UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - For the first time in 2019, the Nittany Lions play outside the friendly confines of Jeffrey Field. No. 7 Penn State travels to California to battle Long Beach State and Loyola Marymount.
The Nittany Lions begin the road trip on at 10 p.m. ET on Friday, August 30 against Long Beach State. The Nittany Lions and 49ers have previously met just one time prior to Friday's match. This meeting came in 2016 with Penn State winning 2-1. Frannie Crouse scored goals in the 27th and 63rd minutes to give the Nittany Lions the victory. Long Beach State is currently 0-1-0 on the season after falling to No. 4 UCLA 1-0 last week.
Concluding the road trip, Penn State battles Loyola Marymount at 4 p.m. ET on Sunday, Sept. 1. Penn State and LMU have also met just once in the series history. That match resulted in a 4-2 Penn State win back in 2015. Penn State scored three goals in the second half to secure the victory. Mallory Weber scored one goal and added an assist in the 4-2 win.
FOLLOW ALONG
You can follow along all weekend by using the following links to watch the game or follow live stats.
Long Beach State
August 30
10 p.m. ET
Live Stats
Watch
Loyola Marymount
September 1
4 p.m. ET
Live Stats
Watch
OPENING WEEKEND
The Nittany Lions opened the season with the No. 3 Stanford Cardinal and Hofstra Pride to begin the 2019 campaign. The Stanford Cardinal advanced to the Women's College Cup while the Hofstra Pride qualified for the NCAA Tournament last season.
The Cardinal edged the Nittany Lions 2-1 during the season opener. Freshman Kate Wiesner scored her first career goal in her first career start for Penn State.
Penn State bounced back in a big way following the early season setback. The Nittany Lions defeated Hofstra 6-0 behind a pair of goals by junior Frankie Tagliaferri.
TOP-25 TESTS
The Nittany Lions are currently scheduled to play four teams ranked in the top-25 United Soccer Coaches poll in 2019. The Nittany Lions opened the season against the No. 3 Stanford Cardinal. Still remaining on the schedule are No. 6 Virginia, No. 12 West Virginia and No. 15 Wisconsin.
Rutgers, Purdue and Long Beach State also received votes in the latest United Soccer Coaches poll.
TITLETOWN
The Nittany Lions look to secure their 20th Big Ten regular season championship in 2019. Penn State has claimed 14 more Big Ten titles than the next closest conference institution. The Nittany Lions have won seven Big Ten Tournament titles, four more than the next closest league foe. For the 16th consecutive year, Penn State was selected by the Big Ten coaches as the preseason favorite to win the Big Ten. Along with the 2015 NCAA National Championship, Penn State has appeared in five Women's College Cups (1999, 2002, 2005, 2012, 2015).
FRESH FACES
Seven Nittany Lion freshman have seen action so far this season. This includes Kate Wiesner, Cori Dyke and Payton Linnehan who have started both games to begin their careers as true freshman.
JUST WIN
Head Coach Erica Dambach has led the Nittany Lions women's soccer program to new heights and has etched herself into one of the best coaches in the history of women's college soccer. Entering 2019, Dambach sits 17th all-time in winning percentage in NCAA Division I history.
For more information on Penn State women's soccer visit gopsusports.com.
