William and Mary (0-1) lost 7-2 against No. 16 Penn State (2-0) on Sunday, Aug. 29 at Busch Field.
The Tribe jumped out to an early lead when sophomore Mollie Schuma scored in the fourth minute. Junior Lily Saunders ran the ball up the left endline and passed it to junior Lauren Curran, who redirected it towards the crease. Schuma took control of the ball and scored underneath the goalkeeper. The goal marked Schuma’s first collegiate score and Curran’s first collegiate assist.
However, the Nittany Lions wasted no time as Sophia Ladieuz scored one minute later off an assist from Meghan Reese.
The score flip-flopped one more time. The Tribe jumped out in front again after a goal from Saunders in the 13th minute. Junior Tabby Billingham centered a pass from the right endline after a foul and Saunders redirected the ball up over the goalkeeper. The Tribe ended the first quarter with a 2-1 lead.
The Nittany Lions took control in the second quarter, scoring four unanswered goals to take a 5-2 lead at the half. Anna Simon scored the first three goals, all of them from penalty corners. Reese added the fourth goal at the end of the half.
The Nittany Lions scored once in each of the last two quarters to make the final score 7-2. Penn State outshot the Tribe 18-8 and totaled 11 penalty corners, compared to four from the Tribe. Senior goalkeeper Kimi Jones finished the game with five saves for the Tribe.
William and Mary will return to Busch Field to host No. 8 Virginia at 5 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 4.