UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa.; April 9, 2021 – The Penn State Nittany Lion field hockey team (5-5, 4-2 B1G) rode strong defense and a late goal to a home win over Indiana (0-11, 0-8 B1G) in a Big Ten field hockey battle on Friday. The Nittany Lions, under the guidance of head coach Char Morett-Curtiss, scored in the fourth quarter to post a 1-0 victory at the Penn State Field Hockey Complex.
In instances where teams are scheduled to play each other twice during this year's Big Ten season, only the first game between the two squads is considered for the Big Ten regular season standings. Given that, today's game counts in both the conference and overall standings.
The Nittany Lion defense was tested just seconds into the game when Hoosier Meghan Dillon let a point-blank shot fly that Penn State goalie Brie Barraco (Allentown, Pa.) knocked aside. Barraco's save was a sign of things to come as Penn State's defense kept the team in the game early. The Nittany Lion offense responded after the early IU burst and reeled off a shot by Sophia Gladieux (Boyertown, Pa.) and forced two penalty corners. Anna Simon (Hanau, Germany) took three hard shots in the opening period, two off corners, but Indiana goalie Sachi Ananias kept Penn State off the scoreboard in the opening stanza.
Penn State and Indiana traded offensive possessions early in the second period and each team had shots in the opening two minutes. Gladieux had a shot blocked at the 2:18 mark while Barraco notched another save on an Indiana shot a minute later. Simon had another shot off a corner for Penn State and Gladieux had two more good efforts in the Indiana circle but in each case, Ananias was equal to the task to keep the game tied 0-0 late into the first half. The final five minutes featured a couple shots from Indiana but Barraco, like Ananias was able to keep the Hoosiers from scoring and the game moved to halftime knotted 0-0.
The Nittany Lions outshot Indiana 8-4 in the opening half and had four penalty corners. Indiana had no corners but Ananias had four saves in the first half. Barraco had three for Penn State.
The home team came out in the third quarter and dominated possession. Morett-Curtiss' squad forced three penalty corners in less than six minutes to begin the second half, with Ananias able to notch saves on each Penn State shot. With the Nittany Lions unable to find the back of the cage, the Penn State defense pushed back on each IU effort to push the ball deep into Penn State territory. The Lion backfield, led by freshman Kelsey Love (State College, Pa.), Meghan Reese (Coopersburg, Pa.) and Elena Vos (Grave, The Netherlands) gave Barraco the space she needed to keep her shutout alive. While Indiana was held to just a shot, Penn State got off five shots but IU's goalie kept Penn State scoreless through three periods.
The fourth quarter was more of the same as Penn State's defense played strong, Barraco kept the Hoosiers from scoring, and the Penn State offense continued to pressure the Hoosiers. The Nittany Lions dominated field position in the fourth quarter, continuing to pressure IU and forcing four penalty corners over the final 15:00. Indiana's offense looked to get untracked with three corners in the first seven minutes (IU's only corners of the game). But Penn State's defense and Barraco's goalkeeping, kept IU from finding the back of the cage. The Nittany Lion offense broke through for the game's lone goal with just 5:37 left in the game. Bree Bednarski (Wyoming, Pa.) took Penn State's 11th penalty corner, feeding Vos who set up Gladieux for a shot that found its way past Ananias to give Penn State the 1-0 lead. The goal would hold over the final five-plus minutes and Penn State walked away with the 1-0 victory.
The Nittany Lions outshot Indiana 16-7 over the course of the game and had an 11-3 edge in penalty corners. Both keepers were outstanding with Barraco notching four saves for her third shutout of the season and Ananias collecting eight.
"Anytime you win in the conference it's big," said Morett-Curtiss. "I don't think Indiana's record reflects the talent on that team and I give so much credit to coach Bashore for leading a team that has played every contest on the road. I give a lot of credit to them for how they played today and I thought our players did a much better job in the second half, particularly on offense. It's a nice win for the Nittany Lions today."
Penn State is now 5-5 overall, 4-2 B1G. Indiana falls to 0-11, 0-8 in the conference standings. The two teams play again on Sunday, April 11, at 11 a.m. at the Penn State Field Hockey Complex.
Fans are encouraged to follow the Nittany Lion field hockey team online at www.GoPSUsports.com (click teams, click field hockey), on twitter @pennstateFH and on facebook at www.facebook.com/pennstatefieldhockey.
GAME BREAKDOWN
SCORING: 1 2 3 4 FINAL
PENN STATE 0 0 0 1 1
INDIANA 0 0 0 0 0
STATS: PSU IND
Shots 16 7
Corners 11 3
SCORING SUMMARY (goal/assist) – TIME
4th: PSU – Sophia Gladieux (Bree Bednarski, Elena Vos); 5:37
GOALKEEPERS: MIN GA S
PSU: Brie Barraco 60:00 0 4
IND: Sachi Ananias 60:00 1 8
