Sept. 28, 2007
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Sept. 30, 2007 - 3:00 p.m. ET
No. 13 Penn State (6-2-1) vs. Illinois (5-2-0*) University Park, Pa. - Jeffrey Field
TV: Big Ten Network - Live Stats: GoPSUsports.com
BIG TEN OPENER WITH ILLINOIS STARTS TITLE DEFENSE... On Sunday, nine-time defending Big Ten champion Penn State (6-2-1) kicks off its conference title defense live on the Big Ten Network vs. 2006 runner-up Illinois, who was 5-2 entering its weekend swing through Ohio State before meeting the Nittany Lions at Jeffrey Field. Sunday's game begins at 3 p.m. and is also available via livestats on the Gametrack PSU page at GoPSUsports.com.
NEXT-UP... Penn State hits the road for a Big Ten double-dip at Wisconsin and Northwestern. The Nittany Lions meet the Badgers (3-3-1) and former head coach Paula Wilkins on Friday, Oct. 6, at 7 p.m. before taking on the Northwestern Wildcats (5-2-2) on Sunday at noon. The Nittany Lions return home in two weekends vs. Michigan State (7 p.m., Oct. 14) and Michigan (noon, Oct. 16).
THE SERIES WITH ILLINOIS... Beating the Illini for the Big Ten Tournament title after outlasting Illinois for its ninth-straight Big Ten championship, Penn State holds a 15-2-0 record against the Illini after a 1-1 performance last year. After falling 3-2 in their only Big Ten loss of 2006 on Oct. 1, the Nittany Lions rallied to a 3-1 win at Jeffrey Field in the Big Ten Tournament championship game. The Nittany Lions' only other loss vs. Illinois came in 2002 when they fell 4-3 to the Illini in the Big Ten Tournament in East Lansing.
PENN STATE IN BIG TEN OPENERS... The Nittany Lions are 12-0-1 all-time in Big Ten openers, with their only blemish being a tie vs. Michigan on Sept. 19, 1999. Penn State is 10-0-1 in Big Ten home openers. PSU and Illinois has never met Illinois before in a conference opener.
PSU FINAL BIG TEN TEAM TO OPEN CONFERENCE SLATE... Playing a travel-partnerless Illinois the first Sunday of the conference schedule, Penn State ends up being the final Big Ten team to open its 2007 schedule. The nine-time defending conference champions were the idle team when the other 10 squads opened up on Friday.
LAST WEEK RECAP: PENN STATE PASTES COLGATE, 5-0, IN FINAL NON-CONFERENCE TUNE-UP... Two Katie Schoepfer (Waterford, Conn.) goals propelled the Nittany Lion women's soccer team to a dominating 5-0 shutout against Colgate in the final non-conference tune-up of the season. Goals also came from Aubrey Aden-Buie (Allentown, Pa.), who now has five goals on the year, freshman Danielle Toney (Northville, Mich.), who scored her first goal of the her college career, and Ashley Myers (Bel Air, Md.), who had the gamewinner.
THE NEW JEFFREY STREAK... Penn State has played historically well at Jeffrey Field, and the Nittany Lions have started a new streak going 15-0-1 in their last 16 games on their home field. PSU has gone underfeated since a 2-1 loss to West Virginia on Sept. 8, 2006. The Nittany Lions' record for consecutive wins is 39 stretching from Sept. 17, 2001-Nov. 12, 2004.
GOALKEEPR Alyssa Naeher PICKS UP MULTIPLE HONORS... Sophomore Alyssa Naeher (Seymour, Conn.) was named this week's Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week, picking the sophomore up the first Big Ten weekly honor of her career. The Connecticut-native was also named to Soccer America's Team of the Week and earned Penn State Female Student-Athlete of the Week. Naeher was the key to the No. 17 Nittany Lions' first undefeated week this year. The preseason All-American turned in another pair of outstanding performances, including weathering 24 shots vs. 2006 national runner-up Notre Dame in the Nittany Lions' 2-1 victory.
SCHOEPFER'S SCORING STRING... A pair of goals vs. Colgate brought striker Katie Schoepfer's scoring streak to five-straight games, dating back to the James Madison game on Sept. 14. Coming home was a good thing for the sophomore, as she had been scoreless through the Nittany Lions' first four games before the home opener at Jeffrey Field. Schoepfer's streak started when she netted the game-winner vs. previously unbeaten James Madison on Sept. 14 before getting the game-tying goal in the last five minutes of Penn State's 1-1 tie vs. No. 5 Texas A&M on Sept. 16. On Sept. 19, Schoepfer made it three straight games with the goal of consequence, netting the game-winner off an assist from Ashley Myers early in the second half. She added an assist at Notre Dame on Penn State's first goal by Myers, marking the fourth straight game that the sophomore has been involved in either the game-winning or game-tying goal. Her two goals vs. Colgate made it five games in a row with at least a point, tying her longest collegiate scoring streak, which she set last year between Sept. 22 and Oct. 6.
PENN STATE PICKEDTO FINISH FIRST IN THE BIG TEN... The Nittany Lions have been picked by the coaches to finish at the top of the conference this year. A 2007 championship would mark PSU's 10th consecutive conference title. Its selection at the top of the poll marks the fifth-straight year that Penn State has been picked to win the Big Ten crown. The Nittany Lions' string of nine consecutive titles is tied for the second-longest championship streak in Big Ten history. The streak is also the longest active streak nationally.
NITTANY LIONS' CHAMPIONSHIP STREAK NOTEWORTHY... By clinching the 2006 Big Ten title on Oct. 22, 2006, Penn State pushed its championship run to nine-straight. The streak is now tied with Indiana women's tennis and Northwestern women's tennis for the second-longest in the 25 years of Big Ten women's championships.
LONGEST BIG TEN CHAMPIONSHIP STREAKS
| 12 | Michigan Swimming & Diving | 87-98 |
| 9 | Penn State Women's Soccer | 98-Pres. |
| 9 | Indiana Tennis | 1987-95 |
| 9 | Northwestern Tennis | 1999-Pres. |
MATCH WITH ILLINOIS WILL BE SIXTH OF SEASON VS. A RANKED TEAM... The game vs. Illinois today marks the sixth game in 10 outings vs. a team that is ranked or receiving votes in the National Soccer Coaches Association of America Poll (NSCAA). A win at then-No. 21 Notre Dame last Sunday brought PSU to 2-2-1 vs. ranked opponents, including two road wins against Top 25 teams. The only two losses have also come on the road.
WEEK-LONG SWEEP MOVES NITTANY LIONS UP AGAIN IN THE POLLS... A pair of wins at Bucknell and then-No. 21 Notre Dame moved Penn State back up several spots in each of the polls, including a four-spot jump from No. 17 to No. 13 in the NSCAA poll. The Nittany Lions experienced the biggest jump in the Soccer America poll, (cont.) where the team went from No. 19 to No. 11, an eight-spot leap. Soccer Buzz moved PSU from No. 14 to No. 13 and SoccerTimes put the Nittany Lions at No. 13 from No. 17.
Aden-Buie Nominated for Lowe's Senior CLASS Award... Senior tri-captain Aubrey Aden-Buie, a standout on the Penn State women's soccer team, has been selected as one of 20 candidates for the Lowe's Senior CLASS Award. An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School, the award was designed to honor the attributes of seniors who remain committed to their university and elect to pursue the many rewards that a senior season can bring.
PENN STATE HAS OFFENSIVE EXPLOSION VS. BUCKNELL... It took the Nittany Lions a full half to get warmed-up, but after the halftime break the offense was relentless vs. Bucknell last Wednesday, pouring on five goals in the final 45 minutes. The five goals marked the first game with five or more goals for the Nittany Lions since their 5-2 victory over West Virginia on Nov. 13 during the 2005 NCAA Tournament. The last time PSU won by at least five goals was also during the 2005 NCAA Tournament, beating Bucknell 6-0 in the opening round on Nov. 11.
INDIVIDUALS HAVE NOTEWORTHY OUTINGS VS. BU... Senior tri-captain Aubrey Aden-Buie got her two goals late last Wednesday, including one at the 89:59 mark, and was one of three Nittany Lions to score three or more points in the 5-1 win over Bucknell. Redshirt-sophomore Ashley Myers (Bel Air, Md.) scored the team's first goal, also her first of the season, and assisted the second goal, which was the eventual gamewinner. Sophomore transfer Melissa Hayes (Cave Creek, Ariz.)?scored her first points as a Nittany Lion, tallying three assists on the evening.
SCHOEPFER GARNERS NATIONAL, CONFERENCE AND UNIVERSITY HONORS... After the game-winning goal vs. JMU and the game-tying conversion vs. No. 5 Texas A&M on Sept. 14 and 16, sophomore forward Katie Schoepfer earned Soccer America National Team of the Week, Soccer Buzz Elite Team of the Week Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week and Penn State Female Student-Athlete of the Week.
SOPHOMORE'S GOAL VS. TEXAS A&M NAMED "GOAL OF THE WEEK"... Katie Schoepfer's game-tying goal vs. Texas A&M not only helped boost her to conference and national honors, but also was named the "Goal of the Week" by Phlliy Soccer News.com. The goal helped the Nittany Lions to a tie vs. then-No. 5 Texas A&M in the last five minutes of regulation.
PENN STATE ALL-TIME VS. RANKED OPPONENTS... Posting a 2-2-1 record this season vs. ranked teams this year, Penn State is now 54-32-9 (.616) all-time vs. opponents ranked in the NSCAA poll. A complete list of the Nittany Lions' all-time ranked match-ups appears on page 4 of this release.
WALSH'S WEEKLY PODCAST... Erica Walsh's podcast is in full swing and available weekly on GoPSUsports.com. For the remainder of the Nittany Lions' 2007 season, check back weekly each Monday to hear Walsh's impressions of the previous week's action as well as get a look into the next week. Fans can submit questions to be asked during the podcast by emailing them to askerica@athletics.psu.edu.
BIG TEN NETWORK HELPS BOOST TV COVERAGE TO AT LEAST SIX GAMES... Backed by the newly-launched Big Ten Network, Penn State's women's soccer team will enjoy national television coverage at least six times this fall. So far the Nittany Lions are 2-0-1 on TV, all results against ranked opponents. The then-No. 15 Nittany Lions' game at then-No. 17 Connecticut on Sept. 6 was the season's first NSCAA College Match of the Week and was televised live on Fox Soccer Channel. On Sept. 16, its match-up with No. 5 Texas A&M marked Penn State's first Olympic Sporting Event on the Big Ten Network, one of four matches on the Network this fall including three at home. PSU won the rematch of it's 2006 NCAA quarterfinal match at Notre Dame that will be televised live on ESPNU on Sunday. The nine-time Big Ten champion Nittany Lions' conference match-up with 2006 runner-up Illinois on Sept. 30 on the Big Ten Network. Penn State's away match at Minnesota on Oct. 21 and its home match vs. Indiana at 1 p.m. will round out the Nittany Lions' Big Ten Network schedule for the year, making for six TV appearances before the postseason even begins.
GRAY, RILEY ON M.A.C. HERMANN TROPHY WATCHLIST... Nittany Lions have become staples among M.A.C. Hermann Trophy candidates and this year is no exception as junior midfielder Sheree Gray (Toms River, N.J.) and senior defender Denay Riley (Washingtonville, N.Y.) are among the preseason candidates for collegiate soccer's version of the Heisman Trophy. Penn State was one of 13 schools with two or more candidates on the preseason list.
MEET Erica Walsh... After head coaching stints at Harvard and Dartmouth and significant time spent coaching in the U.S. Youth National Team program, Erica Walsh assumed control of the Nittany Lion program in February. Now carrying a career record 46-30-4, she is the third head coach in Penn State' s history. A 1997 William & Mary grad, she has met success at every junction of her career and is poised to continue and enhance the Nittany Lions' grand tradition. Her full bio appears on page 2.
WALSH'S STAFF BLENDS OLD AND NEW... Joining first-year coach Erica Walsh on the sideline this season will be two new faces and a familiar one as well. Ann Cook, a standout player that was at William & Mary with Walsh, comes to the PSU staff after being an assistant coaching at Nebraska. Goalkeeping coach Mariel Wilner was with Walsh at Harvard and joins Penn State as a volunteer assistant after earning her degree in 2007 from Northeastern. Among all of the new faces remains a Penn State staple in Michael Coll. In his fourth season as an assistant with the women's team, Coll both played on and coached the men's team at some point in his career in addition to a head coaching stint with the women's soccer team at St. Francis (Pa.).
NAEHER CHOSEN AS SOCCER AMERICA PRESEASON ALL-AMERICAN... Alyssa Naeher is one of only three preseason All-Americans at goalkeeper according to Soccer America, and is also the youngest, only having one college season under her belt thus far. Naeher is also one of only four sophomores on the 23-player list.
NAEHER RETURNS IN NETS AFTER SILVER EFFORT WITH U-20S... Sophomore Alyssa Naeher returns to the Nittany Lions' line-up after an outstanding effort with the U.S. Under-20 team at the Pan Am Games this summer. After a strong year her freshman campaign that was cut short due to injury, Naeher healed-up and traveled to Brazil where she put forth a stellar effort including starts in the semifinals and final game of the tournament. The U.S. team eventually lost to homestanding Brazil's full national team, giving Naeher unparalleled experience heading into her sophomore season.
CAPTAINS NAMED... Redshirt-senior defender Jean Rettig (Hummelstown, Pa.), senior striker Aubrey Aden-Buie?(Allentown, Pa.) and junior defender Jessie Davis (Fairfax, Va.) have been selected as the 2007 tri-captains for the Nittany Lions. A starter over past three years, Rettig is back after a concussion cut her season short in 2006. Aden-Buie led the Nittany Lions last season with 12 goals and 28 points, while the youngster of the trio Davis started last year and came on strong in the postseason to help the offense as well.
WELCOME BACK!... Several Nittany Lions studied abroad in the spring, but returned this fall to compete again for Penn State. Redshirt-senior Jean Rettig studied abroad in New Zealand, while senior Kaleen Adami (Bensalem, Pa.) and redshirt-junior Zoe Bouchelle (Cockeysville, Md.) were abroad in Argentina.