As of late, the Nittany Lions have been downright offensive, and well, that is not a problem at all for women's soccer coach Paula Wilkins and company.

In the past two games, No. 8 Penn State has netted 10 goals, double the amount it scored in its first two games, on its way to last week's blanking of Loyola 5-0 and Sunday's 5-2 upending of No. 4 Virginia.

More promising than the offensive eruption, though, is how the Lions have gone about scoring those goals. In the first two contests against Washington and Connecticut, Penn State relied heavily on the foot of forward Tiffany Weimer, who scored four of the team's five goals against the Husky twins.

But in the past two contests, six different Lions have found the net -- a sign that Penn State's offense is not one-dimensional.

"I don't have the whole load on my back," Weimer said of her team's newfound offensive power. "It's huge for a team if you can have four or five people who can score goals. It makes you that much more dangerous."

And Weimer has certainly caused more problems for defenders now that opposing backfields cannot focus solely on the shifty-footed senior. Weimer has continued her rampant scoring pace, slamming home three more goals in the past two contests, including two against the highly regarded Cavaliers defense.

Weimer now has seven goals in the first four games, and is steaming toward Christie Welsh's career number of 82 goals. Weimer needs 16 more scores to tie Welsh.

Junior captain Ali Krieger has scored three goals this season, two against Loyola, and senior forward Carmelina Moscato scored her first goal of the season against Virginia.

And while the veteran leaders pace the offense, the much-needed help has come from the younger athletes.

Against Loyola, freshman Sheree Gray tallied her first collegiate points, dishing out two assists. In the same game, sophomore Aubrey Aden-Buie and freshman Allie Daus scored their first goals of the season.

"People are gaining some confidence," Wilkins said following the victory against the Greyhounds. "They were really focused on Tiffany, and I think that created some opportunities for other people."

The youth movement continued against the Cavaliers, with red-shirt freshman Zoe Bouchelle finding the net, heading a sweet feed from Moscato past Virginia's Christina de Vries for her first career collegiate goal.

Bouchelle sported a grin from ear to ear as she came off the field to loud cheers following her score.

"It felt wonderful," she said. "We had a record number of fans here today, and it's so great to have them out cheering for us. It helps so much every game."

The Jeffrey Field attendance of 2,768 smashed the previous record for a women's soccer contest of 2,366 set on Sept. 24, 2004 against Indiana.

While the offense may have been expected against Loyola, the high scoring against Virginia is unprecedented in recent years. The last time the Cavaliers allowed five goals was in 2001, when they lost to North Carolina, 6-1.

The five goals were the first allowed by Virginia this season. The Cavaliers shut out their previous three opponents.

"We made some defensive mistakes," Cavalier coach Steve Swanson said. "We have a very inexperienced back line that's learning. I think we were put under the test today by a very good Penn State team. You have to give them credit. They finished their chances."

Early in the season, Wilkins openly worried about her team's ability to finish their chances, but said she has been impressed with her team's improved performance this past week.

With Penn State's offense clicking now, Wilkins still holds hope that her offense has yet to peak.

"It's going to be exciting, because it's going to develop as the season goes along," she said.

And to Wilkins, there's nothing offensive about that.