The third time indeed was a charm for the No. 17 Penn State field hockey team in a 1-0 overtime win over Princeton last night at Bigler Field.

Senior co-captain Karin Grap scored the lone goal on her third breakaway of the night with just over 3 minutes left in the overtime period to give the Nittany Lions (6-5; 1-0 Big Ten) the victory. It was the team's first overtime win in three attempts on the season.

Grap's goal had the Lions breathing a sigh of relief after Princeton dominated the final minutes of regulation and the beginning of overtime.

"I felt that we just squandered a lot of opportunities during regulation, we really should have put some balls away sooner," Penn State coach Char Morett said. "It was obviously a much needed win ... We didn't play to the top of our game but I thought that we certainly played well enough to win against a very good team."

Some of the missed opportunities included several breakaways by the Penn State forwards. Grap failed to connect on her two previous breakaways and freshman Shaun Banta was stopped on a breakaway of her own in the extra session. Tiger goalkeeper Juliana Simon kept Princeton in the game with several great saves.

It is no coincidence that the Lions' recent victories go hand in hand with the strong play of Grap. The co-captain continued her hot streak for the Lions after being benched two weeks ago. She has four goals in her last four games, two of which are game winners. Grap is also tied with Banta for the team lead in goals with six on the season.

Teammate Bekah Hostetler (who wears No. 3) could not be happier for the forward.

"She's so dynamic, you know that when she gets in there she's going to score and be aggressive and scrappy and she was just that," Hostetler said. "And she finished, which is what she tends to do. She's a scorer. I'm so proud of her."

The overtime win is not just important for the team's record but also for its confidence as well. Earlier in the season the Lions had trouble putting away teams and lost many close games. This time around, they found a way to win.

Hostetler believes a change in attitude has helped the team move on and learn from the early defeats.

"We've had some tough losses and we've been really close in a lot of other games but I think in practice we've really been working hard, stepping it up and being aggressive and knowing we need to finish these games," she said.

Heading into the extra period, Morett stressed the basics to her team and saw a noticeable difference in how her players responded.

"What we had a tendency to do in previous overtimes was jump and chase the ball instead of holding our positions," Morett said. "I thought that we did a much better job holding positions and just trying to keep possession. ... You've got to take advantage in those overtime situations and I thought that's what we did."

Whether it's a change in attitude or an emphasis on the fundamentals, the Lions are learning from their early experiences and using it to their advantage.

"We're piecing things together bit by bit," Morett said.

The Lions hope the number three continues to be lucky for them this weekend. They will try for their third win in a row against Indiana (6-4-1; 0-2) this Saturday in their second Big Ten game of the year.

After all, the Hoosiers have lost their last three games.