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UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – A pair of second-half goals launched No. 16 Penn State to a 2-0 victory over the University of Iowa soccer team Friday night at Jeffrey Field.
“We asked our team to embrace the moment and compete for 90 minutes,” said UI head coach Dave DiIanni. “We knew that Penn State is a team with many weapons, in particular their front five players.”
After a scoreless first half, the Nittany Lions took control of the game in the second half scoring in the 54th minute off a free kick. Elizabeth Ball fired a header to the back of the net, assisted by Nickolette Driesse.
Penn State’s Frannie Crouse managed to slip a second goal past freshman goalkeeper Claire Graves in the 62nd minute off an assist from Marissa Sheva from six yards out to take a 2-0 lead with less than 30 minutes to play.
“I liked how we defended as a unit in the run of play and building out of pressure getting numbers forward in the attack,” said DiIanni. “We are still making too many mistakes to win games of this magnitude.”
Senior Bri Toelle fired two shots nearly finding the back of the net in the final third, leading Iowa to out-shoot Penn State, 10-8. Graves had two saves in the loss.
“We are building as a team in the right direction and improving every day,” said DiIanni. “We need more from myself to help the kids get over the hump. We will continue to learn from these opportunities.”
The Hawkeyes (6-5-0, 0-3-0) return to action Sunday, facing Ohio State at noon (CT) in Columbus, Ohio.
