Penn State field hockey (6-8, 2-5 Big Ten) was defeated by Indiana (7-7, 2-3) 3-1 Sunday morning in a Big Ten matchup.

The Hoosiers outplayed the Nittany Lions in the second half and spoiled the blue and white’s senior day celebration.

How It Happened

The Nittany Lions opened their senior day game with the ball and launched it into Indiana territory. They established an offense quickly off the dumped ball, but for the following minutes, possession bounced between teams in the middle of the field.

Four minutes into the quarter, Senior, Aubrey Semler, was fouled in the shooting circle and was awarded a penalty corner. They weren’t able to capitalize, but following the corner, Sophia Manning dribbled around to set up Ella Jennes for a shot that Indiana’s keeper, Sadie Canelli, blocked.

The pressure didn’t stop there. Following a forced turnover, Semler dished a ball a few feet in front of the goal, and Natalie Freeman was able to tip it into the net for Penn State’s first goal just six minutes into the game.

Following the goal, Sophomore forward, Katelyn Strawser, intercepted a pass deep into Indiana territory and fired a shot off that was body-saved by Canelli.

Indiana fired back when Ines Garcia Prado intercepted a pass in their own territory and dribbled it all the way down to the other side of the field. Prado dribbled past numerous Penn State defenders and scored, unassisted, to tie the game at one apiece.

The Nittany Lions got two penalty corners late in the first quarter that they weren’t able to score off of.

Just over four minutes into the second frame, Indiana received their first penalty corner after a brilliant couple of passes from their midfielders. Their first attempt was unsuccessful, but they received another opportunity, which also didn’t pan out.

Halfway through the frame, Indiana found themselves in a fast break with two trailing Penn State defenders. Hoosier forward, Celia Arroyo Cabezudo, got her shot past Penn State’s keeper, Aby Deverka, but Cooper Cutchins’ hustle and diving stick saved the goal. Cutchins trailed the defender for most of the fast break, but she sprinted right to the goal as a second line of defense, which proved useful.

With three minutes remaining, the Nittany Lions had a penalty corner against only three Indiana defenders and Canelli. Morgan Snyder ripped a shot, but Canelli laid out for the diving save. The first half came to a close with a score of 1-1.

Just two and a half minutes into second-half play, Sophia Mannino was given a green card for a slide tackle, and Penn State was playing a man-down. However, the Hoosiers weren’t able to get any offensive production despite their advantage.

With eight minutes remaining in the third, Penn State had key defensive plays during Indiana’s two penalty corners. Indiana was able to fire off four shots in under a minute of play, and Deverka came up with two saves.

For most of the third frame, play occurred on Penn State’s half of the field. Deverka came up with a few big saves late in the quarter, but the defense wasn’t able to flip the field. Just a minute after Deverka saved a shot on goal, Hoosiers’ Prado found the ball just a few feet in front of the net and was able to dribble around Deverka for Indiana’s second goal of the game.

Indiana closed out the third frame with 16 shots and 11 of them on goal. They had two goals to show for it. Indiana didn’t let up in the fourth. Three minutes into play, they got a penalty corner, and after a between-the-legs pass, Mijntje Hagen fired a shot that Charlotte Glasper tipped into the goal for Indiana’s third of the game.

The Nittany Lions did their best to fight back. Almost halfway through the quarter, they received a penalty corner, and Ella Jennes flung a shot that was barely saved by Canelli’s blocker.

They controlled more of this quarter than the previous one and kept up offensive pressure with a few shots on goal. Unfortunately, it wasn’t enough as Indiana successfully drained the clock in the remaining minutes.

Takeaways

• Penn State forced Indiana to turn the ball over in the middle of the field, which led to plenty of offensive opportunities in the first half.
• Aby Deverka suppressed the Hoosier offense as best as she could in the first half. Indiana fired off six shots with only one goal to show for it. She finished the game with seven saves
• Cooper Cutchins hustled her way into a big-time save to keep the game tied in the remaining minutes of the first half.

What’s Next

Penn State Field Hockey will travel to Lock Haven, Pa., later this week for an out-of-conference matchup against the Lock Haven Bald Eagles at 3 p.m. on Friday, October 24th. The game will be available on BTN+.