University Park, Pa. — The Penn State women’s soccer team had two of its own honored by the Big Ten on Monday with a pair of weekly awards. Alyssa Naeher (Seymour, Conn.) and Christine Nairn (Bowie, Md.) were named the Big Ten Defensive Player and Freshman of the Week, respectively.
Naeher garnered her third such honor in 2009 after her a top-notch performance in a 2-1 upset win over No. 15 Ohio State. The two-time First Team All-American made five saves, while the Nittany Lions were down to 10 players against the Buckeyes. Naeher has now won six Big Ten weekly awards.
Nairn captured her first honor of her collegiate career behind the strength of her goal against Ohio State. Her tally put the Nittany Lions up 1-0, breaking OSU’s 430-minute shutout streak and leading Penn State to the upset win. The freshman midfielder is second on the team in goals (four), assists (three), and points (11) in her inaugural campaign.
The previous Big Ten Freshman of the Week honoree is the second this season for Penn State as Lexi Marton (Aurora, Ontario) took home the inaugural award in August.
The Nittany Lions improved to 5-5-1 (1-1 Big Ten) entering this weekend’s matchups with Northwestern (Friday at 7:00 p.m.) and Iowa (Sunday at 11:00 a.m.). Both games will be played at Jeffrey Field, where Penn State holds a 72-4-3 advantage all-time against Big Ten foes.