UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- Penn State field hockey senior back Katie Breneman (Washington Boro, Pa.) was named Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week, the conference announced Tuesday. This marks the first time in her career that Breneman has earned Big Ten weekly honors.
Breneman led a Penn State defense that held No. 8 Northwestern to just one goal in a 2-1 win on Oct. 31. The Wildcats came into the game averaging 3.00 goals per game and ranked 11th nationally in points per game (8.65). She also helped hold Northwestern, a team that came in averaging 17.9 shots per game, to just five shots.
Breneman joins redshirt senior goalkeeper Kylie Licata (Mountain Top, Pa.) and freshman Cori Conley (Oak Park, Ill.) as the three Nittany Lions who have received conference weekly honors this season. Licata was named defensive player of the week twice, while Conley was recognized as freshman of the week once.
Penn State is back in at the Big Ten Tournament, taking on No. 19 Michigan State in Ann Arbor, Michigan on Thursday, Nov. 6 at 12:30 p.m.