No. 8 Nittany Lions Close Non-Conference Road Trip at No. 23 Georgetown
Penn State lays four-match winning streak on the line in the nation’s capital
#8 Penn State at #23 Georgetown
5-1-0 | 0-0-0 B1G
3-1-1 | 0-0-0 Big East
WASHINGTON – No. 8 Penn State women’s soccer closes out its grueling three-match road trip and lays a four-match winning streak on the line this Sunday, September 8, as the Nittany Lions battle the No. 23 Georgetown Hoyas in a 1 p.m. (ET) fixture from Shaw Field in the nation’s capital. The match will stream live to FloFC subscribers online, and on the FloSports app.
Follow the Action
For fans of the Nittany Lions unable to attend Sunday’s nationally ranked non-conference matinee in the nation’s capital, the Nittany Lions’ battle with Georgetown will be streamed to a worldwide audience of authenticated subscribers via FloFC and the FloSports app. Monika Moore and Christian Taylor will call the action from the Shaw Field 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 Georgetown University and StatBroadcast are available here.
KICKIN’ IT
In the waning moments of the second half, junior midfielder Olivia Borgen found herself 20 yards outside the net and delivered one of the most powerful strikes of her collegiate career, as the eighth-ranked Penn State women’s soccer team battled their way to a 1-0 victory over the Princeton Tigers last Thursday night, September 5 on Myslik Field at Roberts Stadium following Borgen’s banger. Penn State’s offense, ranked first in the Big Ten Conference and fourth among power four conference institutions entering Thursday night’s battle with the Tigers, racked up a 19-10 differential in total shots as well as a domineering 10-3 margin in shots on goal. The PSU attack warranted a season-high 11 corner kicks, the most corners for a PSU squad since turning in an identical 11-corner showing on September 15 of last season against Maryland, a 4-0 conference victory. Penn State won the corner battle 11-3, improving to 3-0-0 when attempting more corner kicks than its opponent.
Borgen, a Big Ten Conference Preseason Player to Watch, appeared and started in all 23 Nittany Lion matches a season ago but was sidelined due to injury earlier in the year. Her return to the pitch against West Virginia a week and a half ago paved the way for her performance Thursday at Princeton, with the Hanson, Massachusetts, native booking her seventh collegiate goal and first of the 2024 campaign. Redshirt senior forward Kaitlyn MacBean saw her eight-match goal-scoring streak come to a close Thursday night at Princeton, but the Excelsior, Minnesota, native maintains her status as one of the nation’s premier goal scorers. MacBean ranks second in the nation and tied for the B1G lead in goals with eight, ranking fourth nationally with 1.33 goals per match.
BORGIE BALL
Junior midfielder Olivia Borgen tallied her first goal of the 2024 campaign, as well as her seventh collegiate score Thursday night at Princeton, finding the back of the net in her only shot and shot on goal of the night in 19 minutes of work. Borgen contributed the first six goals and first three assists of her collegiate career as a fixture in the starting XI for all 23 matches a year ago. She amassed 1,410 minutes of action as a premier member of the Nittany Lion attacking midfield, adding individual distinction as an honorable mention TopDrawerSoccer National Team of the Week honoree following a brace at Northwestern on October 17. Borgen joined a pair of teammates in MacBean and Schiemann as B1G Players to Watch in the 2024 season, looking to expand on her dominant sophomore outing in the 2023 Elite Eight campaign.
Next Up: Georgetown
GOIN’ TO GEORGETOWN
Led by 21-year head coaching veteran Dave Nolan, the Georgetown Hoyas enter Sunday afternoon’s matinee in the national capital boasting a 3-1-1 overall start to the 2024 season. The Hoyas opened the 2024 campaign with a scoreless draw against Vanderbilt, followed by a three-match win streak against Quinnipiac, Sacred Heart and Lafayette. Georgetown surrendered its first score of the 2024 campaign in what became a 2-1 loss to No. 20 Pepperdine. Last season, Georgetown rolled to a 13-2-7 overall record that included a Big East regular season title paired with a Big East Tournament crown. The Hoyas reached the second round of the NCAA Tournament, ultimately falling to Saint Louis on the Penn State campus by a 2-1 mark on Jeffrey Field in Happy Valley. Georgetown is paced on the pitch by Maja Lardner, who leads the squad with 10 points split between four goals and a pair of assists. Between the posts, goalkeeper Anna Karpenko leads the roster with seven saves on the 2024 season.
STORY OF THE SERIES
Penn State and Georgetown get set to meet for just the second time in each program’s respective history this weekend in Washington, with the squads playing to a high-octane 2-2 draw on Jeffrey Field in Happy Valley back on August 18, 2022. The last matchup pitting the Nittany Lions against the Hoyas opened the 2022 season for both programs, with PSU going on to a B1G Tournament title as well as a 15-5-3 overall finish. Georgetown opened the scoring in the 19th, but alumna Ally Schlegel converted a penalty to tie things up 17 minutes later. In the 56th, Georgetown took a 2-1 lead, but Nittany Lion alum Rachel Wasserman found the back of the net in the 70th minute on an assist from then-freshman forward Amelia White.
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.