Nov. 13, 2014
| NCAA TOURNAMENT FIRST ROUND | |
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| Fri., Nov. 14 - 7:30 p.m. ET | |
| Jeffrey Field | University Park, Pa. | |
| NCAA Women's Soccer Championship Guide | |
| GAME DAY LINKS |
TV: ESPN2 -->Live Stream: GoPSUSports.comLive Stats: Women's Soccer BlogFollow Us: @PennStateWSOC | Facebook | InstagramGameday Central
Game Notes: Penn State | BuffaloStatistics: Penn State | Buffalo
| INSIDE THE NUMBERS | ||
| PSU | UB | |
| 46 | Goals | 32 |
| 2.30 | Goals per Game | 1.52 |
| 289 | Shots | 345 |
| 14.4 | Shots per Game | 16.4 |
| 1-2 | Penalty Kicks | 1-1 |
| 14 | Goals Against | 13 |
| 0.70 | Goals Against Average | 0.59 |
| .800 | Save Percentage | .866 |
| 8 | Shutouts | 14 |
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - The No. 8 Penn State women's soccer team is advancing to the NCAA Tournament for the 20th-straight season, hosting Buffalo in the opening round as a No. 2 seed. The Nittany Lions welcome the Bulls to Jeffrey Field at 7:30 p.m. on Fri., Nov. 14.
Tickets are available for purchase with cash day of game only. Groups of 20-or-more are $3 per ticket, youth and students are $5 and adults are $8. ATM machines are located at the Bryce Jordan Center ticket office on Curtin Road. Gates open one hour prior to the match.
Thanks to a donation, the first 50 students to e-mail sml5218@psu.edu will receive a free ticket to the match, pizza and a t-shirt.
ADMISSION & LIMITED BAG POLICY
Fans attending Penn State soccer matches at Jeffrey Field will have to comply with Penn State University's Bag Policy. Fans are advised that no bags larger than backpacks may be brought into the stadium grounds. This includes duffle bags and purses larger than 8.5" x 11" x 6" and all bags will be searched. For more information visit the Safety Policy SY44 Page or Penn State's Bag Policy Page.
Fans are reminded that there will be heavy traffic on Fri., Nov. 14 with two events in the East campus vicinity all starting at the same time. Please be prepared for extra traffic and possibly longer wait times or parking availability further from your respective venue. All Women's Soccer fans are asked to identify to the parking attendants that they are attending the soccer game to be directed accordingly.
SCOUTING THE BULLS
The Bulls (16-2-3) advance to their first-ever NCAA Tournament riding a 14-game unbeaten streak after earning the program's first Mid-American Conference tournament championship. One of the best defensive teams in the postseason field, Buffalo produced 14 clean sheets this season, commanded by MAC Freshman of the Year Laura Dougall. The goalkeeper finished the regular season with the NCAA's third-best save percentage (.911) and fourth-lowest goals against average (0.37) in the country. The Bulls also captured the other three major conference awards (Offensive, Defensive and Coach of the Year), the first time in MAC history one team has claimed all four honors in a season. Katie Roberts, the MAC Offensive Player of the Year, leads the charge offensively for the Bulls, scoring 11 goals with two assists.
SERIES HISTORY vs. BUFFALO
All-time, Penn State is 2-0 against Buffalo, with the teams meeting in 1994 and 1995. On Sept. 29, 1995, the Nittany Lions beat the Bulls, 7-0.
NCAA TOURNAMENT HISTORY
Penn State is taking part in its 20th NCAA Tournament, all consecutive appearances since 1995. Overall, the Nittany Lions are 13-3 in first round games (PSU received byes from the first round in 1998, 1999 and 2000), but had a seven-game first-round winning streak snapped at Rutgers in 2008. Penn State is a four-time College Cup participant (1999, 2002, 2005, 2012), while advancing to the quarterfinals nine times, posting a 4-5 record. Penn State has amassed an impressive record of 29-6-1 at Jeffrey Field, out-scoring opponents 93-28 in NCAA Play. Penn State has hosted the first and second rounds in the pod format 10 of the last 13 years. In those 10 seasons in which PSU hosted, the Nittany Lions went 15-2.
APPEARANCES BY ROUND
NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME - 2012
COLLEGE CUP - 1999, 2002, 2005, 2012
QUARTERFINALS - 1997, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2012
THIRD ROUND - 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2011, 2012
SECOND ROUND - 1996, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013
NCAA TOURNAMENT RECORD
Record | GF | GA | |
Record at Jeffrey Field | 30-6-1 | 90 | 28 |
Away Record | 4-8-0 | 15 | 26 |
Neutral Record | 4-4-1 | 10 | 11 |
Overtime Games | 2-3-2 | 8 | 9 |
SIMPLY THE BEST
Penn State women's soccer maintained its standing as one of the top programs in collegiate soccer this season.
The Nittany Lions won their 16th conference title in 17 years, a record unmatched by any Division I program (North Carolina won 13 of 14 ACC titles from 1998-2008). Since the program began in 1994, Penn State has appeared in every Big Ten Tournament and each season from 1995 on, the team competed in the NCAA postseason.
PARK AVENUE PROTECTORS
The Nittany Lions take home field advantage to the next level. The team is 198-22-9 all-time at Jeffrey Field, losing just two matches in the past three seasons and shutting out visitors in 19 of 38 matches.
CAREER CLOUT
Penn State's sustained success isn't possible without the leadership of its upperclassmen, evident in the program's career lists. Two-time Big Ten Defender of the Year Whitney Church (Ashburn, Virginia) has played the most minutes of any Nittany Lion (7,894), and Kori Chapic's (Russell, Ohio) 7,184 minutes on the pitch is second. Emily Hurd (Sammamish, Washington) ranks seventh in career assists (28) and minutes played (5,947), while Mallory Weber (Novi, Michigan) has taken the seventh-most shots on goal (67) and scored the 10th-most gamewinners (9). A mainstay in goal for the Blue and White is Britt Eckerstrom (Germantown, Maryland), with spots on nearly every career goalkeeping list. In just her junior season, she's tied for third in games played (54), fourth in wins (36), fifth in saves (172) and goalkeeper minutes played (4,250), sixth in goalkeeper games started (46) and seventh in shutouts (11.6) and goals against average (0.77).
BIG TEN CHAMPIONS
The Nittany Lions secured their 16th Big Ten Championship and third outright in four seasons with a 2-1 win over Iowa. On Senior Day, senior Kori Chapic (Russell, Ohio) led the team to victory, scoring both of Penn State's goals in a five-minute span to come from behind and beat the Hawkeyes.
HONORS ABOUND
After winning its 16th Big Ten Championship and maintaining a top-11 ranking every week of the season, the Nittany Lions were rewarded generously with the conference's individual awards. Erica Walsh earned her third Big Ten Coach of the Year title, Whitney Church (Ashburn, Virginia) was named the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year for the second time in her career (2012), 2012 Big Ten Freshman of the Year Raquel Rodriguez (San Jose, Costa Rica) is the 2014 Big Ten Midfielder of the Year and garnering Big Ten Freshman of the Year accolades is Emily Ogle (Strongsville, Ohio).
Joining Church and Rodriguez on the All-Big Ten team are second team honorees Emily Hurd (Sammamish, Washington), Frannie Crouse (Greensburg, Pennsylvania) Kori Chapic (Russell, Ohio) and Britt Eckerstrom (Germantown, Maryland). Maddie Elliston (Omaha, Nebraska) joins Ogle and Crouse on the All-Freshman Team. Additionally, Kindrah Kohne (Homer, New York) was honored as Penn State's Sportsmanship Award winner.
COACH OF THE YEAR - WALSH
Walsh captured the third Big Ten Coach of the Year honor of her eight-year Penn State career. At the helm of the Blue and White, she led the 2014 team to the program's third outright conference championship in four years and 16th Big Ten title in 17 seasons. Walsh's young club maintained a top-11 ranking every week during the regular season, besting five top-25 opponents en route to a 17-2 regular season record.
DEFENDER OF THE YEAR - CHURCH
Church's second Defender of the Year honor makes her one of the most decorated defenders in Penn State history. She becomes just the second Nittany Lion to capture two Defender of the Year awards after anchoring an outstanding Penn State backline that has posted eight shutouts and a total 0.70 goals against average (14 goals against). Over her four-year career, Church earned All-Big Ten honors every season and two NSCAA All-Great Lakes selections.
MIDFIELDER OF THE YEAR - RODRIGUEZ
Rodriguez earned her second player of the year honor after being named the 2012 Big Ten Freshman of the Year. The junior sets the tempo of the Nittany Lions' hugely successful midfield; in 949 minutes on the pitch over 14 games played, she has netted five goals and posted 28 shots. The Costa Rican Women's National Team member recently helped Las Ticas make history by becoming the first Central American team to earn a Women's World Cup bid.
FRESHMAN OF THE YEAR - OGLE
Ogle, who becomes Penn State's first Freshman of the Year honoree since Rodriguez, has been one of the most integral Nittany Lions in her first collegiate season. Logging 1,585 minutes and starting every Penn State match, the midfielder has scored a trio of goals and posted five assists with four of her helpers coming in Big Ten play.
BEAUTIES ON BOTH SIDES
The statistics certainly support a No. 6 national ranking for the Blue and White. Offensively, Penn State has been held to one-or-fewer goal just seven times this season, netting 46. On the other side of the field, the Nittany Lions have only allowed more than one goal once this season for the team's best season defensively since 2007.
Nationally, the Nittany Lions are tied for ninth in won-lost-tied percentage, have the 14th-most assists, rank 18th in total points, 22nd in total goals and 21st in scoring offense. In addition, Britt Eckerstrom's 0.63 goals against average is 21st in the NCAA.
SHUTTING OUT THE COMPETITION
The 2014 Nittany Lions have proven to be one of the best defensive teams in recent history. The team has allowed the fewest goals at this point in the season since 2007, when the Nittany Lions allowed eight goals 18 games in. They became the first team in program history to shut out opponents in a two-game Big Ten opening weekend. The 2014 team is also the first squad since 2008 to open Big Ten play with consecutive shutouts after its 1-0 and 3-0 wins over Purdue and Indiana. Additionally, the Blue and White have only allowed more than one goal in a match once, and in each Penn State's losses, the team fell by just a 1-0 margin.
SOCIAL MEDIA
For complete coverage of Penn State women's soccer, please visit http://www.GoPSUsports.com/sports/w-soccer. Follow PSU women's soccer on Twitter and Instagram: @PennStateWSOC. Penn State women's soccer is also on Facebook: www.facebook.com/PSUWomensSoccer.