May 2, 2016
2016 Penn State Women's Soccer Schedule
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- The defending NCAA Division I women's soccer national champion Penn State women's soccer team has released its 2016 schedule Monday morning. The Nittany Lions are slated to play 18 regular season contests, including 11 matches at Jeffrey Field.
"Coming off of our most successful season in program history, we have compiled a schedule that will continue to challenge us to be the very best," head coach Erica Dambach said. "Last year we had the largest total home crowd come out and support us at Jeffrey Field and we're excited to announce that this year we'll have the opportunity to play in front of our amazing fans 11 times during the regular season. We open up the season with four out of five opponents being 2015 NCAA Tournament teams which will help to prepare us for a the challenges we'll face throughout Big Ten conference regular season play."
The 2016 regular season kicks off for the Nittany Lions with the annual Penn State Invitational, Aug. 19-21. Along with Penn State, Buffalo, Hofstra and West Virginia make their way to Happy Valley for the Penn State Invitational.
The Nittany Lions open the year with West Virginia on Aug. 19, a team Penn State has met 14 times in program history, including twice during the 2015 season. Overall, Penn State holds a 7-6-1 record against West Virginia. Last season, WVU topped Penn State, 1-0, in Morgantown, W.Va., in early September and the Nittany Lions advanced to their fifth College Cup by defeating the Mountaineers, 2-0, in the NCAA Quarterfinals at Jeffrey Field, Nov. 28, 2015.
Penn State closes out the season-opening tournament against Hofstra on Aug. 21. The Nittany Lions topped the Pride in the 2015 season-opener, 2-1, in front of 3,175 fans -- the fifth-best crowd in program history at Jeffrey Field.
The Nittany Lions end their season-opening homestand with BYU on Aug. 26.
BYU won the lone meeting between the two squads, 3-1, on Sept. 8, 2012, in front of 4,922 fans in Provo, Utah. The Cougars finished the 2015 season with a record of 16-3-2 and fell to Stanford, 2-1, in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
A week later the Nittany Lions head to California for a pair of games for the second-straight season.
After topping No. 2 Stanford and Santa Clara in California last year, the Nittany Lions head to Los Angeles to take on UCLA (Sept. 2) and then will head south on I-405 for a match against Long Beach State (Sept. 4).
UCLA finished the 2015 season with a record of 8-10-1, but bring in the No. 1 recruiting class for 2016 according to TopDrawerSoccer.com. The Nittany Lions and Bruins last met on Aug. 25, 2006, with PSU winning, 3-1, in front of the fourth-largest women's soccer crowd at Jeffrey Field (3,208 fans).
After advancing to the NCAA Tournament for the fifth time in eight years, Long Beach State ended the 2015 season with a record of 12-7-3. Long Beach State fell to Santa Clara, 1-0, in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. The 2016 season marks the first meeting between PSU and LBSU.
Penn State returns home to the friendly confines of Jeffrey Field to close out the non-conference slate against San Diego State and La Salle. The Nittany Lions host the San Diego State Aztecs on Friday, Sept. 9, and close out the weekend with the La Salle Explorers on Sunday, Sept. 11.
The matchup between the Nittany Lions and Aztecs will be the first in program history, while the Explorers and Nittany Lions have met one time. Penn State topped La Salle, 5-1, on Sept. 1, 2013.
Penn State begins its quest for its 18th Big Ten regular season title in Falcon Heights, Minn., against the University of Minnesota on Friday, Sept. 16. The Golden Gophers handed the Nittany Lions their lone home loss of 2015 with a 1-0 decision.
The Blue and White continue their Big Ten road trip in Madison, Wis., against the Wisconsin Badgers on Sunday, Sept. 18. The Badgers and Nittany Lions shared the 2015 Big Ten regular season title, but Penn State downed Wisconsin, 4-0, in the 2015 Big Ten opener at Jeffrey Field.
The Nittany Lions return home for a three-match homestand within a week. Penn State welcomes Iowa (Friday, Sept. 23), Nebraska (Sunday, Sept. 25) and Illinois (Friday, Sept. 30). Penn State went 2-0-1 against Illinois, Iowa and Nebraska last season.
In their Big Ten road opener last season, the Nittany Lions tied the Cornhuskers, 1-1, on Sept. 25 and Penn State responded to the 1-1 draw at Nebraska with a 5-1 victory at Iowa two days later.
Penn State and Illinois met in the quarterfinals of the 2015 Big Ten tournament with PSU prevailing, 3-1.
The 2016 Big Ten season continues for the Nittany Lions with a two-match road trip at Maryland (Thursday, Oct. 6) and Indiana (Sunday, Oct. 9). Last year at Jeffrey Field, Penn State topped Maryland, 1-0, and defeated Indiana, 4-0.
Next up for Penn State is Rutgers (Thursday, Oct. 13) and Purdue (Sunday, Oct. 16) at home.
The Nittany Lions and Scarlet Knights met three times over the course of the 2015 season. Rutgers edged Penn State, 1-0, during the regular season, but the Nittany Lions responded with a pair of 2-0 victories in the final two meetings of the season.
Penn State clinched is sixth Big Ten Tournament title over Rutgers at Jeffrey Field on Nov. 8 and advanced to the NCAA Title match for the second time in program history with a victory over Rutgers in NCAA Women's College Cup semifinal round in WakeMed Soccer Park in Cary, N.C., on Dec. 4.
Behind a pair of late comeback goals from the Nittany Lions, Penn State topped Purdue, 2-1, in West Lafayette, Ind., last season.
The Nittany Lions close out the Big Ten regular season at Michigan State (Sunday, Oct. 22) and against Ohio State at home (Wednesday, Oct. 26).
Penn State and Michigan State last met on Oct. 19, 2014, with the Nittany Lions winning, 2-1, in East Lansing, Mich.
The Nittany Lions tallied a pair of victories against the Buckeyes during the 2015 campaign. Penn State downed Ohio State, 2-1, in the regular season and notched a 4-0 result in the NCAA Third Round.
Penn State is not scheduled to play Michigan or Northwestern during the 2016 Big Ten regular season.
The Big Ten Tournament begins on Oct. 29-30, with the top-4 seeds hosting quarterfinal matches and the highest seeds hosting the semifinal and championship matches. The NCAA Division I Women's Soccer Tournament starts on November 12.
The 2016 Women's College Cup heads back to WakeMed Soccer Park in Cary, N.C., Dec. 2-4.
Dates and times for all matches are subject to change. Penn State women's soccer does not charge for tickets or parking during the regular season at Jeffrey Field. Promotions for the upcoming season will be announced at a later date.