi and Chad Duernberger.
Parents bringing their children to the clinic are asked to contact the soccer team by emailing psusoccer@gmail.com to reserve a spot. Please include the child's name and age in the email. When attending the event, wear a uniform and bring a soccer ball.
Bob Warming |
The 14-time defending Big Ten champion women's team will open the 2012 regular season on Fri., August 17 when it travels to ACC-power Virginia. One week later, on Fri., August 24, the Lions will host defending National Champion Stanford at Jeffrey Field at 7:30 p.m. Penn State returns the majority of it's scoring from last year's Sweet Sixteen squad as MAC Hermann Trophy Finalist Maya Hayes (West Orange, N.J.), two-time NSCAA All-American Christine Nairn (Arnold, Md.), Emily Hurd (Sammamish, Wash.) and Taylor Schram (Canonsburg, Pa.) tallied 52 goals and 38 assists (142 points) lead the Lion offense.
Warming's squad returns 13 letterwinners and eight starters from last season's team that advanced to the Big Ten Tournament title game for the third consecutive year, broke the Penn State record for shutouts in a season, and led the conference in goals allowed and goals against average. Among the returnees are the team's top three scorers in Minh Vu (Tucson, Ariz.), the 2011 Big Ten Tournament Offensive MVP, Julian Cardona (Lincoln, Neb.), and Hasani Sinclair (Coral Gables, Fla.) and the anchor of the PSU defense, goalkeeper Andrew Wolverton (Snellville, Ga.). The Nittany Lion roster will also be bolstered by a talented group of newcomers, which includes six freshmen and four transfers.