No. 14 Penn State field hockey (6-3, 2-1 Big Ten) dominated Michigan State (4-7, 0-3 Big Ten) 8-0 in Happy Valley on Sunday afternoon.

The Nittany Lions redeemed themselves with a much-needed win after a loss to Michigan on Friday. Anna Simon, Moira Putsch, and Emily Klingler each scored twice for the Nittany Lions on top of goals by Gini Bramley and Alexis Horst.

Penn State outshot the Spartans 29-5 in the victory and 20-1 in shots on goal.

How It Happened

Penn State got off to a quick start, scoring a goal on its first possession of the game. Emily Klingler was the scorer off a crafty pass from Moira Putsch. The Nittany Lions were the clear aggressors early on, registering plenty of shots and penalty corners.

A strong performance from Spartan goalkeeper Jade Arundell made things harder, but the hole-filled Michigan State defense couldn’t contain the hungry Nittany Lions. Putsch scored the team’s second goal from long distance to extend Penn State’s lead just over seven minutes into the game. 

Penn State’s offense continued to pour on the scoring chances. Alexis Horst tallied her second goal of the season after one of many penalty corners, with the assist coming from Putsch. Anna Simon buried another goal in off another corner for her third of the season just 1:25 after Horst’s goal.

Anna Simon doubled her goal total in Sunday’s game after the team’s seventh penalty corner of the game. The first half wrapped up quickly after with Penn State leading 16-2 in shots.

Some wizardry from Auerlia Meijer resulted in Penn State’s first goal of the second half. The senior deked out the Spartan defense to launch a backhander into the back of the net, and Moira Putsch tipped the ball into the net.

Michigan State continued to be dominated throughout the game and was unable to get anything going in Penn State’s zone. Penn State’s seventh goal came at the 17:34 mark of the second half after another fantastic play from Meijer. The midfielder came in and put an excellent cross to Gini Bramley for an easy goal.

Penn State wasn’t done scoring goals at that point, as Klingler got her second of the game from another Moira Putsch assist. The goal capped off a dominant performance for Penn State, which improved to 6-3 this season.

Player of the Match

Moira Putsch | Senior | Forward

Putsch stood out for the Nittany Lions in the blowout victory. She was one of three players to have two goals on the day, but she assisted on five of her team’s six other goals on the afternoon.

What’s Next?

Penn State’s mini-homestand ends as the Nittany Lions will travel to New Jersey for a showdown against Rutgers. The game will be played at 3 p.m. Friday.