No. 9 Penn State Women’s Soccer Clinches Big Ten Regular-Season Title
For the 20th time in program history, Penn State women’s soccer has been crowned Big Ten regular-season champions. The top seed in the conference was locked up on Sunday afternoon when the team beat Nebraska 3-0 in Lincoln.
Penn State and No. 19 Rutgers were deadlocked for most of the season in a first place tie. However, the Scarlet Knights drew Nebraska earlier in the week before falling to Wisconsin 1-0 on Sunday.
With one game remaining, Penn State’s 8-1-1 (25 points) record is now unassailable. Rutgers is now sitting at 6-2-2, good enough for 20 points. The Scarlet Knights don’t necessarily have second place locked up either, as Wisconsin (19 points) and Ohio State (18 points) are both within striking distance.
Potential Big Ten Tournament Opponents
This season, only four teams will qualify for the Big Ten Tournament. Penn State will play the team that secures the No. 4 spot. As of now, that would be Ohio State. The Buckeyes will play a poor Michigan State side on Saturday, just one hour after the Nittany Lions take the field against Maryland.
Michigan is the other team that could still play its way in. The Wolverines are just one point behind Ohio State and will play Rutgers in an intriguing regular-season finale.
What’s Next: Senior Day And Wildcard Weekend
Before the Big Ten Tournament begins, the Nittany Lions still have work to do to increase their NCAA Tournament stock.
Penn State will conclude its conference slate at noon on Saturday against Maryland. The match will take place at Jeffrey Field, and will be the Nittany Lions’ Senior Day.
Following the contest with the Terrapins, the weekend of April 8-11 will act as the Big Ten “wildcard weekend.” The Nittany Lions will play against one or two conference opponents, but the matches will count as non-conference fixtures.
The following weekend, Penn State will try to win back-to-back Big Ten Tournament titles before the NCAA Tournament begins on April 27 in Cary, North Carolina.
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