Oct. 20, 2016
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UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - The Penn State women's soccer team (10-2-4, 6-0-3 Big Ten) closes out its 2016 regular season road schedule at Michigan State (5-10-1, 2-7-0 Big Ten). The Nittany Lions take on the Spartans at the DeMartin Soccer Complex in East Lansing, Mich., Saturday, Oct. 22, at noon.
FOLLOW ALONG
Saturday's game will be streamed online via BTN2Go.com, fans must have a BTN Plus account to access the video. Fans can follow along with live stats via GoPSUsports.com.
LOOKING AT MICHIGAN STATE
Michigan State heads into the weekend against Penn State with an overall record of 5-10-1 and a record of 2-7-0 in conference play. Last weekend, the Spartans fell 2-1 to Minnesota and dropped a 1-0 decision to the Wisconsin Badgers.
Offensively, the Spartans are led by Marisa Oleksiak and Hannah Jones. On the year, Oleksiak has netted 10 points on four goals and two assists, while Jones has recorded nine points on four goals and one assist.
Kaitlyn Collin and Savanna Wojtanowski have split time in net on the year for Spartans. Collin has played the majority of time in net with 843:21 minutes played. In 2016, Collin has allowed 10 goals, recorded a goals against average of 1.07, tallied 58 saves, posted a save percentage of .853, owns a record of 4-4-1 and has four shutouts.
Wojtanowski has played in 650:21 minutes, allowed 13 goals, recorded a goals against average of 1.80, made 41 saves, posted a save percentage of .759 and has a record of 1-6-0.
WEEKEND REWIND
The Nittany Lions are coming off a 1-0-1 homestand last weekend against Rutgers and Purdue. Last Thursday, the Nittany Lions and Scarlet Knights battled to a 2-2 draw. In the game, Frannie Crouse and Megan Schafer each recorded one goal, while freshman goalkeeper Amanda Dennis recorded five saves in net.
The Nittany Lions closed out the weekend with a 1-0 win against Purdue on Senior Day. In the Purdue match, Crouse netted her team-leading 11th goal of the season and the 32nd goal of her career. In net for the Nittany Lions, Dennis posted a career-best seven saves on Sunday afternoon.
B1G STANDINGS AND RANKINGS
With two games remaining in the 2016 Big Ten regular season, the Nittany Lions currently lead the league with 21 points (6-0-3). Northwestern and Minnesota are tied for second in the conference standings with 20 points apiece. The Nittany Lions can clinch a share of the 2016 Big Ten regular season title with a win at Michigan State and Northwestern/Minnesota playing to a draw.
Statistically as a team in the Big Ten, the Nittany Lions rank fourth in shot attempts (251), fourth in points (83), fourth in goals (28) and second in assists (27). Individually, Frannie Crouse is tied for the league lead in goals (11), game-winning goals (five) and third in points (23). Also among the Big Ten leaders, Nickolette Driesse is tied for third in assists with six.
DEFENSIVE DOMINANCE
Heading into the weekend, the Nittany Lions have posted a record of 9-1-3 over the past 13 games. Over that span, the Nittany Lion defense has allowed one goal or less in 12 of the 13 games, which includes seven shutouts.
THE 2016 PSU BIG TEN SLATE
Penn State opens the 2016 Big Ten regular season at No. 10 Minnesota (Sept. 16) and the 2015 Big Ten regular season co-champion Wisconsin Badgers (Sept. 18). Following the trip to Minnesota and Wisconsin, Penn State returns home to host Iowa (Sept. 23), Nebraska (Sept. 25) and Illinois (Sept. 30).
Penn State then travels to Indiana (Oct. 6) and Maryland (Oct. 9) before returning home to Happy Valley to host Rutgers on BTN (Oct. 13) and Purdue (Oct. 16).
The Blue and White close out the 2016 Big Ten regular season at Michigan State (Oct. 22) and host Ohio State (Oct. 26) for the regular season finale.
Due to a rotating schedule, Penn State does not play Northwestern or Michigan during the regular season in 2016.
FOR CLUB AND COUNTRY
The 2016 Penn State women's soccer team will be without the services of five Nittany Lions as they prepare for the 2016 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup, Nov. 13-Dec. 3. Maddie Elliston, Ellie Jean, Emily Ogle and Kaleigh Riehl will not be on the roster this fall, while Rose Chandler will continue to train with the Nittany Lions during the fall semester. The Nittany Lion quintet were named to the U.S. U-20 Women's National Team on Oct. 13.
B1G HONORS
Four Nittany Lions have garnered weekly honors from the Big Ten during the 2016 regular season. Laura Freigang received Big Ten Freshman of the Week honors on Aug. 23, Frannie Crouse was named the Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week on Sept. 13 and on Oct. 18, Laura Suero garnered Big Ten Co-Freshman of the Week honors on Sept. 20 and Amanda Dennis was named the Big Ten Freshman of the Week on Sept. 27.
BIG TEN SUCCESS
Since joining the Big Ten conference in 1994, the Nittany Lions have amassed a record of 186-26-13 in Big Ten play, including a record of 101-6-5 at Jeffrey Field. Under Coach Dambach, the Nittany Lions have a tallied a Big Ten record of 86-14-6.
PACING THE PRIDE
In 2016, junior Frannie Crouse leads the team in points (23), goals (11) and has recorded one assist. She also is tied for the team lead in shots (46) and ranks second in shots on goal (22).
Among the leaders in the NCAA, Crouse is tied for eighth in game-winning goals (five) and she is tied for 15th in goals scored with 11.
STANDOUT SOPHOMORE
On the year, sophomore Charlotte Williams has tallied 10 points on three goals and four assists. During her freshman season in 2015, Williams netted 13 points on three goals and seven assists.
Williams is tied for the team lead in shots attempted (46), leads the team in shots on goal (23), ranks second in assists (four), ranks third in goals (three) and points (10).
SHUTOUT SCORELESS STREAK SNAPPED
Penn State closed out the 2015 season with eight-straight shutouts, which spanned 733:32 of play. During the season opener against No. 6 West Virginia, the Nittany Lions kept the Mountaineers off the board until the 76:59 mark. The WVU goal at 76:59 snapped Penn State's shutout scoreless streak of 810:31, which was the second-best span in program history (1032:33, 2004).
HOME SWEET HOME
The Penn State women's soccer team has a record of 62-5-6 at Jeffrey Field since the start of the 2011 season. Over the past six seasons, Penn State has not lost twice at home in a single season. All-time at Jeffrey Field the Penn State women's soccer team has an overall record of 222-25-12.
Penn State kicked off the 2016 campaign setting an attendance record against No. 6 WVU. A Penn State women's soccer record 5,791 fans made their way to Jeffrey Field to watch the Nittany Lions and Mountaineers play to a 1-1 draw. The previous mark of 5,117 was set in 2012 against the top-ranked Stanford Cardinal.
As of Oct. 19, the Nittany Lions rank eighth in the nation in average attendance with 1,518 fans per game.
Last season, the Nittany Lions finished sixth in overall attendance in the nation with 21,856 fans, which was a program-best. The 2015 season featured two of the top-10 home field crowds in program history. Penn State opened the 2015 season with a crowd of 3,175 against Hofstra and 4,207 fans packed into Jeffrey Field to watch the Nittany Lions host Duke.
NITTANY LIONS WELCOME NINE
Head coach Erica Dambach welcomed nine freshmen to the Penn State women's soccer family for the class of 2020.
Amanda Dennis and Emma Hasco enrolled early to Penn State during the spring of 2016. Becca Hamilton, Madison Moroi, Bristol Pizzuto, Laura Suero and Sarafina Valenti joined the Nittany Lions back on signing day in February. Grace Fisk and Laura Freigang were the last to join the Penn State women's soccer family as they joined the program in August.
NITTANY LION CAPTAINS
Brittany Basinger, Nickolette Driesse and Megan Schafer will captain the Nittany Lions for the 2016 season.
MILESTONE VICTORIES
The 2016 season marks the 23rd year of varsity women's soccer for Penn State. The Nittany Lions captured their 400th program victory with a 3-1 win over the Hofstra Pride on Aug. 21. Overall, the Nittany Lions boast a record of 409-105-33.
Coach Dambach captured her 200th win on Sept. 9 in a 3-0 victory against San Diego State. During her time as a head coach at Dartmouth (2000-02), Harvard (2006) and Penn State (2007-Present), Coach Dambach has tallied a record of 207-80-17.
MIDSEASON HONORS
Seven Nittany Lions were named to TopDrawerSoccer's Top 100 Midseason Lists. Amanda Dennis, Grace Fisk and Laura Freigang were named to the TopDrawerSoccer Freshmen Top 100 List. Dennis checks in at 15, followed by Freigang at 35 and Fisk at 74.
TopDrawerSoccer also released its midseason top 100 list featuring upperclassmen. Frannie Crouse leads a quartet of Nittany Lions at 43, followed by Megan Schafer (49), Nickolette Driesse (58) and Brittany Basinger (74).
PICKED TO DEFEND THE B1G
According to the 2016 Big Ten preseason coaches' poll, the Penn State women's soccer team was selected to defend its 2015 Big Ten regular season championship. Since the preseason poll started in 2003, the Nittany Lions have been named the preseason favorites every time.
YOUTH MOVEMENT
The 2016 Penn State women's soccer roster is comprised of nine freshmen, one redshirt freshman, five sophomores, one redshirt sophomore, six juniors, three redshirt juniors and one senior.
MAC HERMANN TROPHY WATCH LIST
Junior forward Megan Schafer was named to the 2016 MAC Hermann Trophy Watch List prior to the start of the 2016 campaign.
During her 2015 season, Schafer led the Nittany Lions in goals (13) and points (30). Six of her 13 goals during 2015 captured a victory for the Blue & White.
As a sophomore, she started 24 of 27 matches and netted at least one point in 11 of the final 17 matches on the year.
CLIMBING THE CHARTS
Heading into the weekend, Frannie Crouse is tied for 15th all-time in points scored at PSU with 74 (32g, 10a), while Megan Schafer ranks 21st with 60 (24g, 12a). All-time in goals scored at PSU, Crouse ranks 12th with 32 and Schafer is tied for 18th with 24.
SCORING IN 2015
The Nittany Lion underclassmen accounted for 46 of the team's 64 goals last season, which also included 17 of the 20 goals scored in the NCAA Tournament.
2015 NCAA TOURNAMENT RUN
During Penn State's run to the National Title last season, the Nittany Lions outscored the opposition, 20-0, and outshot the opposition, 108-43. Only 13 of their opponent's shots during the NCAA Tournament were on goal.
WINNING TRADITION
Senior co-captain Nickolette Driesse has been a part of the last two NCAA champion women's soccer teams. Prior to transferring to Penn State in 2015, Driesse was a member of the Florida State Seminoles. The Seminoles were NCAA runner-ups in 2013 and won the NCAA title in 2014.
THE POLLS
The Nittany Lions rank 14th in the Soccer America poll, 16th in the NSCAA Poll, 17th in the TopDrawerSoccer poll and 22nd in the RPI.
YEAR 10
The 2016 season marks the 10th season for Erica Dambach at the helm of the Penn State women's soccer program. As the head coach of the Nittany Lions, Coach Dambach has an overall record of 167-52-14 and 86-14-6 in Big Ten play.
NITTANY LIONS ON BTN
The Penn State women's soccer team will be featured three times during the regular season on the Big Ten Network.
The BTN regular season matches for the Nittany Lions will be West Virginia (Aug. 19 - 7:30 p.m. EDT), Minnesota (Sept. 16 - 8 p.m. EDT) and Rutgers (Oct. 13 - 7:30 p.m. EDT).
THE TRIPLE CROWN
The 2015 season was a banner year for the Nittany Lions as they brought home the national championship along with both Big Ten titles.
NEXT UP
The Nittany Lions return home to Jeffrey Field for the 2016 regular season finale as Penn State hosts Ohio State Wednesday, Oct. 26, at 6 p.m.