MORGANTOWN — The No.13-ranked WVU women’s soccer team prepares for its second top-15 matchup of the season as it welcomes No. 7 Penn State to Morgantown at 7 p.m. Thursday at Dick Dlesk Soccer Stadium.
“We are very excited to have the seventh-best team in the country come to Morgantown this week,” WVU coach Nikki Izzo-Brown said. “It’s been a natural rivalry over the years with Penn State. Both programs have had tremendous success, so I think that’s always brought a big-game mentality into this rivalry.”
Thursday’s contest marks the 20th all-time meeting between West Virginia and Penn State, as the Nittany Lions hold a 9-7-3 advantage in the series. WVU and PSU have met as ranked opponents in nine of the last 10 matches, dating back to 2012. The two teams first met on Oct. 26, 2003, in Morgantown, with the Mountaineers suffering a 4-1 loss to the Nittany Lions.
West Virginia and Penn State have met in the regular season and in NCAA tournament play, with 14 regular-season matches and five tournament matches. The two programs last met in 2019, with a 1-1 draw at Dick Dlesk Soccer Stadium early in the year’s campaign.
Erica Damback is in her 14th season as the head coach of Penn State, holding an overall mark of 231-76-21. She has led the team to four Big Ten Tournament titles, 11 Big Ten regular-season titles and 14-straight NCAA Tournaments, as well as an NCAA Championship title in 2015.
The Nittany Lions are 3-0 so far this season, following a 2-1 win against previously undefeated Hofstra on last Sunday. Junior midfielder Payton Linnehan leads the team with five goals, two assists and 12 points on the season, while junior goalkeeper Katherine Asman has tallied seven saves.
There will be a Mountaineer thundersticks giveaway for the first 500 fans in attendance, while Thursday’s contest also is slated as Faculty/Staff Appreciation Night, with free admission offered to WVU staff with a valid employee ID.
Andrew Caridi and Liam Belan have the call of Thursday’s match on Big 12 Now on ESPN+. For more information, or to sign up for the digital platform, visit WVUsports.com/Big12Now. The game also can be heard on 91.7 FM (WWVU) in Morgantown. Live stats are available at wvusports.com.
