PHILADELPHIA – Kicking off the 2023 season in style in front of its home fans, the University of Pennsylvania women's soccer team used a crucial penalty-kick goal in the 64th minute from Lauren Teuschl mixed with solid defense in a 1-0 victory over American at Dunning-Cohen Champions Field at Penn Park.
 
The win gives the Quakers a 1-0 start to the year, sealing a season-opening victory for the first time since 2018. The Eagles fall to 0-2-1 and have lost back-to-back matches, getting outscored, 6-0, during that stretch.
 
Quaker Notemeal
* Penn opens the brand-new season with a win for the first time since 2018, a 5-0 victory over Mount St. Mary's at Rhodes Field.
 
* It's the third straight shutout victory for the Quakers dating back to October 3, 2022. Penn has shutouts in five of its last six wins dating back to October 18, 2021.
 
* The shutout is senior goalkeeper Laurence Gladu's eighth of her collegiate career.
 
* Lauren Teuschl now has six goals in 30 career games, but this was both her first game winner and PK score.
 
* Penn improves to 7-2 all-time against American and have won four in a row since October 11, 2000. During that time period, the Quakers have out-scored the Eagles, 11-0. AU has not scored against Penn since October 9, 1996.
 
* The Quakers held the edge in shots, 12-8, despite American having the lead in shots on goal, 5-4.
 
* Penn had five corner-kick opportunities while AU had zero.
 
* Fouls were in favor of American, 16-9, with yellow cards even at three apiece.
 
How It Happened
The first 15 minutes of the contest were pretty even, as Penn earned two corner kicks with a pair of shots on goal for Mallory Lucas and Abbey Cook. Lucas' second chance of the match ricocheted off the woodwork to keep it scoreless.
 
American received the match's first booking of the day, a yellow card on Phoebe Merrigan in the 18th minute.
 
The Quakers had one more solid chance in the first half saved by the AU keeper in the 28th minute, as Megan Lusher found separation and booted it from outside the box, missing just high as the goalie got a hand on it.
 
Penn and American went into its respective locker rooms with the match knotted up as the Red and Blue maintained a 6-2 advantage on shots with two saves for Laurence Gladu.
 
It didn't take long for Penn to get booked to start the second half, as the referee showed Maya Leschly a yellow in the 46th minute. Over the next several minutes, Mia Fuss and Avery Chapel fired a pair of chances out right.
 
Penn's fifth corner came in the in the 57th minute, not resulting in anything that amounted to a score, but the moment of the game came in the 64th minute, as American's Amélie Kovacevic committed a foul inside the Quakers' attacking third to set up Lauren Teuschl for the penalty-kick try. The senior delivered, sneaking past the keeper's glove on the right corner to lift Penn into the lead. From that point forward, the two sides continued to pour on the aggression with two yellow cards—one for each team—over the next two minutes.
 
AU put up a chance in the 71st minute, but was denied by Gladu for the fifth time.
 
Penn's defense stepped up over the next 20 minutes of action, only giving up two more shots by the Eagles offense. Isobel Glass had an opportunity to add some insurance to the Penn lead, but missed top left.
 
American was held without a shot on goal for the final 20, as the Quakers held on for the slim 1-0 final.
 
Quotables
"It was a solid win at home on opening day. We have had a terrific preseason and this was a great way to start our schedule. A win with a shutout is a building block for what this team is capable of accomplishing." – Douglas N. Brush Head Coach Dr. Krissy Turner.
  Up Next
It's a quick turnaround for the Quakers, who take on Delaware at Penn Park Sunday at 6 p.m. on ESPN+. The Blue Hens are 2-1 to begin the season.

For the latest on Penn women's soccer, follow @PennWSoccer on X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram, and on the web at PennAthletics.com