Northwestern University Athletics
Northwestern
Penn State
Penn State Wins Wild Affair, 3-1
9/20/2002 12:00:00 AM | Women's Soccer
Sept. 20, 2002
EVANSTON, Ill. - In a match that went right down to the wire, Penn State used goals early and late to escape with a 3-1 victory over Northwestern at Lakeside Field Friday afternoon.
The match was the Big Ten opener for both teams. The Nittany Lions are the four-time defending conference champion and entered Friday's match ranked 12th in the latest NSCAA national poll.
Penn State (4-1-1) quickly asserted themselves in this match, jumping all over the youthful Wildcats squad. The result was a goal just 2:42 in, when Amanda Lentz took a free kick at just about midfield that bounced in the goal area and went over Northwestern goalkeeper Susie McCreery (Glenview, Ill./Glenbrook South) into the goal.
Joanna Lohman added to PSU's lead in the 22nd minute, taking a cross from Christie Welsh and pushing it past McCreery into the corner. The half ended with the Nittany Lions up, 2-0.
Northwestern (2-3-1) slowly began to find their legs, and actually held the play most of the second half. That paid off in the 72nd minute, when a corner kick created a scramble in front of the goal. Ashleigh Garmon (Oxnard, Calif./Buena) put a shot on goal that appeared to be blocked by a Penn State defender, but the linesman ruled the ball over the goalline and the score was allowed. Assists were credited to Molly Greene (Lake Forest, Ill./Lake Forest) and Aileen Guiney (Naperville, Ill./North).
That set up a furious finish, which reached its pinnacle with less than two minutes to play. Northwestern sent a free kick into the box, but Penn State cleared the ball and was able to counter against the attacking Wildcats. Welsh, last year's Hermann Award winner as National Player of the Year, was sent on a breakaway, beat McCreery, and slotted home the insurance tally with just 1:09 left in the match.
Northwestern is back in action Sunday afternoon, hosting Ohio State in another Big Ten match at 1 p.m.
GAME SUMMARY
Score by Half
Penn State (4-1-1, 1-0-0) 2 1 - 3
Northwestern (2-3-1, 0-1-0) 0 1 - 1
Scoring Summary
PSU - Amanda Lentz (unassisted), 2:42; PSU - Joanna Lohman (Christie Welsh), 21:14; NU - Ashleigh Garmon (Molly Greene, Aileen Guiney), 71:19; PSU - Welsh (unassisted), 88:51.
Shots: Penn State 9, NU 5.
Corner Kicks: Penn State 6, NU 5.
Saves: NU - Susie McCreery, 5; PSU - Amanda Brown, 0.
