Blue White Illustrated

Coach Erica Dambach earned her 200th victory at Penn State when the 14th-ranked Nittany Lions defeated Bowling Green, 4-1, Nov. 9 in the first round of the NCAA Women's Soccer Tournament. After- ward, Dambach re- flected on the significance of the milestone, but she was mostly interested in going after win No. 201. "It means I'm old," she joked. "I've been here for 12 years, and I've surrounded myself with amazing people, amazing staff and play- ers. Each one of these wins is special, par- ticularly tonight. Every time you get an NCAA tournament win, it's important. I'm just really thankful for the people I've been around during my time here." Dambach, a Huntingdon Valley, Pa., native, attended William & Mary and has coached at Bucknell, Dartmouth, Lehigh, Florida State and Harvard, along with a stint as head coach of the U.S. Under-17 team. She took over Penn State's pro- gram in 2007 and has led the Nittany Lions to 10 Big Ten regular-season championships, 12 NCAA tournament appearances and a national title in 2015. Her 2018 team claimed the Big Ten regular-season crown with a 9-2-0 con- ference record and reached the title game of the league tournament. The Nittany Lions lost that game to Min- nesota, 5-4 on penalty kicks after a 0-0 draw in regulation, on Nov. 4, but they rebounded in their NCAA tournament opener. Seniors Emily Ogle, Alina Ortega Jurado, Marissa Sheva and Charlotte Williams were playing their final game at Jeffrey Field, and all scored goals in the victory over Bowling Green, cham- pion of the Mid-American Conference. "It's so appropriate for this class," Dambach said. "These guys wear their hearts on their sleeves, and I want the world for them. I'm so happy to be able to continue on and get another week with these guys." Williams helped ignite Penn State of- fensively in the first half, as she con- nected on a shot outside the box to put her team up 1-0 in the 10th minute. "Anytime you step on Jeffrey Field, it's one of those things that's hard to put into words," she said. "Being our last game on Jeffrey and getting a win in the tournament, it's amazing. It was a great team win." Williams later put a well-placed cross in the box that was finished by Ortega Ju- rado. It was the German midfielder's first goal of the season, and it gave Penn State a 2-0 lead just 14 minutes into the match. "I just thought to get to the near post and get a cross from someone, and just get a toe, a shin or something on it," Or- tega Jurado said. "I was just trying to redirect it, so I'm happy it went in." Sheva then scored her third goal of the season on a set piece to give the Nittany Lions a 3-1 lead in the 65th minute. Just six minutes later, fellow midfielder Ogle added to the senior class going-away party, as she finished a penalty kick to make the score 4-1. Dambach said she was pleased with her team's performance, which set up a second-round match against South Car- olina on Nov. 16. "We continued to battle and we had four seniors put balls in the back of the net, which is awesome to be on Jeffrey Field and experience that," she said. ■ W O M E N ' S S O C C E R Dambach earns milestone win in NCAA tourney opener FIELD HOCKEY Penn State fell in the first round of the NCAA tournament to Harvard, 6-1, on Nov. 9 at Princeton, N.J. The Crimson used a three-goal burst in a five-minute span early in the game to open up a lead that the Nittany Lions could not overcome. Penn State owned a 19-17 shot advan- tage, but Harvard had a 12-9 edge in shots on goal. The Nittany Lions' only goal was by Anna Simon in the first half. "This is a hard way to end the season, particularly for this outstanding group of seniors," head coach Char Morett- Curtiss said. "I cannot thank these young women enough for everything they've done for Penn State field hockey. As a group, they were a joy to coach and really embody what Penn State field hockey is." WOMEN'S VOLLEYBALL Seventh-ranked Penn State fell to No. 4 Illinois in five sets Nov. 10 in Champaign. Junior libero Kendall White tied a ca- reer-high with 32 digs and added two aces and two assists. Senior Bryanna Weiskicher dished out 51 assists and added 12 digs for her ninth double-dou- ble of the season, and freshman Jonni Parker led the Nittany Lions in kills with 16, hitting .302. But after Penn State rallied to take the fourth set, 25- 23, on the strength of three kills and four blocks from middle blocker Serena Gray, Illinois won the decisive fifth set, 15-13. MEN'S SOCCER With wind gusts over 15 mph throughout the game, sixth-seeded Penn State fell, 3-1, to No. 3 Michigan in the Big Ten tournament quarterfinals on Nov. 4 in Ann Arbor. The Nittany Lions tied the score, 1-1, on a Ryan Gallagher goal just before the break, but the Wolverines regained the lead in the 53rd minute and later added an insurance goal. "We were hoping for a better outcome today, so I'm very disappointed for the players that despite their best efforts we were not able to advance in the Big Ten tournament," head coach Jeff Cook said. "As we have done throughout the season, our players gave a tremendous effort, and it took an excellent performance from a very talented Michigan team to end our tournament run." ■ N O T E B O O K DAMBACH

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