UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – The #13 Penn State women's soccer team plays its second home game of the season against the Michigan State Spartans on Sunday at 1 p.m. ET. The Nittany Lions are coming off their third straight win after a 2-1 win over #24 Indiana.
In the last matchup against Michigan State, Penn State won 5-1 over the Spartans at Jeffrey Field in 2019. Frankie Tagliaferri tied the Big Ten and school record with four assists. Kerry Abello, Sam Coffey, Payton Linnehan, Ally Schlegel and Devon Olive all scored goals in the win
Game Information
- Date: Sunday March 7, 2021 | Time: 1:00 p.m. ET
- Location: University Park, Pa. | Venue: Holuba Hall
- Live Stats| Watch
- Series Record: PSU 22-5-0
Penn State Breakdown
Record: 3-1-0, 3-1-0
Top Scorers: Sam Coffey – 3 Goals, Schlegel, Tagliaferri, Schnurr – 2 goals
Top Assists: Ally Schlegel – 3 Assists, Sam Coffey – 2 Assists
Nittany Lions Last Time Out
The #13 Penn State women's soccer team improved to 3-1-0 on the season with a 2-1 win over #24 Indiana Thursday evening. Senior captains Frankie Tagliaferri and Sam Coffey both netted goals in the second half as the Nittany Lions overcame a 1-0 deficit for Penn State's third straight win.
After a goal in the 53rd minute by Indiana, the Nittany Lions tied the game just a minute later as Tagliaferri knotted the game at one. Tagliaferri sent her first shot on net but it was blocked by an Indiana defender. Following up her shot, Tagliaferri blasted the rebound on net for her second goal of the season.
Seven minutes later, Coffey curved a shot into the back of the net for her team leading third goal of the season. Coffey got behind the defense and Ally Schlegel played Coffey into the box and she bested the Indiana goalkeeper.
Sam Coffey scored her third straight game-winning goal in Thursday's 2-1 win. Frankie Tagliaferri scored the 19th goal of her Penn State career and scored for the second straight game. Katherine Asman five saves Thursday was the second time this season she's had five saves in a game.
Top of the Mountain
Senior captain Sam Coffey ranks as the NCAA Division I active leader in points and assists. Coffey currently has 98 points and 36 assists in her career.
Coffey was named to the TopDrawerSoccer team of the week for her performance last week. Coffey scored two game-winning goals last week in wins over Northwestern (4-1) and Illinois (2-0). Her top performance came in the 4-1 win over Northwestern when she finished with four points, scoring a goal and added two assists.
Stat Leaders
The Nittany Lions top in Big Ten in the following stat categories:
Team
Goals – 10 (T-1st)
Goals Per Game – 2.50
Assists Per Game – 1.75
Individual
Game-Winning Goals – Sam Coffey – 3 (T-1st)
Points – Sam Coffey – 8 (T-1st)
Schel-GOAL
Redshirt sophomore Ally Schlegel has picked up right where she left off during the fall of 2019. Schlegel tied for the Big Ten lead with 13 goals last season and led the conference with 33 points.
Schlegel currently leads the team with three assists and is second in goals and points.
Schlegel is the third member of her immediate family to play Division I sports. Her father Mike and her brother Drew both played football at Kentucky. Drew played as a graduate transfer at Cal during the season last fall.
Just Win
Head coach Erica Dambach is among the elite in women's soccer coaching history. She currently ranks 17th all-time in winning percentage (.707) and 49th all-time in wins (262). Dambach has captured 10 Big Ten regular season titles, 4 Big Ten tournament titles and the 2015 national title and an Olympic gold medal.
Michigan State Breakdown
Record: 1-2-1, 1-2-1
Top Scorer: Wahlber, Gardiner, Hart, Labovic – 1 Goal.
Scouting Michigan State
The Spartans come into the match on a two game losing streak after falling to Rutgers 3-1 on Sunday. Michigan State struck first in the first half but surrendered three second half goals. The Spartans are on the second of their five-game road trip with their trip to Happy Valley.