Penn State women’s soccer (7-5-2, 3-3-1 Big Ten) fell to No. 18 Washington (8-1-5, 5-0-2 Big Ten) at Jeffrey Field on Thursday night.

The Nittany Lions spent a lot of time on offense but failed to score in a tough loss to the Huskies. Both defenses looked strong throughout the game.

How It Happened

Penn State spent most of the first 10 minutes on offense, but only managed one shot by Aubrey Kulpa. Washington took its first shot off a corner in the 10th minute that Penn State keeper Mackenzie Gress saved.

In the 15th minute, Bella Ayscue fired a shot that Washington keeper Tanner Ijams saved. Washington was awarded a free kick when Kulpa committed the first foul of the game, but the Huskies failed to make anything of it.

In the 18th minute, Penn State midfielder Riley Cross fouled, and the Huskies were awarded a penalty kick. Jadyn Holdenried took the penalty, knocking the ball into the bottom right of the net and putting Washington up 1-0.

Immediately after the goal, Washington was back on offense, taking the ball into the Nittany Lions’ final third. A foul by Amelia White gave the Huskies another free kick, but Penn State was able to defend and start an attack of its own.

The next 20 minutes were back and forth, with neither team in full control. The teams traded free kicks with five fouls between the 33rd and 37th minutes.

White got a yellow card in the 38th minute, which led to a shot by Washington midfielder Lucy Newlin. Gress saved the shot, and Penn State went back on offense, getting a corner kick and a free kick in quick succession. Ayscue fired her second shot of the game off the free kick, but the Huskies blocked it and went back on offense with a goal kick.

Penn State’s Olivia Borgen took her first shot of the game in the final minute of the half, but Ijams made the save. The clock ran out on the first half with the Huskies still up by one.

The second half began like the first, with Penn State starting in control. The Nittany Lions took a corner in the 49th minute that led to an off-target shot by White. Penn State remained in control after the miss, with Hannah Jordan taking one shot and another taken by Lily Burger. Neither shot found the net, and Washington was finally able to get the ball on offense.

Holdenried took her second shot of the game in the 56th minute, but Gress saved it. Washington remained in control of the ball, and Samiah Shell took her first shot of the game, which was blocked.

The Nittany Lions regained control with a corner in the 61st minute that led to a blocked shot taken by Kayleigh Herr. In the 64th minute, they took another corner that Kaitlyn McBean knocked out of bounds, giving possession to the Huskies.

Washington had an opportunity to score in the 71st minute, but Kelsey Branson’s shot was off target. Penn State went back on offense and was awarded a free kick when Newlin fouled. Borgen took her second shot of the game in the 74th minute, but it was wide of the goal.

Immediately following Borgen’s shot, the Huskies went back on the attack. Kalea Eichenberger took her first shot of the game, firing the ball over the goal.

The Nittany Lions and the Huskies battled for control for the next 12 minutes. Neither team threatened to score until Kulpa shot her second of the game off target in the 86th minute. Penn State was given a yellow card in the 89th minute.

The Nittany Lions mounted one final attack as the clock ran down, but failed to find the net. The game ended with the Huskies on top, 1-0.

Takeaways

• Penn State had lots of chances to score in this game, keeping the ball in Washington’s final third for most of the second half. The Nittany Lions took 8 corners and 12 shots but failed to score.
• Despite the loss, the Penn State defense looked strong, allowing the one early goal on just seven shots. The offense is what cost the Nittany Lions the win.

What’s Next?

The Nittany Lions stay at Jeffrey Field to play Oregon at 1 p.m. on Sunday, October 12th. Fans can follow along with the action on BTN+.