Northwestern University Athletics
Northwestern
Penn State
Women's Soccer Falls to Penn State, 3-0
11/8/2001 12:00:00 AM | Women's Soccer
Nov. 8, 2001
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - Northwestern's women's soccer team committed a cardinal sin Thursday morning, scoring on itself in just the fourth minute of its Big Ten Tournament first-round match with Penn State. The Nittany Lions, top seed in the event, took the gift and powered to a 3-0 victory.
Northwestern's four-match win streak was snapped and the Wildcats finish the 2001 season with an 8-10-1 record. Penn State, ranked seventh nationally, improved to 16-3-1 and will move on to Friday's semifinal round against fourth-seeded Ohio State. The Buckeyes were overtime winners against host Purdue, 2-1.
Northwestern held Penn State to just a single goal on Oct. 21, and hadn't allowed a goal since then. But the Nittany Lions got on the board early Thursday, as a seemingly innocent Penn State cross from the right side was deflected into the NU goal by a Wildcat defender just 3:15 into the contest. It ended a shutout streak of 393:30 by Northwestern.
That set the tone for the day. Although Northwestern had its chances, and was only outshot by the Nittany Lions 14-7, it was Penn State's day.
Northwestern's best chance of the first half came when freshman Ashleigh Garmon (Oxnard, Calif./Buena) shook free along the right side and barreled in for a low-angle shot that was stopped by PSU keeper Emily Oleksiuk.
Just moments later, the Nittany Lions were up 2-0, as Heidi Drummond flicked a bouncing free kick from Bonnie Young into the left-hand corner of the Northwestern goal.
With 11:48 left in the game, PSU iced the victory with yet another tally. The Nittany Lions' leading scorer, Christie Welsh, got behind the Northwestern defense. Goalkeeper Susie McCreery (Glenview, Ill./Glenbrook South) made a nice play to angle Welsh off, and the Lion player's shot rang off the post. However, the ball came right back to Welsh, who calmly slid a pass to an onrushing Stephanie Pezzullo. Pezzullo fired it into the upper right corner.
Penn State's three goals matched the most given up by Northwestern this season, and the Nittany Lions were the first team since Michigan on Sept. 28 to score more than once on the Wildcats.
NU had a chance to get on the scoreboard a minute after that goal, as a Penn State handball in the goal area gave the Wildcats a penalty kick. However, Oleksiuk guessed correctly and handled Aileen Guiney's (Naperville, Ill./North) effort to the right side.
The loss ended an 8-10-1 campaign for Northwestern that was remarkable in its feast-or-famine nature. When the Wildcats scored this season they went 8-0-1. When they were shut out, they went 0-10.
Score by Half
#8 Northwestern 0 0 - 0
#1 Penn State 2 1 - 3
Scoring Summary
PSU - Northwestern own goal, 3:15
PSU - Heidi Drummond (Bonnie Young), 38:13
PSU - Stephanie Pezzullo (Christie Welsh), 78:12
Goalkeeper Saves
NU - Susie McCreery, 5
PSU - Emily Oleksiuk, 6
Shots
Penn State 14, NU 7
Corner Kicks
Penn State 3, NU 2
Fouls
Penn State 17, NU 14
Cards
None
Records
Northwestern 8-10-1
Penn State 16-3-1
