UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Highlighted by matchups against five teams that participated in the 2012 NCAA tournament, the 2013 Penn State women’s lacrosse schedule was announced Tuesday (Oct. 23) by third-year head coach Missy Doherty. In all, the Nittany Lions will play a 16-game regular-season slate, including seven home contests at the Penn State Lacrosse Field.
The Nittany Lions will look to build off a successful 2012 campaign that saw the program earn its most wins since 2005 and third straight double-digit win season. Penn State compiled a 12-7 mark as it advanced to the NCAA quarterfinals and defeated five ranked opponents, including three top-10 teams. The Nittany Lions also registered eight road victories, the most by a Penn State squad since the 1989 national championship team.
In 2013, Penn State will face three non-conference opponents – Loyola, Maryland and Virginia – that appeared in last season’s NCAA championships, along with league foes Florida, which advanced to the NCAA semifinals, and two-time defending national champion Northwestern.
Following an exhibition matchup against Penn Feb. 16, the Nittany Lions will commence the 2013 season against intrastate rival Bucknell Feb. 20. The Nittany Lions will then embark on a season-high three-game road trip, playing at Loyola (Feb. 23) and Duquesne (Feb. 27) before travelling to Charlottesville, Va., for a matchup with the Cavaliers March 3.
Penn State will return home March 6 for a matchup against James Madison before it will visit 2012 NCAA semifinalist Maryland (March 9) and Cornell (March 13).
The Nittany Lions will then alternate home and road contests over the next six games. Penn State will open its conference schedule March 17 with a home tilt against Vanderbilt before travelling to Drexel (March 22). Florida will make the trip to Happy Valley March 30 on the front end of back-to-back league games before Penn State travels to Evanston, Ill., April 5 for a game against Northwestern.
Penn State will begin a season-high three-game homestand April 10 against Lehigh before hosting ALC foe Ohio State April 14 and Lafayette April 17. The Nittany Lions will conclude the regular season on the road against conference opponent Johns Hopkins (April 21) and Princeton (April 27).
Following the regular season, all six ALC members will compete in the league tournament in Baltimore, Md., May 2-4. The No. 1 and No. 2 seeds will receive a first-round bye, while the remaining four teams will square off in the quarterfinals.
