UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – The Penn State women's lacrosse team continues Big Ten play by hosting No. 3 Northwestern at 7 p.m. on Friday, April 1.
The Nittany Lions (5-4, 0-1 B1G) will face a tough opponent in No. 3 Northwestern (8-2, 2-0 B1G) under the lights of Panzer Stadium in PSU's fourth home game of the season.
HOW TO FOLLOW
Friday, April 1 | 7:00 p.m.
Live Stats | Watch
SERIES HISTORY
• Penn State trails 9-25 in the all-time series vs. NU and has lost the last three matchups.
• Penn State fell in both contests at then No. 3 NU last season. In game two, Kara Nealon led the Nittany Lions with nine points, including two goals and a career-high seven assists. She was one assist away from tying Marsha Florio's program record set in 1985 vs. Princeton.
• The Nittany Lions are 4-6 in their last ten games vs the Wildcats.
ABOUT THE NITTANY LIONS
• Penn State is 5-4 coming off a 12-11 loss at Ohio State in their Big Ten opener.
• PSU has six players with double digit goals this season.
• Sophomore Kristin O'Neill leads the Lions with 25 goals. She has eight multi-goal games this year. She also has a team best 31 points.
• Senior Mary Muldoon has four hat tricks this season and is fourth in the league with a .586 shot percentage.
• Junior Kara Nealon has a team best 20 assists. She averages 2.2 per game, which is 12th best in Division I and third best in the conference.
• Sophomore Kayla Abernathy has won a team best 42 draw controls. She wins 4.67 draws a game for fifth most in the league individually.
• Freshman Ashley Bowan has started between the pipes in the last six games. She has a .402 save percentage.
PSU STATISTICAL RANKINGS
• PSU is second in the nation in clearing percentage (.933).
• PSU is fourth in the nation and second in the Big Ten in fewest turnovers per game (10.6).
• Kara Nealon is 12th in the nation and third in the league by averaging 2.2 assists per contest.
SCOUTING THE WILDCATS
• NU is on a four-game streak coming off a 12-9 win at No. 12 Michigan.
• Three Wildcats were awarded Big Ten weekly honors; Midfielder of the Week – Jill Girardi, Defensive Player of the Week – Madison Doucette, Freshman of the Week – Samantha White.
• NU's only losses have been to then No. 1 Boston College in their season opener and then No. 2 UNC.
• The Wildcats are ranked third on the NCAA RPI board. They are 4-2 against ranked opponents this season.
NORTHWESTERN STATISTICAL RANKINGS
• Northwestern is 8th in the nation in draw controls per game (17.9) and points per game (23.6).
• Jill Girardi is ranked third in Division I by averaging 9.8 draw controls per game.
MUTUAL OPPONENTS
• The Wildcats and Lions have had one mutual opponent this season. NU beat Ohio State 22-14 in their Big Ten Opener. Meanwhile, the Lions fell 12-11 at Ohio State in their Big Ten Opener.
ADDITIONAL NOTES
• Kristin O'Neill was named as an honorable mention on the Inside Lacrosse/ILWomen Midseason All-American list.
• Penn State is No. 17 on the NCAA Women's Lacrosse RPI board.
• On March 15, Kristin O'Neill earned Big Ten Midfielder of the Week honors after combining for 10 points in wins over No. 21 James Madison and Saint Joseph's.
• On March 1, Brooke Hoss earned Big Ten Freshman of the Week honors after combining for six goals in wins at Duquesne and Cornell.
• Senior Mary Muldoon and junior Rachel Spilker were elected captains for the 2022 season.
• Grad transfer Taylor Regan and sophomores Sammy Dupcak and Kristin O'Neill were named Big Ten Players to Watch.
• 2021's Big Ten Freshman of the Year, Kristin O'Neill, was named to the Tewaaraton Award Watch List.
• Head Coach Missy Doherty is in her 12th season leading the Nittany Lions.
• Doherty notched her 200th career victory following the Lions' Feb. 23 win at Duquesne.
UP NEXT
• Penn State plays at Maryland on Thursday, April 7.
• NU stays on the road for a non-conference game at Penn on Sunday, April 3.
