April 15, 2016
By: Shannon Rostick, GoPSUsports.com Student Staff Writer
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa.- When you ask a student why they chose Penn State, you can get a countless number of answers. For freshman midfielder, Delaney Muldoon, she said it was a feeling that made her choose to become a Nittany Lion.
"I visited a bunch of schools, but once I visited Penn State's campus I just got this feeling and I knew it was the place for me," said Muldoon.
She was especially sure of her decision to come to Penn State and play lacrosse once she met her future teammates, who she said were very welcoming and supportive.
"After meeting the girls, who are all so down to earth, I just knew I wanted to be a part of the team," said Muldoon.
When she finally got to Penn State, Muldoon said that her teammates immediately took in all of the new freshmen, making them feel as welcome as possible in their transition into college.
"The seniors were really awesome when we all got here. During our first week, they texted us to come over and they made us all dinner, which was so nice to be welcomed onto the team and to Penn State like that," said Muldoon.
There is a huge transition players have to make coming from playing in high school to playing on a Division I team in college. Balancing school, practices, traveling, and games takes a lot of organization, which Muldoon says is something she has been working hard on.
"You have to plan ahead and stay on top of things, which was something I really had to get used to," said Muldoon.
"It was a hard change for me, but they do a lot to help us. We have eight mandatory study hours a week to make sure that we are always staying on top of our work."
Head coach Missy Doherty does an incredible job of ensuring that her girls do just as well as students as they do as athletes, and she has high expectations for each and every one of her players.
Muldoon can attest to those expectations, especially coming onto a team that won the Big Ten tournament title last year.
"There are definitely some huge expectations this year, but it gives everyone the motivation to be a powerhouse team all of the time," said Muldoon
Every single player is fighting their hardest to win every game and they do their best to support each other and give the motivation that is needed to win.
Muldoon can be seen giving that motivation each game as she runs up and down the sidelines giving every player and coach a high five after any Penn State goal.
She shows such enthusiasm for her team during every game and it makes a huge difference to her teammates.
"The players always thank everyone for keeping high energy on the bench and I enjoy being one of those people to keep the players on the field pepped up," said Muldoon.
"It keeps the players in the game and hearing your teammates constantly cheering from the sides makes a huge difference."
The team is all about bonding and Muldoon said they are all very tight-knit, which is important as they spend almost all of their time together.
It is so vital for the players to create those incredible bonds in order to make a strong team and Penn State has done that with the help of their strong leaders and enthusiasm all throughout.
The one thing Muldoon said she is looking forward to in the rest of the season is that moment when everything clicks perfectly and the team is playing as one flawless unit.
"We're really waiting for the team to click completely. It'll be kind of an a-ha moment and we'll just know that the team has clicked and that's what we are waiting for the most," she said.
With only three games left in the regular season, we can hope that the team will find that a-ha moment that they are looking for.
Penn State has already had a good run so far this season with a current winning record of 9-4. They hope to continue with that success and go far in the post-season play.
The Nittany Lions will continue their season this Sunday, April 17 where they will faceoff with the Wolverines at the University of Michigan, starting at 1 p.m.