UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – Penn State suffered its first loss of the season with an 11-7 defeat at the hands of No. 8 Loyola (Md.) at Panzer Stadium on Saturday. The Nittany Lions dropped to 4-1 on the season, while the Greyhounds remained unbeaten at 4-0.
Kristin O'Neill paced Penn State with two goals and one assist, giving her 17 points on 15 goals and a pair of assists this season. Gretchen Gilmore also scored twice for the Nittany Lions, while Kayla Abernathy, Meghan Murray, and Payton Wainman chipped in with one goal apiece.
Defensively, Sammy Dupcak had a strong performance with three caused turnovers.
Loyola's offensive effort was fueled by a five-point performance with three goals and two assists by Georgia Latch. Sydni Black had a five-point game of her own with one assist and four goals.
Penn State matched Loyola (Md.) with 20 shots on goal, but Lauren Spence was strong in goal with 13 saves to get the win for the Greyhounds.
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Quarter
The Greyhounds got on the board early with the only three goals of the opening quarter. Jillian Wilson scored her 10th goal of the season less than three minutes into the game, and Latch found the back of the net just 17 seconds later. After a 10:01 scoreless stretch by both teams, Emily Wills made it 3-0 with 1:53 showing on the clock.
Second Quarter
Loyola upped their lead to 5-0 before O'Neill ended the scoring drought for Penn State with an unassisted goal with 4:38 to play in the half. Abernathy added one a little over two minutes later off an assist from O'Neill.
Latch scored with 1:54 left on the clock to help the Greyhounds take a 6-2 lead into the break.
Third Quarter
Gilmore scored Penn State's lone goal of the quarter, while Loyola countered with three more to hold a 9-3 advantage. Wills provided the spark for the Greyhounds with two of the goals.
Fourth Quarter
Penn State came out firing immediatley in the final quarter to post its best stretch of the game and put itself within striking distance. O'Neill started a 3-0 run for the Lions, scoring her 15th goal of the season just 46 seconds into the quarter. Wainman followed with her first career goal with 10:46 left to play, and Murray made it a three-goal game at 9-6 with a score that came with 9:27 left in regulation.
The Greyhounds put an end to the comeback attempt with Chase Boyle's goal less than a minute after Murray scored. They added their 11th goal with 18 seconds left in the game.
Penn State had the last word with Gilmore scoring in the final seconds of the game to make the final score 11-7.
OF NOTE
- O'Neill upped her scoring streak to nine straight games.
- Ashley Bowan made a season-high nine saves.
- Penn State wrapped up a five-game homestand to open the season.
- Abernathy notched four ground balls and five draw controls.
- Penn State edged Loyola in the draw control fight 11-10.
- The Nittany Lions were the last undefeated team in the Big Ten. They were one of the final 13 unbeaten teams in the nation.
UP NEXT
Penn State heads to Nashville for a pair of games. The Nittany Lions will play at Vanderbilt on Wednesday, March 8. They will stay there to play a neutral-site Big Ten game against Rutgers on Saturday, March 11.