Sept. 28, 2017
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - No. 4 Penn State embarks on a three-week five-game road trip that begins this weekend with matchups against Michigan State and Kent State. The Nittany Lions face the Spartans Friday, Sept. 29th at 6 p.m. in East Lansing, Mich. Followed by a 12 p.m. showdown with the Golden Flashes Sun., Oct. 1 in Kent, Ohio.
MICHIGAN STATE SERIES HISTORY
Penn State leads 30-10 all-time in their series with the Spartans dating back to 1987. Penn State is currently on a seven-game win streak vs. Michigan State, last dropping a game against MSU on the road Oct. 31, 2009, in a 5-1 decision.
SCOUTING MICHIGAN STATE
The Wildcats sit at 6-5 on the year currently riding a three-game win streak that includes a win over conference foe Ohio State this past Sunday in a shootout.
Kendall Anderson leads the Spartans in goals (6) as well as converting on a penalty stroke during 2017.
Bailey Higgins has recorded four assists this season, while three other teammates have contributed at least two assists on the season.
KENT STATE SERIES HISTORY
Penn State is 3-0 all-time in their series with the Golden Flashes dating back to 2000. Penn State beat Kent State 2-1 in its last meeting on Sept. 19, 2015.
SCOUTING KENT STATE
The Golden Flashes rebounded from a two-game skid with a rebound win over Saint Louis University, 2-0, that has Kent State at 4-7 on the season and undefeated in conference play.
Ines Delpech and Helen Harper lead Kent State in goals with three apiece on the year through 11 contest.
Jessica Nesbitt is the team leader in assist with six, having only played in nine games this season.
PENN STATE IN THE NATIONAL RANKINGS
Penn State (8-2) checked in at the No. 4 spot in the latest National Field Hockey Coaches Association (NFHCA) poll, as released Tuesday morning.
The Huskies defeated then-No. 5 Delaware 1-0 in overtime on Sunday to push their record on the season to 9-0, remaining the last unbeaten team in the nation.
UConn accumulated 44 first-place votes to come in at No. 1 this week. Teams from the Atlantic Coast Conference took three of the next four spots in the poll.
Those teams included No. 2 Duke and No. 3 Virginia, with Penn State at No. 4 and North Carolina at No. 5. The rest of the top 10 featured No. 6 Michigan, No. 7 Syracuse, No. 8 Delaware, No. 9 Boston College and No. 10 Northwestern, which rose four spots this week.
ACTIVE CAREER LEADERS
A few Nittany Lions are among the best in the nation in their respective categories among active student-athletes, as well as a few that are rising in the Penn State laurels.
- Tied for third-most total assist among active athletes (35), third-most assists per game (0.69)
- Ranked T-No. 10 in PSU history in assists
- Averages the seventh-most points per game among active athletes (2.02)
- 19th-most assists among active athletes (22)
- Holds the eighth-best GAA among active athletes (1.54)
WHAT A PERFORMANCE BY BRAMLEY!
What a week it was for Gini Bramley. The junior midfielder earned Big Ten Offensive player of the week honors as well as being named the National Offensive player of the week by NFHCA. Bramley joins Jen Beaumont (10/28/08), Allison Scola (10/14/08) and Jen Long (11/13/07) as the only other Nittany Lions to earn National Player of the Week honors. On top of the fantastic week (Aug. 25-27) on the field for the Elizabethtown, Pa. native, Bramley celebrated her birthday the same weekend, turning 20-years-old on Aug. 28.
BIG TEN ATHLETE OF THE WEEK
Through five weeks of play, two Nittany Lions have been selected as Big Ten Player of the Week, respectively. Gini Bramley earned the distinction during the opening week of play while Jenny Rizzo earned the nod following shutouts against Temple and Wake Forest.
Offensive Player of the Week (8/28/17)
Gini Bramley, Penn State
M - Jr. - Elizabethtown, Pa. - Lower Dauphin
- Guided No. 7 Penn State to victories over No. 23 Old Dominion and No. 10 Virginia
- Scored two goals and added one assist against Old Dominion
- Scored two goals and tallied two assists in Penn State's, 4-2, win over Virginia
Defensive Player of the Week (9/5/17)
Jenny Rizzo, Penn State
GK - Jr. - Hershey, Pa. - Hershey
- Anchored a Penn State defense that defeated Temple, 5-0, and No. 15 Wake Forest, 6-0
- Posted two shutouts in Penn State's home opening weekend
- Recorded a season-high nine saves
- Earns her second Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week honor and her first of the season
- Last Penn State Defensive Player of the Week: Jenny Rizzo (Oct. 4, 2016)
CHEERING ON THE BLUE & WHITE
Penn State finished the 2016 season ranked No. 1 in average attendance in the nation. Penn State broke the Field Hockey Complex record with a total of 967 in attendance for a conference game against Maryland and was a part of the most attended game during the 2016 season as the Nittany Lions captured the Big Ten Tournament title against the very same Terrapins in College Park that was played in front of 969 fans.
IN THE SPOTLIGHT ON BTN
Penn State will play on BTN live Sunday, Oct. 15 starting at 3:00 p.m. as the Nittany Lions take on Maryland in College Park, Md. The crucial contest will be the Nittany Lion's third to last before the Big Ten tournament and is a rematch of last year's Big Ten Tournament Championship game that saw Penn State win its conference record seventh Big Ten tournament title. Penn State's game at Ohio State (Oct. 6) will also be streamed on BTN.
LEADERS OF THE PACK
Seniors Shay Cannon (16) and Skyler Fretz (11) were named the captains for the 2017 season.
Penn State field hockey is on social media. Follow the program on Facebook (www.facebook.com/PennStateFieldHockey) and Twitter/Instagram @PennStateFH. For all of your Penn State news, visit www.GoPSUsports.com