‘Everyone is so team focused,’ Penn State senior Mackenzie Gress on 6-0 win against Brown: soccer
Penn State were redeemed in their game against Brown on Sunday. Photo: Penn State Athletics
The Nittany Lions cruised past Brown 6-0 on Sunday, Aug. 30 while recording their second consecutive shutout at home.
Freshman Nicole Crane stole the spotlight on the field, scoring three goals for her first collegiate hat trick. But for Crane, the significance of the afternoon went beyond the scoresheet.
“It felt good to be out there,” Crane said. “I feel like last season, I missed out from being in the group. So I'm always happy to be healthy and trying to, like, being able to play with these guys.”
The victory moved Penn State to 2-1-1 on the season, while Brown fell to 2-2-0.
The Nittany Lions entered Sunday coming off a 5-0 win over Bucknell, while Brown arrived in Happy Valley after a 1-0 victory over UConn.
The Bears had been aggressive offensively to begin the season, outshooting their opponents 44-17 through their first three matches. Penn State's defense, however, managed to keep Brown off the scoreboard for all 90 minutes.
The afternoon gave Penn State a chance to celebrate six seniors before the match: Lily Boyden, Mackenzie Gress, Kayleigh Herr, Paige Kalal, Molly Martin and Kaelyn Wolfe.
For keeper Gress, Sunday's Senior Day was an opportunity to reflect on five years in Happy Valley while helping the next group of Nittany Lions find their footing.
“It's everything to me,” Gress said. “I've learned so many lessons in all of my five years. I think now being able to kind of like transfer all of my knowledge and all of my experience onto young players is so cool because they really want it. Everyone is so team focused on this team. I think that's really gonna be our biggest thing that's gonna get us the most success.”
The matchup also gave the Nittany Lions a chance to rewrite their history against Brown.
The Bears had won the only previous meeting, taking a 1-0 overtime victory at the 2008 UConn Classic.
With the seniors honored and the home crowd behind them, Penn State turned the afternoon into a celebration from start to finish.
Highlights:
The match began with neither team willing to give an inch.
Four fouls were called within the opening four minutes as both teams played physically from the start. Brown came out aggressively, but Penn State's defense held firm and kept the Bears from turning their early pressure into dangerous chances.
The Nittany Lions gradually found their footing and began spending more time in Brown's half.
Penn State created several opportunities but struggled to find the finish. Kalal forced Brown goalkeeper Gurleen Toor into a save before Toor denied Kayleigh Herr on a corner kick that nearly found the back of the net.
The Nittany Lions continued to apply pressure, and a foul inside the box in the 27th minute gave Penn State a penalty kick. The opportunity came after Aubrey Kulpa sent a cross into the box.
Bella Ayscue stepped up and sent the ball into the bottom-left corner, putting Penn State ahead 1-0.
Penn State Kaelyn Wolfe celebrates during the Nittany Lions game against Brown. Photo: Penn State Athletics
The goal opened the door for the Nittany Lions.
In the 37th minute, freshman Olivia Robinson found Crane, who fired a right-footed shot into the bottom center of the net for her first collegiate goal.
Crane's breakthrough was only the beginning. Three minutes later, Ayscue delivered a free kick into the box, where Crane rose for a header and found the back of the net for her second goal of the afternoon. Penn State carried a 3-0 advantage into halftime.
Brown came out attacking to start the second half, but Penn State weathered the pressure and soon found another breakthrough.
In the 54th minute, Kulpa set up freshman Ellie Kocher, who fired a right-footed shot into the bottom-left corner for her first collegiate goal, extending Penn State's lead to 4-0.
Brown continued to push forward, but the Nittany Lion defense repeatedly shut down its opportunities.
“A shutout against a really good Brown team. I'm unbelievably proud,” head coach Erica Dambach said. “We're running a lot of people through right now, too. And that's what's exciting is that we're able to make some changes, take some minutes off of players and that's really important at this point in the season.”
Penn State struck again in the 75th minute when Paige Pasinski found Lilly Burger, who placed her shot into the bottom-right corner to make it 5-0.
Lily Selvy entered in goal for Penn State, replacing redshirt senior Mackenzie Gress as the Nittany Lions continued to protect their shutout.
Twenty seconds later, Crane completed her hat trick.
Wolfe and Marthe Hens combined to set up Crane, who used her left foot to find the bottom-left corner and make it 6-0.
“These freshmen are animals,” Dambach said. “They are on both sides of the ball. Their work rate is exceptional; they're soaking it in from their seniors, and I couldn't ask for anything more out of this group right now. They fit right into the culture of this group.”
Brown continued to search for an opening, but Penn State's defense held firm through the final whistle.
Penn State returns to Jeffrey Field Thursday to face Virginia Tech, while Brown travels to take on UMass later that day.
*Luci Palacios is a student-intern at Penn State University.
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