BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – The No. 19 Penn State Nittany Lions (11-4, 5-1 Big Ten) took down the No. 13 Indiana Hoosiers (9-5, 4-2 Big Ten) in a defensive showcase at Deborah Tobias Field on Friday afternoon.
Lara Pyle scored the only goal of the contest on a penalty corner attack with Lilly Holmes and Cam Standish each grabbing an assist. The Nittany Lions’ defense held the Hoosiers to six total shots throughout the game and only allowed a shot off on two of Indiana’s penalty corners.
The win is the highest ranked win of the Hannah Prince-era and is the first time since 2022 that the Nittany Lions have achieved seven shutouts, all by junior netminder Aby Deverka, and at least 11 total wins and five conference wins in a single season. The eight straight wins tallied by Penn State is the longest winning streak for the Nittany Lions since the 2013 campaign that saw 12 consecutive victories.
FIRST QUARTER | PSU 0 – IU 0
Defense reigned supreme throughout the first stanza of action. Despite the pressure from Indiana’s offense during the frame, Penn State’s defense was stout and only allowed a single shot that went wide midway through the quarter. The Nittany Lions were held without a shot during the defensive battle.
SECOND QUARTER | PSU 0 – IU 0
The Hoosiers pressured the Penn State defense early with a penalty corner within the first two minutes of the second. The Indiana opportunity was quickly blocked by a Penn State flyer to keep the Hoosiers from threating Deverka and the cage. The Nittany Lions were able to push up the field and fired off a pair of shots quickly but were unable to convert on either opportunity. Defenses held firm through the latter part of the frame until a Hoosier penalty corner opportunity came with 70 seconds left in the half. Penn State flyers again showed their worth by blocking the Indiana shot to end the scoreless half of play.
THIRD QUARTER | PSU 1 – IU 0
Penn State’s defense continued to show out with another gritty period of play. Despite being down a player for the first part of the frame, the Nittany Lions did not allow a single shot to be fired off by the Hoosiers. Defensive battling in the midfield dominated most of the quarter until the final minute of play. Indiana fired off the first shot of the stanza that was saved by Deverka, the first save by either goalie on the day, before a fast break for the Penn State offense broke through the Hoosiers’ defensive perimeter. Olivia Marthins fired a shot that was blocked but a penalty corner was awarded to the Nittany Lions. Standish inserted the ball to Holmes who fired it towards Pyle’s stick and ball ricocheted to the back of the cage for the lone goal of the afternoon.
💥 BANG 💥 Cam ➡️ Lilly ➡️ Lara #GameOn | #PSUFH https://t.co/d9cw8qoLeo
— Penn State Field Hockey (@PennStateFH) October 23, 2026
FOURTH QUARTER | PSU 1 – IU 0
The Indiana offense played hard in the final frame, but Penn State’s defense answered in kind despite the woman-up advantage for the Hoosiers for the last five minutes due to an empty net. Indiana’s best opportunity to score in the fourth came in the 49’ during a penalty corner. The Hoosiers’ fired off two shots back-to-back with one hitting a Penn State flyer and the other being knocked away by the pad of Deverka. Another shot for Indiana came a minute later, but hit the post to roll away from the cage. The Nittany Lions grabbed one last penalty corner with seven seconds on the clock with an empty net in front of them, but the Blue & White dribbled it out to secure the 1-0 victory over the Hoosiers.
UP NEXT
Penn State will head back on the road to Iowa City, Iowa to face the Iowa Hawkeyes at noon on Sunday, Oct. 25. The game will be streamed on B1G+. Penn State will end the regular season at home on Friday, October 30 against the reigning national champions, Northwestern.
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