The Penn State women's soccer team likes to downplay rankings, but they seemed to be a pretty good indicator of where their opponents stood at this weekend's Notre Dame Classic.

The No. 8 Nittany Lions dropped their season opener Friday night to No. 4 Notre Dame, 2-1, but rebounded Sunday in a 2-0 victory over No. 10 Connecticut.

Forward Christie Welsh, midfielder Joanna Lohman and goalkeeper Emily Oleksiuk were all named to the All-Tournament Team. Welsh was also named the tournament's offensive MVP.

Penn State had high hopes heading into its season opening clash with the Fighting Irish. But it was stymied early in the game when Notre Dame freshman Mary Boland scored 6:54 into the first period off a header from Ali Lovelace.

"Notre Dame did a good job and caught us off guard," Penn State coach Paula Wilkins said in a press release. "The pace was much faster than expected."

The Irish extended its lead early into the second period when Amanda Gurtin put a ball past Oleksiuk, who had three saves, off an assist from Kelly Tulisiak, 58:13 into the game.

Penn State would not be shut out however, as Heidi Drummond scored off a feed from Welsh at 67:18. Wilkins said Welsh created many opportunities for the team over the course of the game.

The Nittany Lions tried to continue their resurgence with a goal 10 minutes later but it was called offsides.

Despite the loss, Penn State out-shot Notre Dame 15-12, but Irish goalkeeper Liz Wagner had seven saves.

The weekend was not a total loss however, as the Lions came back to shut down Connecticut on Sunday.

Welsh, who scored 17 goals last year, netted her first of the season late in the first period of play off a Lohman breakaway.

Not to be outdone, Lohman added a goal herself with 1:40 left in the game off a Heidi Drummond assist.

"It was exciting for the team to get its first victory on the road against a quality opponent," Wilkins said. "This is just another confidence booster going into the weekend at Carolina."

Penn State again out-shot its opponent, as they peppered Husky goalkeeper Erin Rice with 21 shots. Oleksiuk had four saves while recording her first shutout of the season.

Notre Dame claimed its own title Sunday with a 2-0 victory over No. 25 Hartford.

Penn State now begins gearing up for next weekend's North Carolina tournament where its tough season opening stretch continues with games against No. 17 Duke on Friday and No. 1 North Carolina on Sunday.