MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – No. 8 Penn State women's soccer hits the road for the first time in the 2023 campaign on Thursday, as the Nittany Lions travel to face off against the West Virginia Mountaineers in a 5 p.m. matchup from Dick Dlesk Soccer Stadium. Streaming is available to authenticated subscribers worldwide via ESPN+.
MATCH INFORMATION
#8 PENN STATE at RV WEST VIRGINIA
Thursday, August 24, 2023 | 5 p.m. (ET)
Dick Dlesk Soccer Stadium | Morgantown, W.Va.
Watch Live: ESPN+
Live Stats: StatBroadcast
FOLLOW THE ACTION
For fans in Central Pennsylvania, and members of Nittany Nation around the world, Penn State's renewed rivalry with West Virginia will be streamed live via ESPN+. Authenticated subscribers are invited to click here and sign in on their mobile phones, computers, smart TVs and other connected devices to follow along. Andrew Caridi will provide play-by-play commentary, while Adam Zundell will serve as the broadcast's color analyst. Live stats provided by West Virginia University and StatBroadcast are available by clicking here.
KICKIN' IT
The Blue & White get back to work following a dominating 8-0 performance against the West Chester Golden Rams. PSU's eight-goal offensive tally marked the most Nittany Lion goals in a single match since defeating Iowa by an 8-0 score on Oct. 9, 2005. PSU is led by 21-year head coaching veteran Erica Dambach, who enters the third match of the 2023 season just one win away from her 300th career victory as a skipper. Penn State saw a trio of student-athletes garner individual weekly accolades after the program's undefeated start to the 2023 season. Senior+ midfielder Cori Dyke was selected as the B1G Defensive Player of the Week, graduate goalkeeper Katherine Asman was named the B1G Co-Goalkeeper of the Week and senior defender Ellie Wheeler landed TopDrawerSoccer Honorable Mention National Team of the Week recognition.
SQUAD GOALS (ON GOALS, ON GOALS…)
Penn State utilized a dominant offensive outing and total team effort to book the program's first victory of the 2023 season, downing West Chester by an 8-0 tally Sunday afternoon. The Blue & White set single-match records for both shots and corner kick attempts in the contest. In the Nittany Lion attacking onslaught, the Blue & White unleashed 45 total shots coupled with 24 shots on goal overall. PSU's previous single-match record for shots in a contest was 45, set against the Michigan Wolverines on Nov. 7, 2010, during the Big Ten Tournament. The Blue & White also bested a nearly 22-year-old record for corner kicks, logging 20 in Sunday's match and surpassing the previous tally of 19 that was recorded on Sept. 28, 2001, in a match at Purdue.
THE DAMBACHERY
Twenty-one-year coaching veteran and 17-year Nittany Lion skipper Erica Dambach sits just one victory away from reaching the 300-mark in her illustrious career. A two-time National Coach of the Year and five-time B1G Coach of the Year, Dambach owns a 299-117-29 overall individual record. Over the course of her storied career in Happy Valley, Dambach has hauled in 16 consecutive NCAA Tournament bids, 11 B1G regular season titles, five B1G Tournament titles, two NCAA Women's College Cup nods and the 2015 National Championship. During the 2023 spring season, Dambach joined the fraternity of Penn State coaches to have a Coach's Burger listed on the menu of State College's staple restaurant, The Field Burger & Tap. The aptly named "Dambach-ery" features a wagyu beef patty coupled with elements of the famous Philly Cheesesteak.
WATCHING WEST VIRGINIA
Under the direction of 29-year head coaching veteran and the only skipper in program history, Nikki Izzo-Brown, West Virginia enters Thursday's matchup with a 1-1-0 record. The Mountaineers are receiving votes in the most recent United Soccer Coaches poll, released on Tuesday, Aug. 22. West Virginia returns to work after booking a 9-0 victory over Saint Francis last week in the program's home-opening match. Before defeating Saint Francis, WVU suffered a 2-0 road defeat at the hands of then-No. 4 Duke on the road in Durham. The Mountaineers are led on the pitch by a balanced offensive attack, highlighted by nine different goal scorers in addition to five different student-athletes credited with assists.
STORY OF THE SERIES
One of the most contentious rivalry series in women's college soccer, the Nittany Lions and Mountaineers prepare to square off in their 23rd all-time meeting. Penn State maintains a 12-7-3 record against WVU all-time, highlighted by a pair of victories in University Park a year ago. The Nittany Lions booked a 2-0 win on Jeffrey Field last August and followed that with a 4-0 NCAA Tournament win to reach the Round of 16 on Nov. 18. PSU is unbeaten in its last six matches against West Virginia, publishing five wins and a draw dating to the Nittany Lions' last loss in the series in Morgantown during the 2017 regular season. Penn State eventually avenged that loss in the NCAA Tournament three months later.
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.
