MATCH DAY: Penn State WSOC at No. 24 Michigan

OPENING KICKOFF

• Penn State women’s soccer continues its road swing in the Mitten State with a matchup against No. 24 Michigan on Sunday. The Nittany Lions and Wolverines are slated for a 1 p.m. (ET) kickoff at U-M Soccer Stadium with a live stream on B1G+. 

• The Blue & White took down No. 5 Michigan State, 2-1, on Thursday night in East Lansing. It was the program’s first win over a top five opponent on the road since 2021.  

• A victory over Michigan would be the first time Penn State has won consecutive matches on the road over ranked opponents since 2003 when PSU defeated No. 21 Ohio State and No. 8 West Virginia. The win would also be the 550th win in program history. 

• The Nittany Lions enter the penultimate match of the regular season ranked No. 21 in the NCAA RPI rankings after the upset over the Spartans. Meanwhile, Michigan is No. 39 in the RPI. 

• Penn State currently sits sixth in the Big Ten with 20 points and clinched a spot in the conference’s postseason tournament with the most recent win. The Nittany Lions are just two points shy of Purdue and UCLA, which are in a tie for second place. 

• The Blue & White defense has allowed just six goals in 10 conference contests, tied for the third fewest allowed in the Big Ten. For the season, PSU has seven shutouts and has allowed just 11 goals, another mark tied for third in the conference.  

• The Nittany Lions rank sixth in the conference with 1.733 goals per match and sixth in the Big Ten with a 1.00 goal margin of victory through 15 outings. The offense has taken the seventh-most shots (128) and second-most corner kicks (66) in league play. 

• Junior forward Aubrey Kulpa was spectacular in the triumph over MSU with her third three-point match of the season. In the first half, she received a pass from freshman midfielder Emma Johnson just inside the box before placing a perfect pass at the feet of a trailing Paige Kalal who fired a one-touch shot into the back of the net. Early in the second half, Kulpa battled past pushes, shoves and jersey pulls by a Spartan defender before rifling the ball off the far post and in. 

• Kulpa leads Penn State with 18 points, seven goals, 44 shots and 21 shots on goal while tying with Kalal for the team lead with four assists. 

• Kalal, a senior forward, scored her career-high sixth goal of the season against the Spartans. She ranks second on Penn State’s team in points (16), also the most in her career, goals, shots (29) and shots on goal (13). 

WOLVERINE WRITE-UP

• No. 24 Michigan enters Sunday’s match with a 7-4-4 record and 5-4-1 mark in Big Ten play. The team is eighth on the Big Ten table with 16 points and is three points ahead of Iowa for the last spot in the Big Ten Tournament. 

• The Wolverines are coming off a 1-1 draw against Maryland on Thursday, which snapped a two-match winning streak against Wisconsin and Oregon. Like Penn State, Michigan also defeated Michigan State in East Lansing. 

• U-M has the fourth highest scoring average in B1G contests at 1.7 goals per match. 

• Ella Jablinskey leads the Michigan attack with 18 points on eight goals and two assists. She also has 49 shots this season. In 10 Big Ten matches, Jablinskey has scored six goals, the third-most in the conference in that span, in addition to ranking fifth in points with 14 in league play. 

• Lilly Bosley is not far behind Jabliskey with all five of her goals in conference competition, which is tied for fourth. She also has five assists this season to lead the team and give her 15 points. 

• Malia Zillman starts between the posts for the Wolverines. She a 1.21 goals against average and 0.750 save percentage this season.

STORY OF THE SERIES

• Michigan is the most played opponent in the history of Penn State women’s soccer with the Nittany Lions owning a 27-7-8 advantage in the all-time series. 

• The two sides did not meet last season, but the Blue & White won the most recent matchup at Jeffrey Field during the 2024 season by a 6-0 margin.  

• The last fixture in Ann Arbor was during the 2023 season, a contest that ended in a 1-1 draw. Penn State has not won at U-M Soccer Stadium since October 7, 2018, a 2-1 triumph. That was the fifth win in a row in Ann Arbor since 2008.