July 6, 2015
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Former Penn State women's soccer players, Ali Krieger '06 and Alyssa Naeher '09 became the first Nittany Lions to win a World Cup as part of a senior national team on Sunday as they helped the U.S. to a 5-2 victory over Japan in the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup final. Five Nittany Lions participated in soccer's biggest event, hosted by Canada. Penn State was tied for second among collegiate soccer programs (Stanford also had five and North Carolina had nine).
Krieger started all seven U.S. matches, including Sunday's final in which the former two-time NSCAA All-American played every minute and recorded a shot in the 48th minute.
The U.S. got on the board quickly on a Carli Lloyd goal in the third minute. Lloyd followed that up two minutes later with another goal and completed. Lauren Holiday scored in the 14th minute before Lloyd completed a hat trick with a tally in the 16th minute. Tobin Heath added a fifth goal in the 54th minute to seal the victory.
Krieger was part of the Red, White and Blue back line that recorded five-straight shutouts before Sunday's final and held opponents scoreless for 540 consecutive minutes before Japan scored in the 27th minute. Krieger played all but nine minutes in the tournament, subbing out in the 81st minute in the Round of 16 match vs. Columbia.
Making her second world cup appearance, Krieger also recorded shots in the 73rd minute vs. China and a shot on-goal in the 34th minute against Sweden.
Naeher, a three-time NSCAA All-American at Penn State, served as a backup goalkeeper for Hope Solo. The former Nittany Lion made her World Cup debut with the senior team after helping the U.S. U-20 women's national team to win the 2008 FIFA Women's World Cup, where she won the Golden Glove as the top goalkeeper in the tournament.
Previously in the tournament, the U.S. advanced out of Group D with two wins and a draw before a 2-0 victory in the Round of 16 over Columbia. A 1-0 win in the quarterfinal vs. China and a 2-0 victory against Germany in the semifinal setup Sunday's final.
Carmelina Moscato '05 and Erin McLeod '05 helped Canada to reach the quarterfinal round before being eliminated by England. The pair helped the host country to advance out of Group A and defeat Switzerland in the Round of 16.
McLeod, in her fourth World Cup for the senior national team, started all five contests in net for the host nation. The two-time NSCAA All-American made two saves each vs. England and Switzerland. In the group stage, she recorded four stops against the Netherlands and one save each vs. Canada and New Zealand.
Moscato made her third World Cup appearance and has been a member of Canada's national program since 2000. She earned her first start of the cup against the Netherlands, playing the entire match, and entered in the 68th minute against New Zealand.
Penn State senior Raquel Rodriguez (San Jose, Costa Rica) started all three games and played every minute in the midfield for Costa Rica as the nation made its FIFA Women's World Cup debut. The senior made national and Penn State history with her goal in the 14th minute of Costa Rica's opening match vs. Spain. It was the nation's first World Cup goal and the first goal in a World Cup by a Nittany Lion. For her efforts, Rodriguez was named LYG Player of the Match. She also had two shots vs. Brazil and a shot against South Korea.
The five players have helped Penn State to win a combined 12 Big Ten titles and make three College Cup appearances, with Naeher and Rodriguez leading the Nittany Lions to a 2012 national championship game appearance. The group has combined for seven NSCAA All-American honors, six Big Ten Player of the Year awards and two NSCAA Scholar All-America accolades.
Penn State Participant World Cup Schedule & Results
United States
June 8 - vs. Australia W, 3-1
June 13 - vs. Sweden D, 0-0
June 17 - vs. Nigeria W, 1-0
June 22 - vs. Columbia W, 2-0 (Round of 16)
June 26 - vs. China W, 1-0 (Quarterfinal)
June 30 - vs. Germany W, 2-0 (Semifinal)
July 5 - vs. Japan W, 5-2 (Final)
Canada
June 6 - vs. China W, 1-0
June 12 - vs. New Zealand D, 0-0
June 15 - vs. Netherlands D, 1-1
June 21 - vs. Switzerland W, 1-0 (Round of 16)
June 27 - vs. England L, 2-1 (Quarterfinal)
Costa Rica
June 9 - vs. Spain D, 1-1
June 13 - vs. South Korea D, 2-2
June 17 - vs. Brazil L, 1-0