Aug. 20, 2015
| PENN STATE INVITATIONAL | |
| Tournament Central | |
| GoPSUsports.com Season Preview | |
| PENN STATE VS. HOFSTRA | |
| Friday, Aug. 21 - 7:30 p.m. ET | |
| Jeffrey Field | University Park, Pa. | |
| Promotion: Team Poster Giveaway; Free Pizza for Students | |
| GAME DAY LINKS |
TV: ESPN2 -->Live Video |Follow Us: @PennStateWSOC | Facebook | InstagramGame Notes: Penn State | Hofstra
| PENN STATE VS. LMU | |
| Sunday, Aug. 23 - Noon ET | |
| Jeffrey Field | University Park, Pa. | |
| Promotional Event: Sunday Fun Day; Post-match Autographs | |
| GAME DAY LINKS |
TV: ESPN2 -->Live Video |Follow Us: @PennStateWSOC | Facebook | InstagramGame Notes: Penn State | LMUUNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - The Penn State women's soccer team is set to host the Penn State Invitational, featuring Hofstra, Loyola Marymount and Rutgers. The Nittany Lions open their season on Friday with a 7:30 p.m. match against Hofstra. Penn State then hosts Loyola Marymount on Sunday at noon. Rutgers and Loyola Marymount play at 5 p.m. on Friday, while Hofstra and Rutgers face off at 2:30 p.m. on Sunday.
OPENING AT HOME
The season-opening match against Hofstra marks the 22nd season of Penn State women's soccer. All-time, the Nittany Lions are 14-6-1 in season-openers, and 10-0-1 when beginning the year at home.
PENN STATE INVITATIONAL HISTORY
This is the 10th-annual Penn State Invitational. Overall, the Nittany Lions sport an all-time record of 12-3-4 in their tournament.
The Penn State Invitational started in 2005 with the Nittany Lions notching a pair of wins over No. 20 Washington (3-2) and No. 9 Connecticut (2-1).
NO. 6 IN THE LAND
The National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) released its 2015 Coaches' Preseason Poll and the Nittany Lions are ranked sixth.
BACK-TO-BACK NO. 2 CLASSES
According to TopDrawerSocccer.com, the Nittany Lions have signed the number two recruiting class in the last two years.
The 2014 class featured the 2014 Big Ten Freshman of the Year Emily Ogle and Frannie Crouse, who led the Nittany Lions with 10 goals. The 2015 class features nine newcomers, including eight freshmen and one transfer.
SWEET 16
Penn State's regular season Big Ten title last year was the 16th in program history. The Nittany Lions have won 16 out of the last 17 titles.
Since 1992-93, the 16 Big Ten titles won by women's soccer is tied for third for the most titles won by any one women's sport program in the Big Ten (Penn State women's volleyball).
PRESEASON FAVORITES
According to the 2015 Big Ten Women's Soccer Preseason Coaches' Poll, the Penn State women's soccer team was selected to finish first.
The Nittany Lions have sat atop the Big Ten preseason poll every season since the poll began in 2003.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Three players from each Big Ten team were named Big Ten Women's Soccer Preseason Players to Watch, with seniors Britt Eckerstrom, Raquel Rodriguez) and Mallory Weber representing the Nittany Lion Blue and White.
This is Rodriguez's third-straight appearance on the Preseason Players to Watch list.
HOME SWEET HOME
Jeffery Field has been a tough place for opponents to play as the Nittany Lions boast an all-time record of 204-23-9 at home.
In Big Ten play at Jeffrey Field, the Nittany Lions own a record of 109-5-4. The Nittany Lions have tallied seven undefeated seasons at Jeffrey Field.
PRESEASON HONORS
TopDrawerSoccer.com released its Women's College Preseason Best XI with three Nittany Lions making the list. Senior midfielder Raquel Rodriguez was named to the second team, sophomore midfielder Emily Ogle was named to the third team and defender Kaleigh Riehl was named to the freshmen team.
Five Nittany Lions were named to TopDrawerSoccer's Preseason Top-100 Player Rankings. Rodriguez and Ogle are ranked 13th and 27th, respectively. Frannie Crouse (61st), Mallory Weber (67th) and Maddie Elliston (71st) are ranked in the top-75.
WATCH OUT FOR ROCKY
Senior midfielder Raquel Rodriguez was named to the MAC Hermann Trophy Watch List, as announced by the NSCAA in early August. The 28 candidates named to the watch list in August will be narrowed down throughout the season and the winner will be announced on Jan. 8, 2016.
PSWS IN THE #2015WWC
The Penn State women's soccer program was represented by five Nittany Lions representing three countries in the 2015 Women's World Cup.
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 as they helped the U.S. to a 5-2 victory over Japan in the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup 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.
Raquel Rodriguez won't forget about the summer of 2015 for quite some time. During the summer of 2015, Rodriguez represented her home country of Costa Rica in the Women's World Cup. In Costa Rica's debut at the Women's World Cup, Costa Rican and Penn State women's soccer history was made just 74 seconds after Spain scored its first World Cup goal. In the 14th minute, Rodriguez received a cross in the box from Lixy Rodriguez, and she lobbed in a left footed shot at the right post for the 1-1 equalizer. Rodriguez's goal was her 24th as a member of Costa Rican's Women's National Team, a team-best.
OH CAPTAIN, MY CAPTAIN!
Seniors Britt Eckerstrom, Raquel Rodriguez and Mallory Weber have been named team captains for the 2015 season. A three-time Academic All-Big Ten honoree, Eckerstrom, a red-shirt senior, sits second among Penn State goalkeepers with 57 games played and her 39 career wins is tied for third. Rodriguez, the 2014 Big Ten Midfielder of the Year, a NSCAA Scholar All-America pick, NSCAA All-Great Lakes Region first team member and Academic All-Big Ten honoree, posted 17 points in 18 games played. Weber, also an Academic All-Big Ten selection, tied for the team lead with 22 points last season, scoring eight goals and dishing out six assists.
HOMETOWN TIES
Senior Megan Ritchey and freshman Taylor Campbell-Phipps didn't have to travel a long distance as they made the transition from high school to college. Both Ritchey and Campbell-Phipps call State College, Pa., home as they both attended State College Area high school.
WATCH THE LIONS ON BTN
The Penn State women's soccer team will make one appearance on BTN (Sept. 17 vs. Wisconsin), but will be featured nine times on BTNPlus on BTN2GO.
The Nittany Lions are featured on BTN Plus on BTN2Go in three-straight matches when they take on Minnesota, Sept. 20 at Jeffrey Field before traveling to Nebraska, Sept. 25, and Iowa, Sept. 27. Following the two away matches, Penn State will play two contests at Jeffrey Field against Maryland, Oct. 8 and Indiana, Oct. 11, before going on the road for three-straight matches against Purdue, Oct. 15, Rutgers, Oct. 18, and Ohio State, Oct. 24. Finally, the Nittany Lions will close out the regular season Wednesday, Oct. 28 against Michigan at Jeffrey Field.
TOUGH ROAD AHEAD
The Nittany Lions scheduled an outstanding non-conference slate as they seek its 21st-straight NCAA Tournament appearance and 17th Big Ten title. During the non-conference portion of their season, Penn State takes on No. 3 Stanford, No. 12 West Virginia, Duke (RV) and Santa Clara (RV). The Big Ten conference slate features the 12th-ranked Wisconsin Badgers, No. 24 Rutgers, Michigan (RV) and Minnesota (RV). Against the 2015 field, the Nittany Lions hold an all-time record of 185-42-17 (.793).
SOCIAL MEDIA
Keep up with the Nittany Lions on Instagram (PennStateWSOC), Facebook (PennStateWomensSoccer) and Twitter (PennStateWSOC).
UP NEXT
The Nittany Lions continue their season-opening homestand as they play host to Duke on Friday, August 28 and Arkansas on Sunday, August 30.