UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – The No. 25 Penn State Women's Lacrosse team battles No. 1 Maryland on Friday at 5 p.m. in the Big Ten Semifinals. The Big Ten Tournament is being hosted by Johns Hopkins at Homewood Field in Baltimore. Friday's matchup will be broadcast on Big Ten Network with Dean Linke, play-by-play, and Sheehan Stanwick Burch, color analyst.
Penn State meets Maryland in Friday's first semifinal, followed by No. 2 seed Northwestern vs. No. 3 seed Michigan at 7:30. The winners will advance to Sunday's Big Ten Championship, scheduled for noon on Big Ten Network.
The Nittany Lions, led by Head Coach Missy Doherty, finished the regular season with an 8-8 overall record, including 3-3 in Big Ten play. Penn State won four of its final six games, including wins over Ohio State, Duquesne, No. 21 Johns Hopkins and Rutgers. The Nittany Lions are ranked 25th in this week's IWLCA Poll.
Maryland, coached by Cathy Reese, is 17-0 overall, including 6-0 in the Big Ten, after a 19-12 win over No. 23 Johns Hopkins. The Terrapins moved up to No. 1 in this week's IWLCA Poll.
Follow the action on our social media pages on Facebook (PennStateWomensLacrosse) and Twitter/Instagram (@pennstatewlax).
TICKETS
Tickets for the Big Ten Tournament are $10 for reserved seats, $8 for general admission for adult, youth and seniors, and $1 for students with their school ID.
For more info, visit here.
THIS WEEK'S MATCHUP
This marks the 58th meeting between Penn State and Maryland and the sixth as Big Ten foes.
The Nittany Lions and the Terrapins met in last year's Big Ten Championship game, with Penn State falling 21-12. Madison Carter led PSU with four goals and Maria Auth had two.
This will be Penn State and Maryland's ninth matchup in a postseason tournament.
B1G STAKES
The Nittany Lions clinched a spot in the Big Ten Tournament with its 18-7 win over Rutgers in their regular season finale.
Penn State faces another crucial matchup as it looks to keep its NCAA Tournament hopes alive and would need to beat Maryland to guarantee at least a .500 record going into the selection show.
BIG TEN TOURNAMENT HISTORY
Penn State has played in all five Big Ten Tournaments since the conference officially started in 2015.
The Nittany Lions claimed the inaugural Big Ten Championship in 2015, as a No. 2 seed, knocking off Northwestern (13-10) and Ohio State (13-11).
Penn State faced Northwestern as its Big Ten Semifinals opponent for four straight years, falling against the Wildcats in 2016 (9-6) and 2017 (12-11) before defeating them in 2018 (21-16).
The Nittany Lions played in their second Big Ten Championship Game last season but fell 21-12 against Maryland.
SCOUTING THE TERRAPINS
Maryland, coached by Cathy Reese, is 17-0 overall, including 6-0 in the Big Ten, after a 19-12 win over No. 23 Johns Hopkins. The Terrapins moved up to No. 1 in this week's IWLCA Poll.
Erica Evans led Maryland with six goals and an assist against Johns Hopkins. Jen Giles and Caroline Steele each tallied three goals and two assists. Brindi Griffin contributed three goals and an assist while Kali Hartshorn scored four times. Megan Taylor made seven saves in goal.
Giles paces Maryland with 71 points, including 50 goals, while Hartshorn has 52 points with 38 goals and 114 draws. Evans has 51 points, including 41 goals. In goal, Taylor is averaging 9.2 saves per game.
Taylor leads the nation in save percentage (.574), while ranking third in goals-against average (7.68). Evans is second in the nation in free-position percentage (.706) and 12th in shot percentage (.562). Hartshorn ranks 14th in the country in draw controls per game (6.71).
STRONG FINISH
The Nittany Lions closed out the regular season with four wins in its final six games, including victories over Ohio State, Duquesne, No. 21 Johns Hopkins and Rutgers.
Penn State's offense has stepped up over the last six games, averaging 16 goals per game. PSU has taken advantage of opportunities with 29 of its 96 goals over the last six games coming on free-position attempts and nine goals coming in man-up situations.
On the defensive side, the blue and white is allowing 10.8 goals per game over the last six contests. PSU goalies have made 62 saves with a .488 save percentage.
Maria Auth has 29 points over the last six games, including 20 goals, and Sophia Triandafils has accounted for 24 points with 17 goals. Kayla Brisolari has 15 goals and 30 draws.
BRISOLARI SELECTED IN WPLL DRAFT
An impressive Nittany Lion career led to midfielder Kayla Brisolari being selected 12th overall in the 2019 WPLL Draft by the WPLL Brave, located in Baltimore.
Brisolari joins current volunteer coach Steph Lazo (2017) and Katie O'Donnell (2018), both playing for the Command, as Penn State alums in the WPLL. Director of Operations Katie Haus is a member of the Philadelphia Fire. Nittany Lion alum Michelle DeJuliis (1994-97) is the Founder and CEO of the WPLL.
Brisolari has collected 30 goals, eight assists, 37 ground balls, 66 draw controls and 26 caused turnovers this season. The senior leads PSU in the latter three categories. Brisolari paces the Big Ten with 1.63 caused turnovers per game. She has 13 games with two or more points and 10 with two or more goals.
THREE STRAIGHT HAT-TRICKS
Sophomore Sophia Triandafils has emerged as a key member of PSU's attack, posting three or more goals in each of the last three games.
She tied a career-high with four goals, three in the first half, against Rutgers. Triandafils led PSU with four goals, all in the second half, and two assists vs. Stony Brook. She had three goals at Johns
Hopkins.
Seniors Kayla Brisolari and Kelly Daggett each contributed three goals against Rutgers. Fellow sophomore Quinn Nicolai had three goals in each contest vs. SBU and JHU, while Maria Auth paced PSU with five goals at Johns Hopkins.
STEPPING UP IN CONFERENCE PLAY
Throughout their Big Ten schedule, a few Nittany Lions have stepped up in big ways.
Auth paced the Nittany Lions with 17 goals and 22 points in Big Ten play. Nicolai has collected 20 points, with 16 goals, while Triandafils has 10 goals and five assists and Brisolari has 13 goals and an assist. Brisolari also leads PSU with 14 ground balls, 21 draw controls and 11 caused turnovers in Big Ten play.
Freshman Taylor Suplee has made 67 saves in six conference games, making 10 or more saves in four contests. She leads the conference in both saves and saves per game (11.2) in conference games.
SPREAD THE WEALTH
The Nittany Lions offense features a balanced attack. Seven players have at least 20 points on the season.
Auth leads PSU with 42 points, with 29 goals, and Triandafils has 41 points, while Nicolai leads PSU with 32 goals to go with eight assists. Brisolari has registered 30 goals and eight assists. Delaney Muldoon has collected 26 points, including 19 goals, while Kristin Roberto has 20 points. Madison Carter finished her season with 21 points.
STEADY PRESENCE IN GOAL
Freshman goalie Taylor Suplee has emerged as a consistent force at the back of the Penn State defense.
She has posted eight double-digit save totals this year, including a career-high 16 stops against Maryland. Eleven of her 16 saves came in the first half. The Maryland native collected 14 saves, including 10 in the first half, at Michigan and 12 saves against Virginia. She also made 11 stops at Cornell, 11 at Johns Hopkins and 10 at Northwestern.
Suplee was named the Big Ten Freshman of the Week on March 12 after making 11 saves against James Madison and eight against Albany.
The rookie sits No. 2 in the Big Ten in saves per game (9.19) and No. 3 in total saves (147). She is also No. 4 in save percentage (.474).
NATIONAL AUDIENCE
The Nittany Lions will play their sixth nationally televised game this year, including its fourth on BTN.
On March 28, Penn State played at Northwestern on Big Ten Network, PSU's first of three appearances on BTN. The blue and white also played on BTN on April 4 vs. Ohio State and April 27 vs. Rutgers
Penn State hosted Maryland in the first nationally televised game in Panzer Stadium history, on ESPNU, on March 21. The blue and white also faced No. 21 Johns Hopkins in an ESPNews matchup on April 18.
Panzer stadium opened this year with full broadcast capabilities.
FIRST WIN IN PANZER
The Nittany Lions earned a 15-5 win over Lehigh in the first ever regular season game at Panzer Stadium on February 16. The state-of-the-art venue was dedicated on September 23, 2018. The facility features a new videoboard, permanent concessions, accessible bathrooms and a ticket office.
The first goal in Panzer Stadium history was scored by Kristin Roberto with 26:50 left in the first half.
Junior Maria Auth