The first day Penn State women's lacrosse coach Suzanne Weinberg walked into her office in the Bryce Jordan Center she had gifts waiting for her. Right beside the flowers sent to her by her fiancé, was a basket of Irving's bagels, with a note attached from former Penn State coach Julie Williams.

"Welcome home," it said.

And home she finally was.

Weinberg is only in her first season as head coach for the Nittany Lions, but Weinberg is far from a stranger to Penn State.

The Annapolis, Md., native graduated from high school in 1991 and traveled to Happy Valley to begin her collegiate career. She played for the Nittany Lions from 1992-1995 where she managed to become a four-time letterwinner for the team.

Penn State Athletic Director Tim Curley can still remember Weinberg when she was a student athlete, not his collegue.

"She was an excellent player," Curley said. "She was a very good team player overall. She was a fierce competitor and she wanted to win and be the best. That's what sticks out as I look back at her playing."

And Weinberg hasn't lost those characteristics as a coach.

After graduating from Penn State, Weinberg knew there was only one thing she wanted to do for the rest of her life--coach at the collegiate level. And what better place to do it than her alma mater -- Weinberg took an assistant coaching position at Penn State immediately following graduation.

But making the transition from player to coach wasn't as easy as it would appear to be.

"That was actually hard," Weinberg said. "I still wanted to be playing. But I learned so much from Julie Williams that year. I wouldn't trade it."

But after a year in the assistant coaching position, Weinberg knew it was time to move on. Penn State was all she knew and she needed experience elsewhere. A phone call from Drew University would lead the Penn State grad to her next job.

"I believe that her players truly felt that Suzanne was interested in them as a person and not just an athlete," Connee Zotos, the Director of Athletics at Drew University, said. "She created a trust and a bond that her players just felt wonderful about. Each player felt they were special in Suzanne's eyes and they were."

In her tenure as head coach, she guided the Rangers to four-straight Middle Atlantic Conference titles and a Division III NCAA Tournament appearance last spring. She compiled a 56-15 overall record while at Drew.

And so after four years, Weinberg is back where it all began.

"She impressed the committee," Curley said. "Everyone was very excited about her passion for the sport of lacrosse and her passion for Penn State. We thought she brought a wealth of knowledge to the game of lacrosse. And she has an excellent personality that would be great for recruiting."

Weinberg will get her first chance to showcase her talent to the Penn State community Saturday as her team takes on Cornell.

"What I try to bring and what I hope my players are getting from me is the passion and the love of the game," Weinberg said. "And just to let that show in their play."

Weinberg already has many fond memories of Penn State, but this weekend she will open up a new chapter in that book. The only difference is this time she will be on the sidelines giving her players the same advice that got her to where she is today.