BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Redshirt senior Emily Ogle netted a pair of goals to help propel the No. 21 Penn State women's soccer team to a 4-1 victory over the Indiana Hoosiers Thursday evening at Bill Armstrong Stadium. With the win, Penn State clinched at least a share of the 2018 Big Ten regular season title – its 19th in program history.
"Tonight was tough," head coach Erica Dambach said. "I thought Indiana threw everything they could at us. That's a good team. That's a good attacking team. It was kind of touch and go there for a little while, but the team dug in. It wasn't pretty. I think the [playing] surface made things a little bit tough for us and we struggled to connect passes. We had to find a way to win through a different method and dug in. I thought it just showed the heart and soul of this team tonight."
In the 22nd minute, Ogle brought the ball into the Indiana (7-8-2, 3-7-0 Big Ten) box and was fouled, setting up a penalty kick attempt. On the attempt, Ogle stepped up and buried the penalty kick to give Penn State (12-5-0, 8-2-0 Big Ten) a 1-0 lead on her fourth goal of the season.
The 1-0 lead lasted for five minutes as Abby Allen evened things up for the Hoosiers at 1-1 in the 27th minute.
The Nittany Lions then turned defense into offense after clearing a corner kick from the Hoosiers. With the Hoosier corner kick cleared, Charlotte Williams took the ball at midfield and played a pass to Frankie Tagliaferri. With the ball, Tagliaferri moved up the field and played a ball to Ogle, who beat the IU backline and fired a shot into the back of the net for her fifth goal of the season in the 38th minute.
The Nittany Lions took a 2-1 lead into halftime and held an 8-6 shot advantage over the Hoosiers.
Tagliaferri picked up her third point of the evening with a goal in the 66th minute. On the goal, she brought the ball up the left side of the field and made a nifty move inside the box to get past the IU defense and find the back of the net for her seventh goal of the year to make it a 3-1 contest.
Penn State capped off the scoring with a goal from Shea Moyer in the 78th minute. From just inside the box, Moyer placed a shot on goal, but IU goalkeeper Bethany Kopel was unable to corral the ball. Maddie Nolf was credited with the assist on the Moyer goal.
In net for the Nittany Lions, Amanda Dennis recorded four saves for her 12th win of the season.
No. 21 Penn State closes out the regular season on Sunday, Oct. 21, at home against Minnesota. The match is slated for a 1 p.m. start at Jeffrey Field. Prior to the match, Penn State will honor its 2018 senior class.
NOTES: Penn State leads the all-time series against Indiana, 24-1-2…Penn State outshot Indiana, 13-12…Ogle played in her 92nd career match…Ogle tied a career-best two-goal outing (Albany – 2015)…Ogle moved into sixth all-time in minutes played at Penn State with 7,537…Dennis moved into sole possession of eighth all-time in wins at Penn State with 24…Coach Dambach has won 10 Big Ten regular season titles in her 12 seasons at Penn State…The Nittany Lions have won six straight contests…Penn State is 9-0-0 when at least scoring two goals this season.