Tears poured from the bloodshot eyes of Penn State forward Maren Walseth after yesterday's game versus Michigan. However, they were not tears of joy for the Lady Lions' senior.

In front of the third largest home crowd to see the Lions play, the final regular season game and on Senior Day in the Bryce Jordan Center, the Wolverines (17-10, 10-6 Big Ten) shocked No. 18 Penn State (19-8, 11-5) in a nail-biting 75-74 victory.

Kelly Mazzante broke the Penn State freshmen scoring record held by Susan Robinson, finishing the regular season with 508 points, but the individual accomplishment paled in comparison to the complete breakdown of the Lions in the second half and the second home loss of the season.

"We knew their (Michigan's) plays and what they were going to do, but they ran them to perfection," Walseth said. "There were times we got riled on offense. I think where they were smart we were a little bit lazy."

Penn State had a comfortable 13-point lead with 5:15 remaining in the game when Michigan began turning up the defensive pressure and forced the Lions into poor offensive decisions. Wolverine center LeeAnn Bies started the run with a lay-up off her own offensive rebound making the score 70-59. From there Michigan continued its scoring barrage with three-pointers, foul shots and easy lay-ups coming from Penn State turnovers. Michigan would outscore Penn State 18-4 in the final five minutes of the game.

Besides added pressure to the Penn State offense, fouls played a crucial role in the final stretch. Both teams were in foul trouble through most of the second half, Penn State missed crucial free-throws in the closing minutes while Michigan converted most of its shots from the charity stripe.

Penn State forward Rashana Barnes fouled out with 2:54 remaining in the game and Bies would convert both free throws. Penn State finished with an abysmal 19-30 free throw shooting while Michigan hit 15-19 of its own.

"You've got to make foul shots and that's the bottom line," Penn State coach Rene Portland said. "We saw it be Purdue's demise and now we saw it be our demise."

The Lions held a slim 74-72 lead after Penn State forward Lisa Shepherd made one-of-two free throws in the closing minute. With time winding down, Michigan guard Ann Thorius broke away from the defense and hit a wide open three-pointer with six seconds left.

Penn State had a chance to win at the end but Katrena Carr stumbled and threw a pass to Mazzante who attempted a desperation three-point attempt that sailed past the basket.

Bies turned out to be the biggest offensive threat in the game, tallying 26 points -- 20 of them in the second half.

The two Lions seniors, Shepherd and Walseth, finished in double figures with 17 and 15 points respectively. Mazzante finished with 14 points but only managed two in the second half. Penn State was also hurt with the absence of Ashley Luke for much of the second half when she turned her ankle she had previously injured.

"It seemed like through the whole game we were just going through the motions," Shepherd said. "It seemed like we needed to pick our speed up, but it didn't happen."

The win for Michigan marked the second time it beat Penn State this season and the first ever regular season series sweep for the Wolverines versus the Lions. Penn State has not lost a two-game series to a Big Ten opponent since the 1998-99 season when Illinois took two from the Lions.