Penn State women’s soccer cruises past Alabama State in the first round of NCAA Tournament
Penn State women’s soccer handily advanced past Alabama State, 5-0, in the first round of the NCAA Tournament on Wednesday night in Cary, North Carolina, thanks to a two-goal performance from Frankie Tagliaferri and Payton Linnehan’s four-point night.
Tagliaferri set the tone from the opening kickoff with her relentless pressure, and it was immediately apparent the Nittany Lions had no reluctance in attacking the Hornets’ defense. She scored at the 17:48 mark off an assist from Linnehan, and then again around the 25 minute mark, with Linnehan and Ally Schlegel registering assists on the play.
After only scoring three goals throughout the first nine games of the season, Tagliaferri now has six in her past five matches.
“Obviously I wouldn’t get the opportunities I do without the team being unselfish or making huge plays so obviously I credit everything to the team,” Tagliaferri said. “But of course, having repetition each practice and this year we really focused on making every practice count and having purpose with every touch we have, every shot we have, every practice and time we have on the field together.”
They didn’t stop their onward push throughout the first half, even after commanding a 2-0 lead, and were able to tally on two extra goals before the half concluded. Linnehan put one past Alabama State goalkeeper Madison Roop — just over two minutes after Tagliaferri’s second goal — with Sam Coffey earning the assist. Midfielder Olivia Damico scored from Elle Kershner at 32 minutes to put the Nittany Lions up 4-0.
Penn State continued its offensive explosion throughout the second half, producing 10 straight shots in a 13-minute span before the Hornets allowed an own goal at 73:30 of the match to put the icing on the cake in the Nittany Lions’ dominant five-goal victory.
Coach Erica Dambach is no stranger to big-environment and high-pressure matches — having won the NCAA Tournament with Penn State in 2015 — and she trusts her team’s ability to handle the pressure of playing in win-or-go-home games.
“This team has been really anxious to get back on the field after the Iowa loss,” Dambach said. “It has trained well and the mentality has been good and to be honest I didn’t have any real concerns about what it was going to feel like tonight. I knew the energy was there and they were in the right mindset going into tonight’s game.”
Penn State goalkeeper Katherine Asman had about as effortless of a night as she’s had all season, thanks in large part to the Nittany Lions possessing the ball for a majority of the game and stellar defense from the back line. Her only save of the night came eight minutes into the second half, as Alabama State only totaled four shots overall and had zero corner opportunities.
Roop, a freshman playing in her first NCAA Tournament game, didn’t shine like she normally did all season for the Hornets, allowing five goals while making 11 saves. Granted, Penn State didn’t give her much of a chance, generating 35 shots and 15 on goal.
Post-match, Dambach immediately credited Roop for hanging tough, and believes she has a very bright future ahead of her with the Hornets.
“I thought that Alabama State battled and I thought their goalkeeper was exceptional,” Dambach said. “Right off the bat in the first five minutes of the game, she made three big saves and really did a nice job for that team tonight.”
Penn State is now set to play No. 16 Vanderbilt in the second round of the tournament at 3 p.m. Saturday. The game’s live stream and live stats will be available on NCAA.com.