NASHVILLE, Tenn.- Penn State women's lacrosse finishes its week in Nashville with a neutral site Big Ten game against no. 17 Rutgers. The Nittany Lions conclude their road stint at Vanderbilt against the Scarlet Knights with first draw set for 1 p.m. ET.
Both teams look to snap their two-game losing streak in Saturday's contest.
Penn State is ranked third in the Big Ten this week and received votes in the IL/IWLCA. Rutgers is right behind the Nittany Lions at fourth in the conference but 17th nationally.
GAME INFORMATION
vs. no. 17 Rutgers
- Date: Saturday, March 11, 2023 | Time: 1 p.m. ET
- Location: Nashville, Tenn. | Venue: Vanderbilt Soccer/Lacrosse Stadium
- Live Stats
- Admission: Free
LAST TIME OUT
- Penn State lost its most recent game in a tight 10-9 battle at Vanderbilt in its first game this week.
- Hat tricks from Kristin O'Neill and Meghan Murray propelled the Nittany Lions to a 5-0 scoring run in the second half to tie the score at 9-9, but could not hold the Commodores from scoring the final time.
- Kayla Abernathy earned her 100th career draw control in the opening draw of the game.
- O'Neill continued her scoring streak with her fourth hat trick of the season moving to a 10-game scoring stint.
NITTANY LIONS IN THE RANKS
- Sammy Dupcak ranks second in the Big Ten in ground balls (17), third in caused turnovers (12) and 17thnationally in caused turnovers per game (2).
- Abernathy ranks fifth in the conference in draw controls (32).
- O'Neill is sixth in the Big Ten in total goals (18) and fifth in goals per game (3). She also ranks second nationally in shots per game (8.83).
- Penn State ranks third in conference in ground balls (111) and second in caused turnovers (64).
- The Nittany Lions are fifth in the country in draw control percentage (.647).
PENN STATE –RUTGERS SERIES
- The Nittany Lions lead the all-time series with the Scarlet Knights 21-2.
- Prior to Rutgers' wins in 2021 and 2022, Penn State had won the previous 21 consecutive games.
SCOUTING THE SCARLET KNIGHTS
- Rutgers has lost its last two games against Princeton and Army, making it 3-2 on the season.
- Cassidy Spilis (first team) and Meghan Ball (second team) were named ILWomen Preseason All-Americans and Marin Hartshorn was named an honorable mention. Ball and Spilis were also selected to the Tewaaraton Award Watch List.
- Ball leads the Big Ten in caused turnovers (23) and ground balls (21).
NITTANY LIONS TO WATCH
- O'Neill, Dupcak and Ellie Hollin were named Big Ten Players to Watch in the preseason.
- O'Neill was also named to The Tewaaraton Award Watch List and selected by Inside Lacrosse as a Top 100 Returning Player at the start of this season.
- Freshmen Erika Ho, Maggie Golder and Emma Kelly were placed on Inside Lacrosse's Power Top 100 Freshman List.
- Elise Smigiel joins Penn State as a sophomore transfer from Marquette.
2023 CAPTAINS
- Head coach Missy Doherty named seniors Rachel Spilker and Regan Nealon and junior Kristin O'Neill as captains for the 2023 season.
- This is Spilker's second season as a co-captain for the Nittany Lions.
STAFF ADDITIONS
- Doherty added two new faces to her coaching staff for the 2023 season. Shanna Brady will join as the team's defensive coordinator and Naomi Radio will serve as the volunteer assistant coach.
- A Maryland graduate, Brady joins Happy Valley after a two year stint at Towson as an assistant coach.
- Radio spent the 2022 season as the first-ever head women's lacrosse coach at Juniata College.