No. 18 Penn State women’s soccer (17-6-1) claimed an all-time classic playoff win against Arizona (12-7-1) Friday evening and a place in the NCAA Tournament round of 16, defeating the Wildcats 4-3 in Palo Alto.

Goals from Ally Schlegel and Sam Coffey in the 58th and 62nd minutes, respectively, cancelled two Wildcat strikes. Arizona seemed to seal a win in the 69th minute when Jill Aguilera blasted a left-footed shot past Amanda Dennis. But an individual effort from Coffey leveled the score once again with three minutes remaining and sent the match to overtime.

Frankie Tagliaferri latched onto an Schlegel through pass in the 98th minute, and her half-volleyed shot found the roof of the net to win the match for Penn State with a golden goal.

How It Happened

Friday’s match was a perfect representation of the best and worst aspects of Penn State’s season.

After a strong start from Arizona that saw the Wildcats outshoot the Nittany Lions 4-1 in the early stages, Penn State conceded early, as they so often have this season. Grace Santos’ deflected shot rolled by a frozen Amanda Dennis in the 39th minute, giving Arizona a 1-0 lead at halftime.

The Wildcats doubled their lead early in the second half when Dennis mishandled an awkward cross, and it seemed that Penn State’s season would end in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.

But this team seems to reach an extra gear when all hope appears to be lost. Some of its best performances this season — the Big Ten title match against Minnesota, last Friday’s win over Stony Brook — have been comeback wins sparked after a sluggish start.

It was almost inevitable that the prolific Ally Schlegel would make a mark on this match. She did soon enough, deftly guiding a high, lofted pass from Sam Coffey into the corner of Arizona’s net in the 58th minute.

Coffey’s hard-running work ethic and exceptional talent have stood out since she first stepped foot on Jeffrey Field in August against Stanford. But she single-handedly shaped Friday’s match with a will to win that made her unstoppable. After assisting Schlegel, she burst into the Arizona penalty area and fired a low shot past goalkeeper Hope Hisey into the bottom corner of the net to level the score at two.

Not even Jill Aguilera’s 69th minute goal could stop Coffey, who powered into the penalty area once again and slotted a cool finish past Hisey with two minutes remaining in extra time. With the ball safely in the back of the net, she took a moment to breath as her teammates swarmed her in celebration.

Penn State and Arizona remain deadlocked at 3-3 after 90 minutes, and so overtime began.

After trading shots with the Wildcats for the first eight minutes of the first period, Penn State struck decisively. Turning in midfield, Schlegel lofted a chipped pass directly into the path of Tagliaferri, who fired a pinpoint volley past Hisey to score the golden goal and win the match for Penn State.

Player of the Match

Sam Coffey| Junior|Attacking Midfielder

Coffey was simply unstoppable against the Wildcats, assisting Schlegel’s first goal and scoring two of her own to propel the Nittany Lions to a round of 16 berth. She, Tagliaferri, and Schlegel form the core of an attack that has rescued Penn State in its most desperate moments this season.

What’s Next?

Penn State will face the winner of the second-round match between Stanford and Hofstra Sunday, November 22.