Penn State women’s soccer team blanks Boston University

When brackets were announced for the NCAA Tournament, the Penn State women’s soccer team and supporters gathered together at a watch party, feverishly cheered when the Nittany Lions were named a No. 1 seed.

Moments later, a subtle hint of jeers could be heard. A few spaces below the Nittany Lions, a familiar school was revealed: Ohio State.

Despite meeting yearly in the regular season — and sometimes in the Big Ten Tournament — the Nittany Lions and Buckeyes have never faced each other in the NCAA Tournament.

That will change Sunday.

Two first-half goals and four in the second gave Penn State the cushion it needed as the Nittany Lions (18-3-2) thumped Boston University (13-6-3) 6-0 on Friday night at Jeffrey Field in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.

Hours earlier, the Buckeyes (13-6-3) defeated Virginia Tech 1-0.

The two sides will meet at 1 p.m. at Jeffrey Field — something the Nittany Lions are excited to see.

Before looking toward a matchup with the Buckeyes, Penn State had to take care of Boston, a side that was in fine form. The Terriers won their last eight games, and in each they tallied clean sheets.

The Terriers kept things tight in the opening minutes, holding the ball a bit in the midfield and doing well to clear Penn State’s offensive rush.

“We knew Penn State had a potent attack,” Terriers coach Nancy Feldman said. “I thought our kids played with good discipline. ... It would have been the start I would have tried to draw up.”

It only lasted so long.

With 17 minutes left in the first half, Frannie Crouse took it down the left flank, cut inside, fired off a shot, and it was deflected into goal.

After tallying an assist in Penn State’s first round win over Albany, Crouse was happy to get a goal.

And so was her coach.

“Frannie Crouse just decided that it was our turn to score,” Walsh said with a laugh. “She does what she does.”

As the first half wound to a close, it appeared that Penn State would take a one-goal lead into the break.

But at the 43:28 mark, Nickolette Driesse pushed the lead to two. With a Terrier defender closing in, Driesse attacked the ball on the right side of the box, put her foot through it, and sailed a screamer into the net’s left corner.

Renowned soccer announcer Ian Darke would have called it “an absolute firecracker.”

“As soon as I saw a girl coming, I figured I’d take a chance,” Driesse said. “I ripped it as hard as I can, and it paid off.”

Penn State carried the momentum, and it extended into the final 45 minutes.

Megan Schafer’s goal in the 55th minute, followed by Charlotte Williams’ in the 61st and Elizabeth Ball’s in the 83rd put things to rest.

For good measure, Penn State added a sixth when Haleigh Echard scored, assisted by former State College standout Megan Ritchey. It was Ritchey’s second assist of the night.

From Boston’s perspective, it was nearly impossible to defend the Nittany Lions with the way it was playing.

The Terriers came out of the break, down a pair of goals, looking to cut the deficit to one. They pushed players forward, trying to maintain possession and be on the offensive.

Boston got burned, though, as it was unable to score and left gaps open for Penn State to exploit.

But Feldman wouldn’t have played it any other way.

“You can play the game to lose by a goal or two, or play the game,” the coach said. “I’m not going to go back into our 18 and defend with 11 players.”

As its second-half dismantling wrapped things up, Penn State now has a short window to prepare for its conference foes.

That Big Ten familiarity should serve the Nittany Lions well. Penn State defeated Ohio State in Columbus 2-1 on Oct. 24.

History is also on the Nittany Lions’ side. Penn State is 3-0 against Big Ten opponents in the NCAA Tournament, excluding Rutgers and Maryland — two teams Penn State played when they were in different conferences.

Plus, the Nittany Lions are now 35-6-1 at Jeffrey Field in the NCAA Tournament.

Still, Walsh and the Nittany Lions won’t be thinking about what happened in past years — just like they didn’t look past the Terriers.

“It’s NCAA Tournament time,” Walsh said. “You never know what to expect.”

This story was originally published November 20, 2015 at 8:52 PM with the headline "Penn State women’s soccer team blanks Boston University."