Oct. 13, 2016
By Jack Dougherty, GoPSUsports.com Student Staff Writer
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - When Megan Schafer pocketed her first shot of the game into the left side of the net in the 10th minute Thursday night at Jeffrey Field, it seemed as if Penn State would cruise to a carefree victory in front of 870 bundled-up fans.
Penn State continued to pass crisply in the midfield and create chances early in the game, but no one was able to stretch the lead in the first half.
"We definitely came out with a lot of energy," said Charlotte Williams, who recorded the assist on Schafer's goal. "We've been practicing a lot of different things and they've been starting to work. Our movement in the midfield was going really well and we were possessing. It's just the consistency of keeping that going."
Right before the halftime whistle, Rutgers' forward Madison Tiernan silenced the crowd with a 27-yard strike to the top right corner to beat Amanda Dennis and tie the game in the 43rd minute.
The carefree victory suddenly wasn't so.
The Nittany Lions outshot the Scarlet Knights 6-3 in the first half and controlled possession for the most part, but Rutgers was clearly riding more momentum going into the locker room.
Rutgers kept that momentum flowing out of the gate in the second half with a quick goal in the 50th minute on a defensive mishap by Penn State.
The tides had changed, and rather quickly.
For 15 minutes following the goal, not even the Park Avenue Army uttered a sound. A loud, jubilant first half crowd sharply shifted to feelings of shock and dismay.
The Nittany Lions, however, wouldn't stop fighting. Especially not Frannie Crouse.
The junior, who leads the team in game-winning goals (4), always seems to put the ball in the net at the most opportune times. Tonight was no different.
With everything going Rutgers' way, Crouse knotted the score up at two with a right-footed rip from 20 yards out into the bottom left corner of the net in the 67th minute.
It was her team-leading 10th goal of the season and the 31st of her career. The goal placed Crouse in a tie for 12th all-time in goals for Penn State.
"Frannie was all over the place tonight," said head coach Erica Dambach. "Her work ethic on both sides of the ball was incredible. We've got to live and die by those players. We've got to have special moments like we had from her and Schafer tonight on those goals. Big players step up in big games and that happened tonight."
In overtime, Crouse produced another chance in the 106th minute by dodging a defender and striking for goal with her left foot but her shot sailed just high of the bar. The draw was effectively sealed.
"I think it's a game we can be proud of," said Williams. "We always know Rutgers is going to bring a hard game, we have a lot of history with them. I'm definitely proud of all the girls. It says a lot about us as a team and what we're working at."
"They weren't going to walk home with a loss tonight," said Dambach. "This is a Penn State soccer team I want to coach right now and I'm enjoying working with these guys."
The top of the Big Ten is incredibly crowded following Thursday's draw. Penn State moved down a spot to second place in the conference, but they sit only one point behind leaders Minnesota and Northwestern.
The Nittany Lions will look to gain ground on the leaders Sunday against Purdue (4-10, 2-6) back at Jeffrey Field at 1:00 p.m.