No. 20 Penn State Women’s Soccer Defeats Minnesota 3-2 In Thriller
No. 20 Penn State women’s soccer (11-3-2, 5-2-1 Big Ten) defeated Minnesota (9-3-3, 3-3-2 Big Ten) 3-2 on Sunday afternoon.
After scoring in the first minute of the match, Penn State went down in the first half. A gritty performance from the Nittany Lions led to their 11th win of the season and a much-needed one for the Big Ten rankings.
How It Happened
The final regular season home match for Penn State got off to a rapid start as the Nittany Lions scored within the first minute. Julia Raich found Bella Ayscue on the left side, leading to a cross into the box from Ayscue. After the ball bounced around between Penn State and Minnesota, Kaelyn Wolfe poked it into the back of the net for the first score of the game.
Penn State put the pressure on Minnesota early. Julia Raich and Kaelyn Wolfe connected again on a pass in the third minute, but no shot was attempted.
After an intense first five minutes for the Nittany Lions, Minnesota started to string together passes and get shots off, testing Penn State. A Golden Gophers corner kick found Minnesota’s Khyah Harper, who scored on the volley. The ball snuck past goalkeeper Mackenzie Gress to tie the match.
A minute later, Ayscue unleashed a shot from outside of the box that narrowly missed the right side of the net. Quickly afterward in the 15th minute, Minnesota’s Sophia Romine uncorked a booming 25-yard shot that easily beat Gress to give Minnesota the lead.
A short two minutes afterward, Jordan Fusco linked with Kaitlyn MacBean for a shot from the left side that skimmed right past the net after a deflection. The Nittany Lions almost reversed the game on the Golden Gophers with an equalizer of their own.
In the 24th minute, the Nittany Lions won a free kick on the deep right side after a foul on Kaelyn Wolfe. Fusco’s cross met MacBean’s head, but the shot wavered off target for a Minnesota goal kick.
A Minnesota corner kick danced around Penn State defenders before finding Romine at the edge of the box. Romine tested Gress again, but Gress secured the ball after a slight bobble.
Thirty minutes into the match, Raich funneled a through ball to MacBean that caught the Minnesota defense completely off guard. MacBean controlled the ball, successfully evading the last Golden Gopher defender and striking it past the keeper. The Nittany Lions found their equalizer with 15 minutes left in the first half.
Besides a late Penn State corner kick, the remainder of the first half was relatively calm compared to the highly intense first 30 minutes. Both teams went into halftime deadlocked.
After a slow start to the second half, Minnesota started to open the game up and get deflections off of the Nittany Lions for multiple throw-ins. Minnesota’s Sophia Boman got a long-distance shot off, trying to match Romine’s goal from earlier in the game. Gress calmly secured the ball under her arms.
Another Minnesota shot from outside of the box, this time from Caroline Birdsell, required Gress to quickly move to the right side of the net to complete the save. The Golden Gophers sparked a counterattack after Gress kicked the ball away, shooting right at Gress. The Penn State keeper defended her near post strongly, deflecting the ball for a corner kick with her shins. Minnesota shot an off-target header on the corner.
In the 66th minute, Minnesota got another shot off, but it trailed heavily outside of the net. Minnesota has controlled the second half, and the Nittany Lions failed to spark any offensive chances to get the go-ahead goal.
With 16 minutes remaining in the match, the Nittany Lions won a corner kick. The ball found midfielder Molly Martin at the edge of the box, who put her laces through the ball towards the bottom left corner of the net. Minnesota keeper Sarah Martin got down quickly to save the go-ahead goal from going in.
In the 81st minute, Fusco led an attack all the way down the left side and crossed an amazing ball to Olivia Damico. Damico headed the ball powerfully into the top right corner of the net to put the Nittany Lions on top with less than ten minutes left to play.
A Golden Gopher corner kick tested Gress once again, but Gress stood strong to take control of the ball and slow the game down as Minnesota started to show desperation in their attack.
Minnesota’s final cross into the box was safely collected by Gress. Gress held onto the ball to run out the remaining five seconds on the clock, closing out the game.
Takeaways
- Penn State registered an incredibly gutsy win after going down 2-1 in the first half. It seemed like the Nittany Lions could not pierce the stout Minnesota defense throughout the whole second half, but persistence and grit led to a much-needed win.
- Although the Nittany Lions are ranked 20th in the nation, they haven’t performed as well in Big Ten play compared to overall competition. With their last three games being against the No. 2, No. 1, and No. 6 teams in the Big Ten, respectively, the Nittany Lions cannot afford to drop points if they want to be in a good position going into the Big Ten Tournament.
- Elle Kershner’s movement down the left wing was pivotal to tilting the momentum in Penn State’s favor in the second half. Although she did not register a goal or assist, her role was key to the Nittany Lions’ close win.
What’s Next?
The Nittany Lions begin a three-game road trip to close out the regular season in Los Angeles to take on UCLA. The match is slated for a 10:30 p.m. kickoff on Thursday, October 17.
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