MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – Senior Marissa Sheva's goal in the 14th minute and a tough team defensive effort helped the No. 14 Penn State women's soccer team to a 1-0 victory over Wake Forest in the third round of the NCAA Tournament at Sunday Dick Dlesk Soccer Stadium. With the win, Penn State advances to the quarterfinal round of the NCAA Tournament.
The No. 14 Nittany Lions will now take on the No. 5-ranked, and No. 1-seeded, Florida State Seminoles. The two teams will play on Friday, Nov. 23, at the Seminole Soccer Complex in Tallahassee, Florida. The time of the match will be announced later.
"I am really proud of our group today," head coach Erica Dambach said. "Obviously we are excited to be moving on to the quarterfinals of the NCAA Tournament. I thought the pressure of Wake Forest was really dangerous today. I thought they stepped up and were able to take away some of the things we were trying to do in the attack and it really disrupted our attack several times. It was a Sunday game and it was a little bit ugly at times, but one of the things that we pride ourselves in is being gritty in those moments, kind of digging out those matches, and today I think the grit in this team really came through. I also want to take the opportunity to thank the fans that traveled down as well as the Park Avenue Army, which is our student section, they make every game a home game for us and they made a big difference for us."
Sunday's match against Wake Forest (9-9-2) saw the two teams combine for 16 shot attempts with seven shots on goal. Though shots on goal were limited for both squads, Amanda Dennis had to make a save 53 seconds into the match as Hulda Arnarsdottir put a header on target.
Then in the fourth minute, it was Bayley Feist, who netted the only goal in the match on Sept. 2 at Wake Forest, who had a shot blocked by the Nittany Lions (18-5-1).
Penn State responded with a header from Kerry Abello that wide in the ninth minute and then Wake Forest's Nonie Frishette made her first save of the day on an attempt from Frankie Tagliaferri in the 12th minute.
After knocking on the door with a pair of chances, Penn State found the back of the net on the left foot of Sheva. On the goal, Ellie Jean swung the ball into the box from the left side of the field and then Sheva, near the far post, connected on the pass to give Penn State the 1-0 lead at 13:19.
Following the goal, the Nittany Lion defense stood tall and did not allow a shot on goal for the rest of the first half.
Looking to extend Penn State's lead to 2-0 in the 41st minute, Tagliaferri had her shot attempt saved by Frishette once again.
The two teams went into halftime with Penn State holding a 1-0 lead and tallying a shot advantage of 6-5.
During the final 45 minutes of regulation, the two teams combined for just five shot attempts with three going on goal.
After a pair of corner kicks in the 49th minute, Mariah Lee of Wake Forest headed the ball on goal in the 50th minute, but Dennis corralled her second save of the match.
Frishette recorded her third, and final, save of the match on a shot attempt from Kristin Schnurr in the 67th minute.
The Demon Deacons had a look at the equalizer in the 82nd minute, but Dennis denied Vicky Krug the scoring chance to secure the 1-0 victory for the Nittany Lions.
NOTES: Wake Forest leads the all-time series against Penn State, 4-2-0…Shots were tied at 8-8…Emily Ogle started/played in her 99th career match…Sheva recorded her third game-winning goal of the season (Rutgers – 10/14 & Michigan – 10/28)…Penn State is now 12-0-1 in its last 13 matches…Penn State recorded its 14th shutout of the season, which is tied for fourth all-time in school history (2011)…The Nittany Lions are now 12-2-1 all-time in the third round of the NCAA Tournament…Penn State advances to the quarterfinals of the NCAA Tournament for the fourth time in the last five seasons (2014, '15, '17 & '18) and for the 13th time overall…Penn State advances to the quarterfinals of the NCAA Tournament for the fifth time under Coach Dambach…Penn State is now 53-21-2 all-time in the NCAA Tournament…Penn State is now 15-0-0 when scoring first in 2018…Coach Dambach is now 30-13-1 all-time in the NCAA Tournament…Dennis has recorded 10 solo shutouts in 2018…Penn State is now 10-5 in one-goal games this season.