Oct. 24, 2013
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Penn State travels to Iowa City for a Big Ten matchup with the Hawkeyes on Friday at 3 p.m. and then plays UC Davis for the first time in program history in a neutral site matchup on Saturday at 2 p.m. Penn State can clinch at least a share of the Big Ten title and the No. 1 seed in the Big Ten Tourney with a win over the Hawkeyes. The match vs. Iowa will be televised live on BTN.
Penn State is coming into the weekend coming off one of the most thrilling games of the season. The Lions recorded a come from behind 4-3 shootout win over Michigan State last Saturday. The Lions trailed 3-1 with five minutes remaining, before Whitney Reddig (Lititz, Pa.) and Taylor Herold (Fredericksburg, Va.) evened the score in the waning minutes of regulation.
In the first overtime session, Penn State's Brittany Grzywacz (Collegeville, Pa.) made a diving defensive save to keep the ball out of the cage and the Nittany Lions alive. In the shootout, Laura Gebhart (Mount Joy, Pa.), Ashtin Klingler (Selinsgrove, Pa.) and Herold all converted their chances while goalkeeper Kylie Licata (Mountain Top, Pa.) stopped three of the four attempts she faced.
After the big win the Nittany Lions claimed the Big Ten Offensive and Defensive Player of the Week awards. Herold received the offensive honor for the first time this season and second time of her career after scoring two goals and then scoring the winning shootout goal to seal the victory. On the defensive side Grzywacz was awarded the accolade for the fourth time this season and sixth time in her career. Grzywacz is also the reigning Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year.
The Nittany Lions have stepped up their game during conference season, going 4-0 with two matches remaining in the regular season. Penn State has outscored its opponents 16-4 through the four matches, shutting out Northwestern and Indiana, while also defeating Ohio State and Michigan State. The Blue and White has outscored its Big Ten counterparts a combined 9-1 in the first half of matches. The team enters the weekend with a one match lead over Northwestern and Michigan State with two contests remaining.
Iowa has presented problems to the Blue and White in the past. The Hawkeyes are the only Big Ten team to lead the Nittany Lions in the all-time series, holding a record of 26-19-1 over Penn State. Despite trailing in the series, the Nittany Lions have enjoyed success over Iowa in recent meetings. The Blue and White has won each of the last four matchups dating back to the 2010 season.
Penn State claimed a 5-1 victory at home last season before defeating the Hawkeyes again in the semifinals of the Big Ten Tournament by a score of 3-2. The Nittany Lions are 5-11 when playing the Hawkeyes in Iowa City but have grabbed wins in the last two matchups at Iowa.
Iowa enters the matchup riding the second longest current winning streak in the Big Ten at five matches. In those five wins, the Hawkeyes have outscored their opponents by a combined score of 25-6. Iowa is .500 in Big Ten action with a record of 2-2.
The Hawkeyes narrowly dropped its first two matches by one goal apiece at Northwestern and Michigan before rebounding with wins over Indiana and Ohio State. Iowa has shared seven opponents with PSU, going 5-2 against the common opponents (Bucknell, Lafayette, Northwestern, Michigan, Indiana, Ohio State and Miami (Ohio).
The Hawkeyes boast the top offensive player in the conference in Natalie Cafone, who leads the Big Ten in points (40) and is tied for the lead in goals (17) on the season. The sophomore has netted five game winners thus far in 2013 and has added six assists to her resume.
Saturday will mark the first time the Lions and Aggies meet in program history. UC Davis has a record of 4-10 on the season. The Aggies recorded its biggest win in program history this season, knocking off Stanford in a 3-2 overtime win. A trio of Aggies lead the team on offense. Jamie Garcia and Cloey LemMon are tied for the team lead in points with 13, as each player has scored four goals and supplied five assists. Danielle Koehne leads UC Davis in goals scored with five on the season.
The Nittany Lions wrap up the regular season at Michigan, as the showdown with the Wolverines could play a large role in deciding the Big Ten regular season champion. The match is scheduled for Friday, Nov. 1 at 4 p.m.