True freshman Shaela Bradley fired a shot through traffic early in the second half at 46:59 to tie the game, and RU goalkeeper Olivia Bodmer collected nine saves as the Scarlet Knights played to a draw against Penn State, 1-1, before a crowd of 1,514 at Jeffrey Field.
On the way home from their recent tour of Michigan, the Scarlet Knights made a stop off in University Park, Pennsylvania to take on the No. 19 ranked Nittany Lions.
Coming into the game, the Scarlet Knights’ defense was squarely focused on PSU redshirt senior Kaitlyn MacBean, who had scored 10 goals on the year, with an eye-popping 49 shots taken this season in just 13 games played.
Despite knowing this, it did not take long for MacBean to put one past Bodmer, just 4:11 into the match to give the Nittany Lions the lead, 1-0.
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It was a first half that RU fans were not used to watching, as the Knights not only looked outmatched, but also appeared to be completely incapable of neutralizing MacBean, who had five shots by herself through the first 45 minutes.
RU appeared to have a chance to tie the game with just over two minutes left in the half when Riley Tiernan looked to cleanly steal the ball from Penn State’s Mieke Schiemann, leaving her in a one-on-one situation with PSU’s goalkeeper, Mackenzie Gress. However, before Tiernan could attempt her shot on goal, the referee blew the play dead on a foul, awarding Penn State the ball over the protests of Tiernan and the Rutgers’ bench.
Tempers appeared to flare following the foul, and the physicality of the play grew more intense as the half drew to a close with PSU holding the narrow lead.
Down 1-0 to start the second half, the Knights picked up the tempo, taking the attack to Penn State. The efforts quickly paid off, as two minutes into the second half RU found the equalizer when Bradley placed a pinpoint shot past Gress to level the score, 1-1.
From there, the game settled into a stalemate, with Bodmer more than equal to the task for the rest of the match, keeping the potent Nittany Lions off the board.
For the Scarlet Knights it was another fine performance, coming back from adversity in a hostile environment where younger players shined on the pitch.
The Scarlet Knights return to action on Thursday, October 10 when they play host to Nebraska. The game is billed as a “black out” event, and will kick off at 7:30 p.m. at Yurcak Field. The primetime match will be carried on the Big Ten Network.
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