Women's Soccer Visits Penn State Thursday, Hosts Saint Joe's Sunday

Thursday, August 27

University Park, Pa.

7:30 p.m.

Bucknell University

Penn State

Photo by: Phil Inglis

Women's Soccer Visits Penn State Thursday, Hosts Saint Joe's Sunday

8/25/2026 6:34:00 PM | Women's Soccer

Bucknell (3-1) at Penn State (0-1-1)
When: Thursday, Aug. 27, 7:30 p.m.
Where: Jeffrey Field, University Park, Pa.
Streaming: B1G+
Live Stats: GoPSUSports.com

Saint Joseph's (2-0-1) at Bucknell (3-1)
When: Sunday, Aug. 30, 2 p.m.
Where: Emmitt Field at Holmes Stadium, Lewisburg, Pa.
Streaming: ESPN+
Live Stats: BucknellBison.com

About the Bison

Bucknell went on a goal-scoring spree last week, pumping in 12 goals in one-sided wins over Mount St. Mary's (8-1) and La Salle (4-0). Now 3-1 on the season, the Bison step up in class this week with games against Penn State and Saint Joseph's.
Bucknell debuted with a western road trip to Montana (1-0 win) and Eastern Washington (1-0 loss), and the Bison struggled to put away chances on the opening weekend. That all changed last week, as they pumped in five goals in the first half alone against Mount St. Mary's.
Bucknell has outscored foes 13-2 through four games. The 13 goals have come from eight different players, and 15 players have registered a point or an assist so far. Freshman Ingrid Murphy leads the way with seven points on three goals and an assist. She tallied the lone goal in the 1-0 win at Montana in the season opener and then logged a brace in Sunday's win over La Salle.
Murphy and Presley Sutter have both been honored by the Patriot League early in the season. Murphy was named Patriot League Rookie of the Week after the Montana game, and Presley Sutter is this week's PL Forward of the Week after scoring twice against Mount St. Mary's and picking up an assist against La Salle.
Bucknell's freshman class has made an immediate impact. Murphy, goalkeeper Sarah McFarland, and outside back Clare Nemsick have started all four games, and Tennessee Murphy (no relation to Ingrid) has two goals in two games off the bench after missing the first two contests due to injury.
McFarland is off to an outstanding start in goal. She leads the league in goals-against average (0.29), save percentage (.917), and shutouts (2). The Delaware native made a season-high seven saves in Sunday's clean sheet against La Salle.
Gaby Parker leads the Patriot League in assists with three, and she tallied her first goal of the season against Mount St. Mary's. Parker registered three goals and two assists as a freshman in 2025.
Preseason All-Patriot League selection Katie Connell scored her first goal of the season to put the Bison in front early against La Salle. Connell, whose twin sister Bella comes off the bench in the midfield, is the team's top returning scorer after posting five goals and two assists a year ago.
Bucknell returned nine starters from last year's squad, including the entire back four. Senior captain Julia Palitti anchors the back line in her third year as a starting center back. Six of the eight players who scored goals in 2025 are back this season, although the Bison did graduate top scorer Henna Andican (6G).
The Mount St. Mary's win was career victory No. 100 for head coach Kelly Cook, who is now in her 12th season on the Bison sideline. Six of her previous 11 have resulted in a Patriot League regular-season or tournament championship. With a 101-72-33 career record, Cook is Bucknell's winningest women's soccer coach.

Penn State at a Glance/Series History

The Nittany Lions are making their 2026 home debut after a pair of away contests to start the season. Penn State held leads in both matches but settled for a 2-2 draw at No. 2 Notre Dame and a 2-1 loss at No. 22 West Virginia last Thursday.
The Nittany Lions were ranked No. 23 nationally last week but dropped from this week's poll after the setback in Morgantown. Anna Babcock gave Penn State an early lead in that game, but the Mountaineers countered with goals in the 34th and 68th minutes.
Page Kalal and Aubrey Kulpa scored less than two minutes apart early in the second half to give Penn State a 2-0 lead at Notre Dame, but the Fighting Irish stole a point with tallies from Lily Joseph in the 69th and 88th minutes.
Penn State went 10-8-3 overall and 5-4-2 in the Big Ten last season. The Nittany Lions beat Patriot League champion Army 3-0 in the first round of the NCAA Tournament before falling 2-0 at Virginia in the second round. It was Penn State's 31st consecutive NCAA appearance. That is the nation's second-longest streak, behind only North Carolina (44).
Penn State was picked sixth out of 18 teams in the Big Ten preseason poll. Michigan State was tabbed as the favorite, followed by UCLA, Washington, Wisconsin, and Ohio State.
Freshman midfielder Emma Johnson and sophomore goalkeeper Kealey Titmuss have been called up to the United States U-20 National Team for the FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup, which gets underway on Sept. 5 in Poland. Johnson started both of the team's first two games, while Titmuss is a backup to lead netminder Mackenzie Gress.
Head coach Erica Dambach is in her 20th season at Penn State, and she is one win away from 300 in her PSU career.
Kulpa is the team's top returning scorer after producing eight goals and six assists last season.
This will be the 21st all-time meeting between the two Central Pennsylvania sides. Penn State leads the series 19-0-1, with Bucknell's only result a scoreless draw at Emmitt Field in 2009.
In that 2009 draw, Bison goalkeeper Kathryn Sutton broke the school shutouts record in epic fashion. She made 11 saves, including a handful on clean breakaways, and went toe-to-toe with future USWNT goalkeeper Alyssa Naeher, who stopped four shots at the other end.
These teams have met three times in the NCAA Tournament. Penn State won 3-1 in 2001 in Bucknell's first-ever NCAA appearance, 6-0 in 2005, and 6-0 in 2016. That 2016 postseason matchup was the last time the Bison and Nittany Lions squared off.
Bucknell has scored nine goals in the 20 previous clashes with Penn State, with the last one coming 2012 off the foot of Jenna Tryon.

Saint Joseph's at a Glance/Series History

The Hawks are off to a strong 2-0-1 start and will be on a full week's rest when they visit Emmitt Field on Sunday. Saint Joseph's started the campaign with home wins over Drexel (3-2) and Hofstra (3-1), and then it drew 1-1 at Lafayette on Sunday.
Saint Joseph's went 5-10-3 overall and 2-6-2 in the Atlantic 10 last season. The Hawks were picked 11th in this year's A-10 preseason poll.
Sarah Fisher has been on fire to start the 2026 campaign. She has a goal in all three contests and also has a pair of assists. All three of her goals have either tied the game or given Saint Joe's the lead.
The Hawks spotted Drexel a 2-0 lead in the season opener before scoring three second-half goals in a span of only 19 minutes. Fisher scored the tying goal and then assisted on Juliette Muro's match winner in the 70th minute.
Fisher also scored the go-ahead goal in the 51st minute against Hofstra. She was joined in the scorebook by Kayla D'Ottaviano and Olivia Benzing.
In their most recent outing in Easton, Fisher made it 1-0 in the 56th minute, but Brianna Sousa equalized for Lafayette in the 73rd.
Olivia Mancini leads the team with three assists.
Sophomore Peyton Radwanski started in goal against Drexel and Lafayette, while freshman Lauren Lebo got the call against Hofstra. Radwanski has eight saves in her two appearances, while Lebo stopped five shots against the Pride.
Bucknell is 7-4 all-time against Saint Joseph's, including wins in the two most recent meetings in 2023 and 2024.
In the last clash in Philadelphia two seasons ago, Reese Evans and Katie Connell scored in Bucknell's 2-0 win. The Bison outshot the Hawks 21-4 and scored in the opening 10 minutes of each half.
Saint Joseph's absorbed a 4-0 defeat in its last trip to Emmitt Field in the 2023 season opener. Henna Andican scored midway through the first half, and then Paige Temple, Teresa Deda and Lea Tarzy added second-half tallies all in a five-minute flurry.

The Road Ahead

Bucknell will have another two-game set next week, hosting Delaware on Thursday, Sept. 3 before traveling to Towson the following Sunday. Both teams have scored plenty of goals in the early going.
The Blue Hens are off to a 2-0-1 start with wins over George Washington (3-2) and VCU (3-2) and a 2-2 draw with Navy. Delaware hosts Towson this Thursday evening.
The Tigers are 1-1-1 thus far. They opened with a 2-0 win at Mount St. Mary's, fell 2-1 at St. John's, and then tied George Washington 2-2 at home last Sunday.