IOWA CITY, Iowa – Despite jumping ahead by an early 1-0 margin, the No. 15 Penn State women’s soccer team ultimately conceded a pair of scores later in the first half to drop a 2-1 road decision to the No. 18 Iowa Hawkeyes Thursday night from the Iowa Soccer Complex.
In defeat, the Nittany Lions drop to 8-3-1 overall and 2-2-0 in Big Ten Conference matches through the first four fixtures of the 2024 league year. Iowa’s win saw the Hawkeyes continue their unbeaten start to the 2024 campaign, rising to 8-0-3 overall with a 3-0-1 start to Big Ten action. In an all-time series which dates to the 1997 season, Iowa snagged its third win in the last four fixtures dating to the last Penn State victory on March 25, 2021, during the COVID-adjusted spring season. Despite Thursday’s result, the Blue & White still maintain a historically dominant 26-5-1 lead over Iowa all-time following the 31st all-time meeting.
The trio of first-half goals belied what was largely a physical, defensive affair, with the two programs combining for just nine total shots over 90 minutes of effort. Iowa managed to secure the victory in the shot chart by a 7-2 margin, with a slimmer 5-2 differential in shot attempts on goal. The Blue & White tripled the Hawkeye save total, winning that statistic by a 3-1 tally, with both squads finishing the night with a pair of corner kicks each. Physicality was the name of the game, with Iowa racking up a striking 13 fouls against just eight from the Nittany Lions.
On an individual basis, junior forward Amelia White was impressive in her 62 minutes of work Thursday night, finding the back of the net for the first time in her third collegiate campaign. White, a native of Fort Wayne, Indiana, secured her fifth collegiate goal in less than two minutes of match time, burying the quickest Nittany Lion score to open a match in the 2024 season. To date, White has appeared and started in all 12 contests for the Blue & White, notching four points through those showings with Thursday night’s goal joining a pair of assists earlier this year. White mustered her first goal for the Blue & White since last year’s Big Ten Tournament quarterfinal test on Jeffrey Field against the Indiana Hoosiers, with her tally helping propel PSU to a dominant 3-0 win.
Redshirt junior goalkeeper Amanda Poorbaugh registered her 11th consecutive start for the Nittany Lions between the pipes, also completing her 11th consecutive 90-minute showing in the process. The Westerville, Ohio, native moved to 7-3-1 individually following Thursday night’s result, amassing a trio of saves including a pair of highlight-reel second-half stops. For the Hawkeyes, graduate goalkeeper Macy Enneking faced a pair of Nittany Lion shots on goal on the evening, managing to corral one of the Penn State tries while concededing the opening goal of the contest to White.
The Nittany Lions dominated possession in the early going, with a pair of passes on the back line reaching graduate defender Ginger Fontenot on the right wing. Fontenot played the ball forward deep into the Hawkeye attacking third for White, who took multiple dribbles toward the Iowa goal. White marched toward the six and utilized a powerful right-footed chip shot to bury her first goal of the 2024 campaign. Iowa sought an immediate response following the Nittany Lion goal, and found their reply less than three minutes later. A pass from around midfield traveled around 25 yards forward, crossing to the left side of the pitch after taking a deflection off a PSU boot. A Hawkeye attacker managed to corral the loose ball and bury a long-range attempt from well outside the 18 past Poorbaugh’s reach.
With both sides managing to calm down following a hectic opening five minutes of play, each squad settled into a slower-paced, possession-focused attack, with Penn State seeking to take advantage of its trademark style of play. PSU mustered another shot on target later in the opening 45 minutes, but Enneking corralled the Nittnay Lion chance before the Blue & White could surge ahead. Iowa took advantage of the swing in momentum around the 31-minute mark, capitalizing on a throw-in in the attacking half to find the match-winning goal. With the Hawkeyes in control centrally, Iowa utilized a pair of quick chip passes to find a striker on the left portion of the 18, who used a left-footed finish to net the equalizer. Iowa and Penn State battled for the remaining 14 minutes, with the Hawkeyes taking a 2-1 lead into the break.
After the 15-minute intermission, both sides returned to the pitch for the second half, with Penn State managing most of the possession early on. Despite a solid offensive showing in the second 45 minutes, the Nittany Lions were unable to muster any additional chances on frame. The Hawkeyes looked close to adding a third tally in the 58th minute, but a solid stop from Poorbaugh kept Iowa’s attack at bay. Yet another astonishing save from Poorbaugh came in the 84th minute of work, as a Hawkeye chip shot attempt from outside the 18 was sniffed out and forced over the crossbar by the Nittany Lion keeper. With the Blue & White unable to find an equalizer in the second half, Iowa went on to secure the 2-1 victory in front of their home fans.
SCORING SUMMARY
2’ – The Nittany Lions dominated possession in the early going, with a pair of passes on the back line reaching Fontenot on the right wing. Fontenot played the ball forward deep into the Hawkeye attacking third for White, who took multiple dribbles toward the Iowa goal. White marched toward the six and utilized a powerful right-footed chip shot to bury her first goal of the 2024 campaign. PSU 1, IOWA 0
5’ – Iowa sought an immediate response following the Nittany Lion goal, with the Hawkeyes utilizing a pass from the midfield line on the right side of the pitch to get things going. The ball traveled about 25 yards forward, crossing the pitch thanks to a deflection off a Nittany Lion boot. Following the reversal of field, Sofia Bush collected the ball with her right foot and sent a powerful shot into the top right corner of the PSU goal from well outside the 18 on the left side of the pitch. PSU 1, IOWA 1
31’ – A throw-in on the attacking half of the pitch for Iowa sparked another scoring chance for the Hawkeyes, with the home side taking advantage of a PSU giveaway to take possession centrally. The ball ended up on the foot of Rielee Fetty, who delivered the ball to her right to Meike Ingles. The Hawkeye utilized a strong touch to chip a pass forward to Maya Hansen in the middle of the box. Hansen used a left-footed finish into the bottom right corner to net the second Iowa goal of the night. IOWA 2, PSU 1
UP NEXT
No. 15 Penn State women's soccer continues its weekend road trip through America's heartland this Sunday, September 29, as the Nittany Lions head to Lincoln, Nebraska, to face off against the 2023 B1G Regular Season Co-Champion Nebraska Cornhuskers in a 1 p.m. (ET) fixture from Hibner Stadium. The match will air live to a national television audience via the Big Ten Network and stream live on the FOX Sports App.
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