Penn State women’s lacrosse takes a controlling win over Pitt
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – In what was the Nittany Lions and Pitt Panthers first ever matchup in women's lacrosse, Penn State dominated and took the win by a final score of 15-7.
On a beautiful day in State College, Kristin O’Neill wasted no time scoring a pair of goals within nine seconds of each other with 11:29 remaining in the first quarter.
When asked about her early start O’Neill stated, “that was a big focus for us this week, not starting slow and coming out how we know we can.”
Pitt had a quick response scoring a pair of goals of its own to tie the game at two with 9:40 remaining in the first quarter.
Missy Doherty was forced to call a timeout with 7:42 remaining in the first quarter as Pitt’s offense seemed to be too much for the Nittany Lions defense as the Panthers took a 3-2 lead.
Penn State's ball movement proved to be too much for the Panthers as the Nittany Lions were able to score right in front of the crease to give the Lions a 4-3 lead with 2:24 remaining in the first quarter.
Penn State held a 4-3 lead at the end of a quarter that saw three lead changes and explosive offenses from both teams.
O’Neill netted her hattrick goal with 12:51 left in the second quarter, forcing Pitt’s head coach Emily Boissonneault to use her first timeout of the game.
The ball movement and off-ball cuts seemed to be too much for the Panthers’ defense as Taylor Regan gave the Nittany Lions a 7-3 lead with 11:28 remaining in the second quarter.
Ashley Bowan kept the Panthers off the board and held a four-goal lead as she stopped the Pitt shot on the crease.
On Bowan, “It’s hard for any freshman to come in and be a starter especially goalkeepers when the game happens so fast you have to be ready for faster shots,” Doherty said.
The first penalty of the game was called on Penn State’s Sammy Dubcak for cross checking, giving Pitt a man-up advantage which it took advantage of, cutting the Lions lead to 9-4.
With time winding down in the first half, Penn State’s Meghan Murray scored off the free position for her second goal of the day and 20th goal of the season.
After a quiet quarter for Pitt’s offense, the Panthers were able to get on the board and trailed the Nittany Lions 11-5 heading into halftime.
Coming out of the halftime break, Penn State increased its lead to seven thanks to a long-range goal from Murray, her third of the game.
With the Nittany Lions dictating the pace of the game and controlling the scoreboard, there were only three goals scored in the third quarter following an action packed 16 goal first half.
Despite what the scoreboard says, Pitt’s goaltender Paulina Difatta had a great performance, she just needed more support from the defense in front of her.
With 8:38 remaining in the fourth quarter, Pitt went back to the man up advantage where it was unable to get any offensive momentum and was held off the scoreboard.
Pitt got back on the scoreboard for the first time since 0:18 left in the second quarter, thanks to Kate Elam.
The second half consisted of Penn State locking down defensively and holding the Pitt Panthers to only two goals in the entire second half.
When asked about playing Pitt for the first time in program history, O’Neill said, “it’s always awesome playing an in-state team, and every game that’s left for us is super important.
Penn State looks to continue momentum as the Nittany Lions host the Michigan Wolverines on Saturday, April 16, which is the Nittany Lions senior night.
James Winiarski is a third-year majoring in communications. To contact him, email him at jaw6526@psu.edu
