Nittany Lions land three 2008 recruits. Two from England. http://gopsusports.cstv.com/sports/w-soccer/psu-w-soccer-body.html Incoming freshman leds Colorado team to U 18 championship. http://gopsusports.cstv.com/sports/w-soccer/spec-rel/072908aaa.html
Penn State Freshmen well represented on the Canadian and U. S. National Teams and in U. S. Youth Soccer National Championships. http://gopsusports.cstv.com/sports/w-soccer/spec-rel/071408aab.html
What about the U17s. I know that Tani Costa (US) and Rachel Lamarre (Canada) have committed to Penn State. They will most likely be playing in the 2008 World Cup in New Zeland in October. Is there any other NT players coming in?
Good news/Bad news for Penn State fans: From what I'm reading from a source who says she/he has accurate information, it appears that Alyssa Naeher and incoming frosh Christine Nairn will be on the U20 WNT for this year's U20 World Cup. I've heard no information on whether they'll be red-shirting, but if the source is correct they at best won't be available after the first two rounds of the NCAA Tournament. It appears Portland will be missing 3 players; North Carolina will be missing 1 and possibly another; and the most any other team will be missing is 1. I was hoping to come to the PSU/Portland game in September, but I'd have to drive 3 hours from Belle Vernon, where I'll be visiting the day before, to get there and then from the game to DC, so it looks like it won't work. Should be a great game!
Aww. It's only about 2 1/2 to DC. that's under 6 hours total driving to see a great game. and it'll be getting pretty close to leafpeeper season. That's some of the prettiest country on earth then. (better book early)
Another PSU '09 recruit with NT experience. From Topdrawersoccer.com: Madlyn Evans Central Midfielder Hometown: Glenside, PA Graduation Year: 2009 Club Name: FC Bucks U17 WNT RI 91 ODP EPA 91 ODP adidas ESP All-Star
A Nicole Lee Taylor is still listed in the Penn State student directory. She is not listed on the roster, but a google search comes up with a profile for Nicole that lists her as a Sophmore. If she left the team it must be recently. She is not listed as a transfer on Soccer Buzz. There have been quite a few defections recently. Ali Long and Kate Milstead last year. Bianca D'Agostino this year. Looking at teh Soccer Buzz list of transfers, there is a lot of movement among some high profile teams.
The future looks great for Penn State. There may have been a few bumps in the road, but good recruiting generally takes care of the problems and it seems that there is some really good recruiting going on here.
Alanna Pawlowski is not on the roster either. She played in goal during the spring season. She was a freshman last year and is from Arizona. This would leave two incoming freshmen as backups to Naeher and one of them will be a starter for B10s and NCAAs, if they get there. PSU always has a lot of trouble in the B10 tournament to begin with. Lexi Marton is on the roster, but curiously, does not have a number assigned. Any significance to that? Is she taking a redshirt to practice with the Canadian U-20 team? Nikki Watts, one of two incoming players from England, is listed as a Junior. PSU is ranked ninth in NSCAA pre season poll.
80th minute of the PSU/William & Mary game. Several freshman players in -- but no Christine Nairn. Any idea what's up? See she played for the u20's in England at the end of June...
I didn't see the Canadian national defender freshman, Marton, in there either. Are they just joining the team, injured, or taking red shirts for national commitments. Good showing by the PSU side.
Those who were there, how did the Lions look against W&M? I cover Illinois, and they had a good match at Missouri (2-1 OT) to start off their season. Looking forward to seeing the matchup in Champaign this season. Who knows...it might decide the Big Ten title.
GoPSUsports write up on the William and Mary match. http://gopsusports.cstv.com/sports/w-soccer/recaps/082308aaa.html
PSU beat Rutgers 1-0 in OT. The winning goal was scored by Nikki Watts. Rutgers outshot PSU 22-12 and was the more agressive team; however, Naeher only had 4 saves. Lots of shots but not on goal. Big East teams tend to get up for matches with Penn State.
Penn State beat Bucknell 4-2 today. PSU was the agressor offensively and outshot Bucknell; however, Bucknell twice got behind PSU's defense for easy goals. Naeher made a couple of other nice saves to preserve the victory.
PSU falls 1-0 to JMU Thursday evening. Now 5-3 on season, with some tough non-conference matches ahead (Notre Dame, Portland). This could easily drop them from the top 25 (30?) by Tuesday. Anyone see the match on TV? Reports? Next up: #1 ND in Happy Valley on Sunday.
Wow...looking more and more like the Big Ten will be wide open this year. This doesn't appear to be your older sibling's Penn State team.
Here's the box score. You won't win too many games only getting one shot on frame, as the Lady Lions did last night.
They're without the services of two of their top '08 recruits. A price that is paid now and then when you bring on NT talent. I guess the good news is that next year they'd benefit from both the '08s and incoming '09s. There's a lot of season left.
Ah...that's right. Illinois has a similar situation with the keeper they recruited from Canada. She's training with their U-20 team, and won't enroll until January. As a result, there's no depth at keeper this season. There certainly is a lot of season left...really looking forward to the match on 10/24. Could be for the Big Ten title.