No. 8 Women’s Soccer Continues Road Stretch at Princeton
Nittany Lions look to continue winning ways following nationally ranked victory in road opener
#8 Penn State at Princeton
4-1-0 | 0-0-0 B1G
2-0-0 | 0-0-0 IVY
PRINCETON, N.J. – No. 8 Penn State women’s soccer gears up for the middle leg of its three-match road trip, as the Nittany Lions prepare to hit the road and take on the Princeton Tigers this Thursday, September 5, with a 7 p.m. (ET) start scheduled from Myslik Field at Roberts Stadium. The match will stream to a worldwide audience of authenticated subscribers via ESPN+ and the ESPN app.
Follow the Action
For fans of the Nittany Lions unable to attend Thursday evening’s non-conference clash in New Jersey, the Nittany Lions’ battle with Princeton will be streamed to a worldwide audience of authenticated subscribers via ESPN+ and the ESPN app. Jeff O’Connor and Renee Washington will call the action from the Roberts Stadium press box. Click the link here to be redirected to the live stream of the broadcast and sign in with credentials for access. Live stats provided by Princeton University and SIDEARM are available here.
KICKIN’ IT
In one of the most anticipated matches of the 2024 season, then-No. 12 Penn State jumped ahead early and never looked back, as a brace from redshirt senior forward Kaitlyn MacBean powered the Nittany Lions to a 2-1 victory in their road opener over then-No. 19 Saint Louis. The box score told the tale of a hyper-competitive, nationally ranked non-conference clash, with the home squad narrowly edging the visiting Blue & White in total shot attempts by a 16-15 margin. In terms of shots on target, however, Penn State dominated the stat sheet with a doubling of SLU’s chances, winning the battle 8-4 overall. Saint Louis took the corner kick contest by a 9-4 margin, marking just the second loss for Penn State in the corner competition in 2024.
Following her first career hat trick, as well as a week of performances that saw her score all five Nittany Lion goals in a two-match span, MacBean was named both the TopDrawerSoccer National Player of the Week and Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week following announcements from both organizations on Tuesday, September 3. MacBean currently stands as the national scoring leader across all NCAA Division I programs with 16 points on eight goals through five matches played. Senior midfielder Jordan Fusco has additionally established herself as one of the best facilitators in the midfield across all of college soccer through this point in the season, with the veteran athlete ranking tied for first in the Big Ten Conference and second nationally in assists per match with 1.00. Fusco leads the B1G in total assists with five, also ranking sixth nationally in the category behind five student-athletes tied with six apiece.
BALLIN’ LIKE BEANY
Through her first five matches of the 2024 campaign, redshirt senior forward Kaitlyn MacBean has broken out as a star on the national stage. The Excelsior, Minnesota, native leads NCAA Division I in multiple statistical categories, including total goals with eight on the year, total points with 16, goals per match with 1.60, and match-winning goals with three. With her scores against Saint Louis last weekend, MacBean took sole ownership of the No. 3 spot in the Nittany Lion record book for consecutive matches with a goal, finding the back of the net in each of her last eight appearances. She was recognized as the TopDrawerSoccer National Player of the Week for the second time in her collegiate career and picked up B1G Offensive Player of the Week laurels for the first time since joining the Blue & White in a release from both organizations on Tuesday, September 3.
Next Up: Princeton
TACKLING THE TIGERS
Under the direction of veteran head coach Sean Driscoll, the Princeton Tigers enter Thursday night’s non-conference battle boasting an impressive 2-0 start to the 2024 campaign headlined by an opening-night win over the Miami Hurricanes by a 1-0 margin. Princeton followed that effort up with a 3-1 outburst against Seton Hall a week ago, with both matches coming at home. Princeton returns to action in 2024 following a 10-5-4 effort last year that saw the Tigers reach the second round of the NCAA Tournament, with Princeton eliminated from competition by Texas Tech on penalty kicks following a scoreless draw in the second round. Individually, four different Tigers have recorded a goal through the first two weeks of Princeton’s regular season, with Alexandra Barry and Heather MacNab leading the way in total points with three apiece. Between the posts, returning keeper Tyler McCamey leads the way with a 0.50 GAA and seven saves with one shutout thus far.
STORY OF THE SERIES
Penn State and Princeton get ready to gear up for the third all-time meeting in a series that dates to the 2002 campaign, with PSU taking both prior matchups in 2002 and 2023. The Nittany Lions first met the Tigers in the 2002 NCAA Tournament, with the Blue & White taking the contest by a 2-0 tally in neutral site action. Last season’s battle on Jeffrey Field marked the first on-campus meeting of the two programs, with the Nittany Lions downing Princeton by a 3-0 margin highlighted by a pair of set piece goals scored by Mieke Schiemann. Olivia Borgen delivered a late insurance goal in the 84th minute to seal the deal. PSU’s non-conference regular season finale against the Tigers closed the book on an undefeated non-conference campaign a year ago, just the second unbeaten out of conference slate in school history.
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.