UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – Inclement weather delayed its debut last week, but the new-look Panzer Stadium is finally ready to host its first regular season game.
With its addition of seats on the hill on the north side of the stadium, which also includes a brand-new press box, Panzer Stadium has become one of the premier venues in all of college lacrosse.
The Penn State women's lacrosse team is up first, hosting Lehigh with a chance to properly inaugurate the renovated stadium 1 p.m. Saturday. At spring sports media day, a common theme was the anticipation surrounding the team and its opportunity to play a game that counts in this venue.
"We're super happy to finally get outside," senior Madison Carter said. "We love Panzer, we're so thankful for it and it's amazing going out there and practicing every day."
"We're really excited to finally get out there," head coach Missy Doherty said. "The environment at Panzer is amazing. We love practicing in there, playing in there and the fans really sit on top of you. It's just a great environment to play a competitive home game. Certainly this year with our home schedule, it allows for some super-exciting games to be played there."
The Nittany Lions played at Panzer Stadium last year during construction, and Doherty said it's been interesting to see how the stadium has transitioned from what it was to the new facility throughout the construction process.
"It's a good transition from last year with the cranes and scaffolding to now. It's just an amazing experience to see the transformation of that hill. Again, we're just so thankful for it."
On the field, the Nittany Lions are looking to build off their season-opening 13-7 win over Towson last week at Holuba Hall. Madison Carter led the scoring with four goals, and she credits her teammates for challenging her in the offseason and getting her ready for her final push.
"Since the beginning of fall ball, the work ethic has been outstanding from everyone across the board," Carter said. "We really push each other and it's a great vibe within the team. There's great camaraderie, and we just love playing with and being around each other. That's something we're really proud of and really happy to have."
Carter has eagerly awaited this final campaign with the rest of her senior teammates, a class that has experienced three NCAA tournaments and two Final Fours.
"Our senior class is really special," Carter said. "They're my best friends and it's great coming out here every day and getting to play with them. We have a great bond and everybody brings something to the table leadership-wise. We've had a great run and we're super excited to have our senior season and lead the team together to a successful season."
Doherty echoed that statement, saying both that the seniors have been excellent leaders as well as crediting the team for coming in ready to work from the start of fall practice and continuing to stay strong through the winter and up now to the first few weeks of the season.
"This team is one of the one's you're always thankful for as a coach," Doherty said. "They just enjoy working hard. They know that's obviously not easy, but they enjoy working hard, they enjoy the pressure, they enjoy pushing each other. They don't pull back for any reason. To have individuals coming in that are prepared, that really helps our team as a whole."
Saturday's game marks the first of eight scheduled home games inside Panzer Stadium, and the Nittany Lions will look to use that home-field advantage as an energy boost. The team wants to challenge itself with quality opponents, knowing those are the kinds of teams the Nittany Lions will see in the NCAA Tournament if they get that opportunity.
"We have a tough schedule, and I love it," Doherty said. "It's important to get out there and play the best teams in the country. Last year, we had a 10-10 record and a lot of one-goal losses, but we were able to play the top teams in the country and I think that's how you grow as a program. Our challenge is a grind. We have sort of a mini-season with our out-of-conference opponents, starting this weekend with Lehigh, and then we have our other mini-season in conference, where the games are just as hard if not harder. We play in one of the toughest leagues in the country."
