No. 8 Nittany Lions Close Non-Conference Road Trip at No. 23 Georgetown – Penn State

KICKIN’ IT

In the waning moments of the second half, junior midfielder Olivia Borgen found herself 20 yards outside the net and delivered one of the most powerful strikes of her collegiate career, as the eighth-ranked Penn State women’s soccer team battled their way to a 1-0 victory over the Princeton Tigers last Thursday night, September 5 on Myslik Field at Roberts Stadium following Borgen’s banger. Penn State’s offense, ranked first in the Big Ten Conference and fourth among power four conference institutions entering Thursday night’s battle with the Tigers, racked up a 19-10 differential in total shots as well as a domineering 10-3 margin in shots on goal. The PSU attack warranted a season-high 11 corner kicks, the most corners for a PSU squad since turning in an identical 11-corner showing on September 15 of last season against Maryland, a 4-0 conference victory. Penn State won the corner battle 11-3, improving to 3-0-0 when attempting more corner kicks than its opponent.

Borgen, a Big Ten Conference Preseason Player to Watch, appeared and started in all 23 Nittany Lion matches a season ago but was sidelined due to injury earlier in the year. Her return to the pitch against West Virginia a week and a half ago paved the way for her performance Thursday at Princeton, with the Hanson, Massachusetts, native booking her seventh collegiate goal and first of the 2024 campaign. Redshirt senior forward Kaitlyn MacBean saw her eight-match goal-scoring streak come to a close Thursday night at Princeton, but the Excelsior, Minnesota, native maintains her status as one of the nation’s premier goal scorers. MacBean ranks second in the nation and tied for the B1G lead in goals with eight, ranking fourth nationally with 1.33 goals per match.

BORGIE BALL

Junior midfielder Olivia Borgen tallied her first goal of the 2024 campaign, as well as her seventh collegiate score Thursday night at Princeton, finding the back of the net in her only shot and shot on goal of the night in 19 minutes of work. Borgen contributed the first six goals and first three assists of her collegiate career as a fixture in the starting XI for all 23 matches a year ago. She amassed 1,410 minutes of action as a premier member of the Nittany Lion attacking midfield, adding individual distinction as an honorable mention TopDrawerSoccer National Team of the Week honoree following a brace at Northwestern on October 17. Borgen joined a pair of teammates in MacBean and Schiemann as B1G…