Penn State women’s soccer (6-1-1) topped Michigan (3-3-2) 4-1 at Jeffrey Field on Sunday afternoon.

After falling behind in the 12th minute, Sam Coffey led the Nittany Lions in an offensive explosion. The senior capped off her performance with a goal and two assists.

How It Happened

Michigan jumped on Penn State early in the match, threatening Kat Asman’s goal in the first 10 minutes while the Nittany Lions looked like a team feeling the effects of Thursday’s win.

Penn State began to grow into the game, but in the 12th minute Michigan’s Lily Farkas hit an opportune strike that hit the back of the net from distance.

11' | 1-0, U-M |Farkas with that long shot into the upper left corner!!#GoBlue | #RaiseIt pic.twitter.com/M8AsOUbuDC

— Michigan Women’s Soccer (@umichwsoccer) March 21, 2021

Farkas’ goal immediately woke the Nittany Lions up, who responded 32 seconds later when Penn State earned a penalty. Sam Coffey made no mistake, cooling slotting the ball into the right corner of the net.

@sscofff pic.twitter.com/xfTqELeMtl

— Penn State Women’s Soccer (@PennStateWSOC) March 21, 2021

The Nittany Lions began to control the game on both sides of the ball, and Michigan’s chances became few and far between.

Erica Dambach’s team began to show that they are a team with momentum. Coffey went from scorer to provider with a deadly run down the left flank. She crossed the ball across the face of the goal, and Ally Schlegel finished to give the Nittany Lions their first lead of the afternoon.

Ally Schlegel

Nuff said. pic.twitter.com/iMa3N4X4ce

— Penn State Women’s Soccer (@PennStateWSOC) March 21, 2021

Michigan went in search of an equalizer, but in doing so stretched its backline. Schlegel and Frankie Tagliaferri both challenged Hillary Beall’s net, but Michigan were able to keep the hungry Penn State attack at bay until the 30th minute.

Coffey found Peyton Linnehan on the run following a string of Michigan possession. Linnehan stayed onside, and curled it past Beall for the 3-1 lead.

Linnehan pic.twitter.com/5BheRgC4K7

— Penn State Women’s Soccer (@PennStateWSOC) March 21, 2021

It was clear that the Wolverines weren’t going away from the beginning of the second period. A couple of early chances even saw the ball go in the back of the net, but Michigan’s attacker was coming back from an offside position.

Against any other opponent, Michigan would have fancied a comeback with the way they played. However, it became apparent that Penn State was able to flex more star power than the Wolverines.

Frankie Tagliaferri joined the fun in the middle of the second half to prevent further Michigan progress. The senior flicked the ball over a Michigan defender and split the defense, finding Linnehan for the finish. Linnehan guided it past Beall for a fourth for the Nittany Lions.

The offense was the reason for the lead, but Asman soon became the reason the Nittany Lions kept it. Penn State’s goalkeeper made a series of crucial saves following Linnehan’s goal.

57' | Nice save by Kat Asman to keep it 3-1 Nittany Lions! pic.twitter.com/sVfSdmQ7BP

— Penn State Women’s Soccer (@PennStateWSOC) March 21, 2021

With just 20 minutes remaining, Michigan had yet another chance to cut the lead to two when Asman bobbled a long range shot. The follow up was cleared off the line by a last chance dive from freshman defender Ellie Wheeler.

Penn State killed off any potential comeback attempts in the final minutes of the game, and advanced to seven games unbeaten with the 4-1 win.

Woman Of The Match

Sam Coffey| Senior |Forward

Once again, Sam Coffey is the highlight on a team of highlights. The senior was instrumental on Sunday, either scoring or assisting on three of the four Penn State goals. Coffey’s play this year is putting her in contention to be the first Penn Stater since Rocky Rodriguez in 2015 to win the MAC Hermann Trophy.

What’s Next

Penn State heads to Iowa City on Thursday for a fixture against the Iowa Hawkeyes. Kickoff time is TBD, but the match will be streamed on BTN+.