From the moment the ball was kicked off at Jeffrey Stadium in University Park, Pennsylvania, Syracuse was berated with Penn State attacks in a 4-0 loss. The Nittany Lions rang off three shots in the opening 10 minutes, including Kristin Schnurr drilling the crossbar in the ninth minute. Less than nine minutes later, the home team had nearly tripled its shot total.

After nearly a half-hour of dominance, PSU broke through. Forward Kerry Abello slid the ball to midfielder Shea Moyer, who, from the top of the penalty area, notched the ball into the bottom-left corner to put Penn State (4-2) ahead in the 24th minute, prompting the start of a rout over Syracuse (3-3) on Thursday night. The Orange was outshot 23-2 in the loss.

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Immediately following the goal, SU head coach Phil Wheddon made his first of four first-half substitutions, replacing defender Kate Donovan with Victoria Hill. In the opening 45 minutes, the Orange committed two fouls and faced 14 shots.

The Nittany Lions tacked on another goal moments before halftime, as Schnurr beat Harris from close range to double the home team’s lead and record her second goal of the season. Four minutes into the second half, Penn State buried the Orange’s hopes even further.

Charlotte Williams, who assisted Schnurr’s first-half goal, pinned the ball into the top-left corner of the goal from beyond the penalty area. Less than seven minutes later, Abello headed home PSU’s fourth goal of the game.

Abello’s goal was the Nittany Lions’ second time beating SU goalie Lysianne Proulx, who replaced Harris to open the second half. This season, Proulx has conceded one goal every 36-and-a-half minutes while Harris has allowed one goal per 61-and-a-half minutes. After back-to-back games in which Wheddon has substituted Proulx in for Harris at halftime, the two goalkeepers remain engaged in a battle for the starting role.

Hill and Sydney Brackett registered SU’s only two shots of the game, both of which landed on target.

Wheddon made one change from the Orange’s 1-0 win against Northeastern on Sunday, inserting Brackett back into the lineup in place of Steph deLaforcade.

After starting the first four games of the season, Brackett was used as a substitute for just the second time in her SU career Sunday at Northeastern. The junior assisted Georgia Allen’s game-winning goal in the 83rd minute against the Huskies, possibly sparking her return to the starting 11.

The Orange will round out its road trip on Sunday when it faces Colgate at Beyer-Small ’76 Field.

Published on September 6, 2018 at 9:24 pm

Contact David: ddschnei@syr.edu