UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – The No. 25 Penn State women's lacrosse team dominated from start to finish in a 20-6 win over Duquesne on Wednesday afternoon in Panzer Stadium. The Nittany Lions blitzed out to a 6-0 lead just four minutes into the game and cruised to victory. Penn State improved to 3-0 on the year, while Duquesne fell to 1-2.
Penn State reached the 20-goal mark for the first time since a 21-5 win over Ohio State on April 4, 2019.
The Nittany Lions had 11 different players score a goal, led by senior Maria Auth's five tallies. She added two assists. Junior Quinn Nicolai contributed four goals and an assist. Yasmain Hamood and Mary Muldoon each had two goals, while Hamood added an assist. Junior Sophia Triandafils dished out four assists to go with one goal.
Three different goalies earned playing time for the Nittany Lions. Taylor Suplee made seven assists in the first half. Junior Lucy Lowe made three assists in 15 minutes, while senior Madison Cunningham recorded six stops in nearly 15 minutes of action.
Duquesne was led by senior Maddie Hart, who scored twice and added an assist. Elizabeth Petrosky had two goals, while Michaela Connolly and Emma Eberly each had one. Maddy Curtis made six saves in goal.
Penn State jumped out to a 6-0 lead by the 26:42 mark. The run was sparked by a free-position goal by senior Kristin Roberto. Muldoon found the net twice during the run, the first off an assist by Triandafils. Nicolai and Auth both scored before freshman Olivia Dirks collected her first goal as a Nittany Lion.
Following a goal by Duquesne's Connolly, the Nittany Lions responded with tallies by Hamood and Auth with Auth's coming on an assist by Katie Schluederberg. Penn State led 8-1 with 23:18 remaining in the first half.
Petrosky cut the Duquesne deficit to 8-2 before Nicolai and Auth found the net again, with assists by Brooke Barger and Alyssa Sloane, respectively.
A goal by Duquesne's Hart was answered by another 6-0 run by the blue and white. Nicolai scored twice during that run. Auth, Hamood and Triandafils each found the net once. Junior Rachel Rosen scored for the first time this year to send Penn State into halftime with a 16-3 lead.
Freshman Meghan Murray opened the second half the same way Penn State ended the first, scoring off a feed by Triandafils. Petrosky answered for the Dukes before Auth tallied her fifth goal of the day. Freshman Kelsey Kimmel extended the PSU lead to 19-4 for her first career goal.
Duquesne's Hart and Eberly both scored to cut the PSU advantage to 19-6. Freshman Kara Nealon finished the scoring with her first career goal, assisted by fellow rookie Kayla Kielbasa.
The Nittany Lions welcome Cornell on Sunday, February 23 at 1 p.m. The matchup will be broadcast on BTN Plus.
Advance tickets are now available for Sunday's game. Tickets are $5 for adults and $3 for youth. All tickets are general admission. Tickets are available here. They will also be available on game day at the stadium.
