The Hoosiers were tasked with battling a Nittany Lion team that hadn’t lost since the opening weekend of Big Ten play.
Going up against a strong Penn State attack, senior goalkeeper Sarah Stone and the IU defense were shelled with 35 shots from Penn State as IU fell 4-0.
“They’re just a very good possession team,” IU Coach Amy Berbary said. “They’re very athletic and have some great players. We knew that they were going to have the ball the majority of the time.”
The Nittany Lions were able to start things off as early as the sixth minute when senior forward Raquel Rodriquez tapped in a rebound past Stone for the first score of the game. Later in the first half senior forward Mallory Weber drove a shot past Stone for Weber’s seventh goal of the season.
As IU was trying to establish momentum after halftime, Penn State was able to put the game out of reach in the 46th minute. Sophomore midfielder Emily Ogle played a ball to the feet of sophomore forward Megan Schafer, and Schafer scored.
The Nittany Lions scored once more during the game, when sophomore defender Elizabeth Bell scored her first career goal in the penalty area.
“The kids on our team just have to continue to learn,” Berbary said. “A lot of the things that Penn State’s players were doing today are things that we’re asking our kids to do. We’re still very young, being put in that position, a lot of our kids came off the bench today and played pretty well.”
In a team of young players, Stone has been called upon to make saves at critical moments. On Sunday, Stone saved a season high 12 shots.
“She is such a great leader,” Berbary. “I know that word gets thrown around a lot, but she could be screaming at people. She is one of the most humble players, I can’t say enough about her.”
With losses to No. 23 Rutgers and No. 11 Penn State this weekend, IU fell to 3-7-5 overall and 0-4-3 in Big Ten play.
“For our older players, they have four guaranteed games left,” Berbary said. “Not having won at home yet, that’s going to drive us a little bit. We’re excited to get back in front of our fans on Thursday and just forward as we try to get a result.”
IU returns to action at home Thursday against Maryland.
