Following its No. 1 Big Ten preseason ranking, No. 10 United Soccer Coaches preseason ranking, historical dominance, and roster depth, the expectation for Penn State women’s soccer was excellence. A lack of hardware or a College Cup appearance surprised many, but the Nittany Lions’ 2023 was far from a failure.

Penn State finished the year with an overall record of 16-3-4 and a Big Ten record of 6-1-3, which is good for a fourth-place finish in the conference. A great regular season was followed by a run to the Big Ten semifinal match and the NCAA Elite Eight.  

Games

The Nittany Lions started the regular season strong with a scoreless draw against then-No. 2 UNC. The blue and white followed the game against the Tar Heels by rattling off nine wins in a row, emerging victorious by a combined score of 22-3. The impressive span included a win against No. 16 TCU and three conference matches, but nothing could faze this impressive Nittany Lions squad early in the year.  

Penn State’s first loss of the year didn’t come until the final day of the regular season in a 1-0 fall to Wisconsin with the Big Ten regular-season title on the line. The three points it missed out on were the difference between winning the conference and finishing in fourth, which it eventually did.  

The Nittany Lions bounced back in the first round of the Big Ten Tournament, dominating No. 24 Indiana 3-0. Going into the semifinal round, it felt like the squad could beat anyone in the country, but a well-coached Iowa proved it wrong. It took 110 minutes to find a winner, but eventually, the Hawkeyes eliminated Penn State from the Big Ten Tournament.  

Even with the roadblock at the end of the season, the Nittany Lions received an at-large bid as a two-seed in the NCAA Tournament. Penn State dominated the first two rounds, easing past Central Connecticut State 7-0 and then-No. 23 Santa Clara 2-0 in the Round of 32.  

Facing No. 21 Saint Louis in the round of 16 resulted in one of the most exciting games all year. Kaitlyn MacBean scored two goals in one minute to give the Nittany Lions an early lead. The Billikens wouldn’t go away, though, and fought back with three unanswered goals to take over the game. With three minutes left on the clock, it looked as if the season was over for Penn State until Cori Dyke found Mieke Schiemann in the box for the equalizer. This goal forced extra time and Payton Linnehan found the back of the net in the 98th minute for Penn State to move on.  

Penn State’s final match of the year was an unfortunate loss to top-seeded Clemson on November 25. 

Players

The Nittany Lions also had success in terms of individual accolades, racking up one individual Big Ten award and seeing six of its players on All-Big Ten teams.  

Dyke was the only Penn State player to win an individual award, becoming the first Nittany Lion to be named the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year since 2018. She also made All-Big Ten first team for her excellence throughout the whole season.

Eva Alonso and Katherine Asman were added to the All-Big Ten second team, and Kaitlyn MacBean and Kate Wiesner were included on the All-Big Ten third team.

What’s Next?

Penn State will experience a fair amount of turnover as veteran five-plus-year seniors Asman, Dyke, Linnehan, and Wiesner depleted their eligibility. After a breakout season from MacBean and authority in the offseason transfer portal, the Nittany Lions have nothing to fear.

It won’t be an easy task for head coach Erica Dambach to rebuild the roster back to what it was this season, but if there’s anyone in the country who can do it, it’s her.

While Dambach and the Nittany Lions were knocked out of the NCAA Tournament in the Elite Eight, they’ll eventually turn their focus toward 2024. Penn State, behind its consistent recruiting and excellent player development, should be right back in the mix for a Big Ten title come next fall.