Following the Penn State field hockey team's opening loss to Old Dominion in August, coach Char Morett commented on the youthfulness of her team, and how some of the young, inexperienced Nittany Lions would have to learn and mature on the job.

The two youngest Lions seeing action this year have certainly lost the wet-behind-the-ears look by this point in the season. That is, if the two freshman starters ever really had that look to begin with.

Defender Mallory Weisen and midfielder Kiersten Wood, both just four months removed from their high school graduations, have played key roles on a Penn State team that relies heavily upon its underclassmen. The Lions have only three seniors -- none of which is in her fifth year of eligibility.

Wood has started every game this season -- one of just six players who can make that claim. Maximizing her time in the circle, Wood has three assists and two goals on just 10 shots.

Weisen -- pronounced, as she likes to say, like "sneezin' and wheezin' " -- is a key part of a Lions defense that surrenders an average of just one goal per game, best in the Big Ten. The freshman shows no signs of being any younger than her defensive battery mates who are all juniors.

The cerebral back very rarely, if ever, needs instructions from Morett during games. And anyone who has been to a Penn State field hockey game knows that Morett is rarely short on advice when stalking the sideline at Bigler Field.

"What's impressive about them is that they remain poised on the field -- they just don't make freshman mistakes," Morett said.

"It was a big step from high school," Weisen said of the adjustment to the collegiate level. "The game is more intense, but the team really helped us adapt to the higher level of play."

I'll have a shot of what she's having...

With her goal on Friday, senior Michele Rigby became the team's points-leader, with 16. Karin Grap and Shaun Banta are right behind, with 15 apiece.

One area in which Rigby seems to have complete control over this Lions team is the shot column. The senior from Delaware has one more shot this year (71) than do the players with the second and third most on the team combined. Those players are, not surprisingly, Grap and Banta, who each have 35 shots this season. Rigby has a strong shot, and is given the ball in many penalty corner situations.

"That's Michele, she's our primary shooter off the penalty corners," Morett said.

Breakthrough scoring game?

Perhaps just what the doctor ordered for a struggling offense, the Lions will visit Northwestern on Friday. The Wildcats allow an average of nearly two goals a game, second worst in the Big Ten. The Lions score an average of just fewer than two goals per game. Morett warned that this should be a hard-fought battle.

Las Vegas bet-takers could not be reached for comment on the volume of action being placed on Penn State scoring twice against the Wildcats, but given this offense's track record, it would certainly not be unwise to take the under.

Stay on 19...

The Nittany Lions (8-7, 2-2) are, yet again, holding down the No. 19 spot this week's rankings. This is the fourth week in a row that Morett's team has held the 19th ranking, and the fifth time out of the six rankings released this season.