UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – The No. 19 Penn State Women's Lacrosse team earned an 11-9 win over Albany on Saturday at Panzer Stadium. The Nittany Lions took control with a 7-1 run to start the second half. PSU improved to 4-3 on the season, while Albany dropped to 3-2.
Senior Delaney Muldoon and junior Kristin Roberto each tallied a career-high three goals. Muldoon and Roberto each scored two times on free-position opportunities. Senior Kayla Brisolari added two goals and five draw controls. Junior Maria Auth and sophomore Sophia Triandafils each recorded a goal and an assist, while sophomore Quinn Nicolai had one goal. Freshman Taylor Suplee made eight saves, including seven in the first half, to earn her fourth win of the season.
Albany was led by junior Sam Tortora's eight points, including three goals and five assists. Junior Madison Conway collected four goals, while Paige Werlau and Kyla Zapolski each had one. Hailey Carroll won five draws, while Georgia Schneidereith made six saves.
Muldoon opened the scoring on a free-position tally with 27:43 left in the first half. However, the Great Danes scored the next three goals. Conway found the net with 26:35 remaining before Zapolski scored with 23:58 to go. Tortora gave Albany a 3-1 advantage at the 20:51 mark.
PSU's Brisolari snapped the run, sending a shot off the goalie and into the net with 16:49 remaining in the half.
Conway gave the Great Danes a 4-2 lead with 5:41 to go in the half, but Triandafils answered with a free-position tally just 39 seconds later. Goals by Albany's Tortora and Paige Werlwau gave the Great Danes a 6-3 lead at the break.
Penn State scored seven of the first eight goals of the second half. Nicolai found the net off a dish from Triandafils with 27:54 to go in the half. PSU took advantage of a man-up opportunity 90 seconds later as Muldoon secured her second goal of the afternoon. Roberto scored the blue and white's next two goals, the first coming off an assist by junior Katie Schluederberg, and the second on a man-up free-position tally to give PSU a 7-6 lead with 21:05 remaining.
Albany tied the game a minute later on a free-position goal by Tortora, but the Nittany Lions re-gained the lead on a score by Auth with 16:50 to go. Roberto secured her first career hat-trick just 41 seconds later. The PSU lead reached three, 10-7, on a man-up tally by Brisolari, off a feed by Auth, with 12:50 left.
Conway scored off an assist by Tortora to bring Albany back within two with 11:54 remaining. However, Muldoon responded with a free-position score with 5:21 left. Conway found the net again with 3:43 to go.
The Nittany Lions open Big Ten play next Saturday as they travel to No. 13 Michigan. The contest is slated to begin at Noon at the U-M Lacrosse Stadium.
Senior Delaney Muldoon recorded her first career hat-trick