UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – The No. 11 Penn State women's soccer team dropped a 2-1 decision to the No. 6 Virginia Cavaliers in its regular season non-conference finale on a rainy Sunday afternoon at Jeffrey Field. Kristin Schnurr (Bristow, Va.) scored her third goal of the season in the 74th minute of the match.
"Disappointing result today," head coach Erica Dambach said. "I think what I'm most disappointed with was just the blue collar mentality of our group needs to be better and it's something we pride ourselves in, and today in that first half we didn't see it and that got the best of us for the game."
Virginia (7-0-0) struck first in the contest on a goal from Brianna Westrup at 5:43. Looking to tie the match at 1-1 in the 37th minute, defender Kaleigh Riehl (Fairfax Station, Va.) headed the ball from close range off a set piece that hit the right post.
The Cavaliers extended their lead to 2-0 on a goal from Rebecca Jarrett at 39:03. With the first 45 minutes of play in the books, Penn State (4-3-0) outshot Virginia, 7-5.
In the 73rd minute, Virginia goalkeeper Laurel Ivory stopped a shot on goal from Kerry Abello (Batavia, Ill.), but wasn't able to corral the save. With the ball on the ground, Schnurr netted her third goal of the season at 73:01 to put the Nittany Lions on the scoreboard.
With the 2-1 lead, the Cavalier defense held off the Nittany Lion offense down the stretch to secure the victory.
Amanda Dennis (San Diego, Calif.) made four saves on the afternoon in net for the Nittany Lions, while Ivory made five saves for Virginia.
The Nittany Lions close out their three-game homestand with their Big Ten regular season opener on Friday, Sept. 14, against Ohio State. The match is slated for a 6 p.m. start at Jeffrey Field.
NOTES: Penn State leads the all-time series against Virginia, 7-6-1…Penn State outshot Virginia, 14-11…Abello has recorded at least a point in back-to-back games…Schnurr has scored a goal in back-to-back games.