PHILADELPHIA – After a second consecutive unbeaten weekend, the University of Pennsylvania women's soccer team heads into its final non-conference doubleheader, hosting Hofstra on Friday and then Temple Sunday.
Ivy League on ESPN
You will be able to find all Penn home women's soccer matches, as well as road Ivy matches, on ESPN+ this fall with the same high broadcast quality you used to get from the Ivy League Network. ESPN+ is a new, subscription-based service that offers monthly ($4.99) and yearly ($49.99) plans. Go to plus.espn.com to subscribe, or go to ivyleague.com to find more information.
MATCH DAY 7 – Penn (4-1-1, 0-0 Ivy League) vs. Hofstra (5-3, 0-0 CAA)
Friday, Sept. 20 | 6 p.m. | Rhodes Field | Live Stats | Watch on ESPN+
Series Information
Penn leads 1-0 | Last meeting: 2006, Penn 1-0
In the only all-time meeting, Penn defended Rhodes Field en route to a 1-0 clean sheet of the Pride.
MATCH DAY 8 – Penn (4-1-1, 0-0 Ivy League) vs. Temple (2-3-3, 0-0 AAC)
Sunday, Sept. 22 | 6 p.m. | Rhodes Field | Live Stats | Watch on ESPN+
Series Information
Penn leads 7-5 | Last meeting: 2015, Penn 2-1
Penn started slow against the Owls, dropping the first four matches between the two Philadelphia programs. Since then, however, it's been all Red and Blue. Beginning in 1996, Penn took the next five meetings, outscoring Temple 19-0, including an 8-0 thrashing in 1997 – tied for the second-most goals scored in a game in program history. Temple rebounded to win in 2006, but the Quakers picked up consecutive wins in 2012 and 2015 – the pair's most recent meeting.
The Sandstorm
Emily Sands, who began this season inside the TopDrawerSoccer's Preseason Top 100, erupted last weekend with three goals and an assist, affecting four of the Quakers' six goals on the weekend. At Bucknell, Sands scored in each half to propel Penn to a comfortable 2-0 win. Then, back at Rhodes Field on Sunday, Sands scored from more than 30 yards out, catching the keeper off her line for an incredible strike. She added an assist to Kelsey Andrews as well in a 4-0 win. The senior forward now has goals in three games – all wins – and at least a point in each of the last five matches.
Breukelen's Blowup
Junior midfielder Breukelen Woodard has registered a point in the last four matches, including a goal in three of them. Two weeks ago, Woodard accounted for both of the Quakers' goals against Fairfield and Mount St. Mary's before assisting Sands on a goal at Bucknell and scoring the fourth goal against Loyola last Sunday. Woodard now has seven points, the second-most on the team.
Leading the Qu
Kitty Qu just continues to shut teams out. Last year, she snapped the single-season program records for GAA (.35) and save percentage (.912) and also broke the career record for solo shutouts. Through six games, Penn has four clean sheets – Qu helped in three of them – and since the season opener, the Quakers have allowed just one goal in the last five matches, sporting a 322-minute shutout streak.
Loving Showing The Love
Through the first three seasons of her career, Emma Loving recorded just two assists. Six games into this season, however, the senior forward assisted on all three of the Quakers' first three goals, raising her career total to five, including two against Towson.
Jackie Bruder's Sophomore Boost
Last year as a freshman, in a season somewhat slowed by injury, Jackie Bruder scored a goal and recorded an assist. Now, with a season under her belt, Bruder managed to match those numbers through just two games. She scored Penn's lone goal at third-ranked Stanford to open the season and then assisted on Emily Sands' goal at home to Towson with a little back-heel flick.
Ivy League Champions
Last season, Penn clinched a share of the Ivy League championship, its first since 2010 and fourth all-time. The Quakers became the first team since 2008 to win the title without winning its league opener, a 0-0 draw with Harvard. Penn shared the title with Princeton, who handed the Quakers their only league loss of the season and snatched the NCAA Tournament bid in the process.
Playing The Pride
Aside from Stanford in the season opener, Hofstra may provide Penn's toughest non-conference task of the season. The Pride arrive in University City 5-3, but coming off a 16-6-1 campaign in 2018 that included not only a berth in the NCAA Tournament, but a first round win over 22nd-ranked Boston College. The Pride have taken on a pair of Ivy League squads, falling to Brown 2-1 on the road before beating Columbia 1-0 at home.
Taking On Temple
Crosstown rival Temple sits at 2-3-3 with wins at UMBC and Wagner. Additionally, the Owls picked up a road draw at Maryland, and 23rd-ranked Wake Forest accounts for one of Temple's losses this season.
#FightOnPenn
