PISCATAWAY, N.J. – No. 4 Penn State women's soccer prepares for its first road contest in nearly a month, as the Nittany Lions kick off the B1G road slate with a 7 p.m. fixture against the Rutgers Scarlet Knights on Yurcak Field Thursday night. Streaming is available to a worldwide audience of authenticated subscribers via B1G+.
MATCH INFORMATION
#4 PENN STATE at RUTGERS
Thursday, September 21, 2023 | 7 p.m. (ET)
Yurcak Field | Piscataway, N.J.
Watch Live: B1G+
Live Stats: StatBroadcast
FOLLOW THE ACTION
For fans in Central Pennsylvania, and members of Nittany Nation around the world, Penn State's Big Ten road debut will be streamed live via B1G+. Authenticated subscribers are invited to click here and sign in on their mobile phones, computers, smart TVs and other connected devices to follow along. Dom Savino will provide play-by-play commentary, while Glenn Crooks will serve as the broadcast's color analyst. Live stats provided by Rutgers University and StatBroadcast are available by clicking here.
KICKIN' IT
The Blue & White sit in a four-way tie for first in the Big Ten through the league's first match week, with the Nittany Lions picking up three points after blitzing the Maryland Terrapins in a 4-0 result last Friday evening on Jeffrey Field. In the latest United Soccer Coaches poll, released on Tuesday, Sept. 19, Penn State climbed two spots to the No. 4 position nationally. PSU secured its highest national ranking from the organization since previously landing the No. 4 spot on April 13, 2021, during the COVID-maligned 2020-21 spring campaign. Penn State saw a pair of student-athletes garner Big Ten and national weekly accolades on Tuesday, Sept. 19 with senior+ defender Kate Wiesner snagging Big Ten Co-Defensive Player of the Week honors while senior defender Eva Alonso garnered a placement on the TopDrawerSoccer National Team of the Week.
LAST TIME OUT: MARYLAND
Then-No. 6 Penn State put on a clinic last week at Jeffrey Field, dismantling the Maryland Terrapins by a 4-0 margin on senior night in the Nittany Lions' Big Ten-opening contest. Penn State stuffed the stat sheet, crushing Maryland in every category highlighted by a 27-2 overall differential on the shot chart. Penn State notched 12 shots on goal in the match and yielded zero on-target attempts from the Terrapins, marking the second instance of PSU holding its opponent to a goose egg in the category. The last time Penn State allowed zero shots on goal was the program's Aug. 20 meeting against the West Chester Golden Rams. PSU racked up 11 corner kick attempts in the contest, the team's second double-digit corner kick outing in 2023, and surrendered only one Maryland try.
EVA'S EMERGENCE
Senior defender Eva Alonso's return to Penn State's starting XI in the 2023 season has coincided with the team's resurgence to the top of the national conversation. The Madrid, Spain, native has started in all eight Nittany Lion contests this year and is less than 30 minutes played away from matching her season total from 2022. Alonso notched the 15th instance of a Nittany Lion passing for three assists all-time in Penn State's rout of Maryland and became the first to accomplish that feat since Kate Wiesner did so in the second round of last year's NCAA Tournament. The senior owns five total assists, tied for the third-most in the conference and 23rd nationally, while notching 0.62 assists per match, also tied for the third-best mark in the B1G.
SCOUTING THE SCARLET KNIGHTS
Twelve-year head coaching veteran Mike O'Neill guides Rutgers into its second Big Ten contest of the 2023 campaign on Thursday, as the Scarlet Knights return to work following a 3-2 defeat against unbeaten Indiana on the road. IU surged ahead early by a 2-0 margin before Rutgers added a pair unanswered, but the Hoosiers mustered the match-winner in the 85th minute to drop the Scarlet Knights to 0-1 in B1G play. A pair of familiar faces adorn the front line for Rutgers, with senior forward Allison Lowrey and junior forward Riley Tiernan managing the attack. Lowrey leads the way with 14 points on six goals and a pair of assists, while Tiernan owns six points so far this year.
STORY OF THE SERIES
One of the most contentious rivalry series in Big Ten women's soccer, the Nittany Lions and Scarlet Knights prepare for their 25th all-time meeting and 14th fixture since both teams have occupied the B1G. Penn State maintains a narrow 11-9-4 edge in the series overall but is 2-5-2 against the Scarlet Knights in regular season Big Ten competition. Penn State seeks its first regulation victory over Rutgers in Piscataway all-time on Thursday. PSU's last win at Yurcak Field came in a 1-0 (2OT) match on Sept. 5, 2008. In last year's matchup in University Park, Penn State halted then-No. 4 Rutgers' unbeaten start to the year, booking a 2-0 victory on goals from Ally Schlegel and Penelope Hocking.
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.
