UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – No. 10 Penn State women's soccer returns to action for the second leg of its season-opening homestand, as the Nittany Lions welcome the West Chester Golden Rams to Jeffrey Field for a 1 p.m. fixture on Sunday, August 20. Streaming is available to authenticated subscribers worldwide via B1G+.
MATCH INFORMATION
WEST CHESTER at #10 PENN STATE
Sunday, August 20, 2023 | 1 p.m. (ET)
Jeffrey Field | University Park, Pa.
Watch Live: B1G+
Live Stats: StatBroadcast
PROMOTIONS & PARKING
Fans of all ages are invited to Jeffrey Field this weekend to participate in the annual Penn State Youth Soccer Day. Youth teams, coaches, family and friends are encouraged to spend time in the kids' zone on PSU's south practice field (Little Jeffrey), soak up the final rays of summer sun before school starts and enjoy an elite-level soccer environment. To sign up and participate in a halftime youth scrimmage or become Penn State anthem buddies at a future Nittany Lion women's soccer match, click here.
Parking for all Penn State women's soccer matches will require a valid permit or payment of the applicable parking fee for campus lots. Fans with valid Penn State University parking permits will be permitted to park at women's soccer matches for free, following Transportation Services parking policies and access. For women's soccer matches, fans are asked to park in the Jordan East, Stadium West or Porter North lots. Fans without a permit are encouraged to prepay for event parking at a discounted rate of $5.50 through the ParkMobile app, or by clicking here. Prepayment is available through 11:59 p.m. the day before each event. Event day parking will be $10 per vehicle.
FOLLOW THE ACTION
For fans unable to attend in person, Penn State's second match of the 2023 campaign will be streamed live to a worldwide audience via B1G+. Authenticated subscribers are invited to click here and sign in to the B1G+ App on their mobile phones, computers, smart TVs and other connected devices to follow along. Juan Mendez will provide play-by-play commentary, while Max Ralph will serve as the broadcast's color analyst. Live stats provided by Penn State and StatBroadcast are available by clicking here.
KICKIN' IT
The Nittany Lions return to work in Happy Valley following a hard-fought scoreless draw against the second-ranked and defending national-runner up North Carolina Tar Heels on Jeffrey Field last Thursday, August 17. Penn State utilized a two-save shutout from graduate goalkeeper Katherine Asman to log the overall clean sheet. PSU is led by 17-year head coaching veteran Erica Dambach, who enters the 2023 season just two wins away from her 300th career victory as a skipper. Dambach is 298-117-29 in her career and 258-89-26 at PSU. The Blue & White secured the program's ninth Big Ten Tournament title last season and return seven starters from last year's 15-win squad, highlighted by PSU's trio of captains in midfielders Kate Wiesner and Cori Dyke in addition to Asman.
HEADS CAROLINA… TAILS PENNSYLVANIA
Penn State and No. 2 North Carolina battled each other and the elements on Thursday, August 17, as neither team managed to notch the lid-lifting score in an eventual scoreless draw to open the 2023 campaign. Despite North Carolina running up a striking 19-5 overall advantage in total shots, the Nittany Lions managed to place more shots on target in the match, outshooting UNC by a 3-2 margin. The Nittany Lions welcomed 3,102 fans to Jeffrey Field, the 10th-largest women's soccer crowd in Penn State history and eighth-largest season opening attendance all-time. In its 30th all-time home-opener, PSU moved to 22-3-5 and 8-2-4 when tested against a nationally ranked foe in Jeffrey Field's season debut.
TOP DRAWER TALENT
Senior forward and Quinnipiac transfer Rebecca Cooke garnered a trio of preseason national accolades, landing placements on the United Soccer Coaches Forwards to Watch list in addition to appearing on the MAC Hermann Trophy watch list. Cooke also earned a spot as a TopDrawerSoccer.com Preseason Top-100 Player, appearing as the No. 19 selection. Wiesner also hauled in a variety of preseason honors, landing the No. 86 spot on the TopDrawerSoccer Preseason Top-100 Players list. The Monrovia, California, native additionally garnered Big Ten Player to Watch status in the preseason alongside Dyke and senior+ forward Payton Linnehan.
GRAPPLING WITH THE GOLDEN RAMS
An NCAA Division II challenger out of the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference, West Chester arrives in Happy Valley for its first public match of the 2023 campaign. The Golden Rams open their regular season against Jefferson on August 31 at 1 p.m. The Golden Rams published a 23-1-1 record and a 15-0-1 ledger against PSAC foes a season ago, reaching the Division II National Championship match before ultimately falling to Western Washington. WCU is under the direction of Betty Ann Kempf Townsley, who has amassed a 238-53-34 record entering her 17th season at West Chester.
FOLLOW THE NITTANY LIONS
Visit GoPSUSports.com for more information on Penn State women's soccer. Fans can keep up to date with the Nittany Lion women's soccer team on X and Instagram @PennStateWSOC, in addition to the team's Facebook page at /PSUWomensSoccer.
The 30th Season of Penn State women's soccer is presented by the Smeal College of Business.
