MATCH DAY: Penn State WSOC at No. 13 Washington

OPENING KICKOFF

• Penn State women’s soccer finishes a two-match stretch in the Pacific Northwest against the No. 13 Washington Huskies on Sunday. Kickoff from Husky Soccer Stadium is scheduled for 4 p.m. (ET) with a live stream on B1G+. 

• PSU rejoined the receiving votes section in the latest United Soccer Coaches poll with four votes this week. On the RPI side, the Blue & White moved up to No. 24 following the win over Oregon. On the other side, Washington enters Sunday No. 13 in the USC poll, No. 16 according to TopDrawerSoccer and No. 38 in the RPI. 

• The Blue & White are in the midst of a six-match unbeaten streak dating back to September 10. The squad is 4-0-2 in that stretch. 

• The Nittany Lions enter the match tied for the third-most points in the conference with 14, good for sixth on the league table. Washington has 16 points in a tie for fourth in the conference.  

• Penn State’s 1.917 goals per match rank fifth in the Big Ten, while its 1.17 goal margin of victory ranks fourth in the conference.  

• The Nittany Lion defense has allowed just four goals in seven conference contests, which ties for the second fewest in the Big Ten. The offense has taken the second most shots (98) and third most corner kicks (50) in league play.  

• Penn State opened its road trip with a 1-0 victory over Oregon on Thursday night at Papé Field. 

• Redshirt senior goalkeeper Mackenize Gress made three saves in her fourth Big Ten shutouts in seven matches. She tied her career-high for shutouts in a season and set a new career-high for conference shutouts in one season. 

• Gress has established herself as one of the top keepers in the Big Ten, tied for second with four shutouts and ranking inside the top three in both save percentage (.826) and goals against average (0.57) in conference play. 

• The lone goal of the night was scored as an own goal after freshman midfielder Paige Pasinski fired a shot off the post that bounced off the back of the Oregon keeper and into the net. 

• Penn State finished with a 9-2 corner kick advantage, the 10th time this season the squad earned more corners than its opponent. 

• Nine Nittany Lions have registered at least three points, all of whom have recorded at least one goal and one assist. Six additional players have at least one goal contribution. Through 12 matches, Penn State has recorded 67 points, tied for the fifth-most in the Big Ten, and 5.58 points per match, the fourth-best average.

WHAT'S UP WASHINGTON

• No. 13 Washington is one of the top squads in the Big Ten with their only defeat this season coming against No. 2 Michigan State by a 3-0 margin in East Lansing. The Huskies are tied for fourth in the Big Ten with 16 points and a 5-1-1 conference record, 10-1-2 overall. 

• In eight of their 10 wins, including four of five in B1G play, the Huskies have shut out their opponent. Their most recent win over Iowa, a 2-1 final, was the first Big Ten match they won in which they let in a goal. 

• Washington ties for the sixth-best goal differential in B1G fixtures with a margin of 1.286 goals across seven league contests. 

• Goalkeeper Tanner Ijams ties for the most shutouts in the Big Ten with seven. She has the second-best goals against average in the conference at 0.62 in addition to tying for the eight most saves in the league with 32. Against Big Ten foes her goals against average is slightly higher at 0.86. 

• Jadyn Holdenried leads Washington in points (11), goals (four), shots (35) and shots on goal (12). She ranks second on the team with three assists as well. Three of her four goals have been match-winners. 

• Alex Buck, a USA U-20 World Cup teammate of Nittany Lions Emma Johnson and Kealey Titmuss, is second on the team with three goals. 

• Andra Leyva paces the Huskies with five assists this season from the midfield. 

STORY OF THE SERIES

• Sunday marks the sixth meeting between Penn State and Washington with the Huskies holding a 4-1-0 advantage over the Nittany Lions. 

• This year’s fixture will be the second conference contest between the Blue & White and Washington. The Huskies earned a 1-0 victory at Jeffrey Field a season ago. 

• Washington has won both matchups played in Seattle during the 1995 and 2004 seasons. The lone win in the series for Penn State came during the 2005 season when PSU secured a 3-2 win in Happy Valley.