No. 2 Penn State women's soccer discovered this weekend that the best offense can be a good defense, as the Nittany Lions improved to 8-0, the best start in program history.

Closing out the final weekend of non-conference games, Penn State journeyed to College Park, Md., where they shut out the Terrapins, 3-0, Friday night. Returning to Jeffrey Field Sunday against James Madison, the Lions kept the Dukes off the board, winning 2-0.

Before the start of the Big Ten schedule, Penn State hoped to convert on more opportunities in the first half. Surprisingly, it was the defense that picked it up, as the offense routinely found themselves around the net but unable to score.

First-time goal scorers found themselves with the rare opportunities up front, and they converted.

Penn State ventured to Maryland with last year's 2-1 loss in the NCAA Tournament still in mind. Returning the favor did not come as easily as the Lions would have liked, as the game remained tied for the first 40 minutes.

On a corner kick, Denay Riley, a sophomore defender, scooted one by in a scramble for her first career goal to give the Penn State a 1-0 lead en route to a 3-0 victory in College Park.

Sunday, injuries to senior Lindsay Bach and junior Heather Tomko forced freshman Allie Long, a backup midfielder, to the starting back line, which altered the look of the Lion defense. Taking a feed from junior midfielder Jean Rettig, Long dribbled from the left side towards the center of the box. Swinging across her body, the right-footed shot found the top left-hand corner.

"I've had a lot of opportunities, and I haven't really gotten them down," Long said. "When it got in, it was a really big relief, and I was really, really excited, which you could see as I was jumping up and down."

The defenders scoring goals only gives the Lions more options.

"We're getting numbers forward, and we're showing other people can score," senior Tifffany Weimer said. "If our defenders are scoring, that says a lot, and we have a lot of depth on our team."

The defense has been a revolving door this season, epitomized by this weekend's rotation from the lineup to the trainer's room.

Tomko returned to the lineup to start the second half following an injury against Maryland.

Bach, who sprained her left ankle in a 1-0 double overtime win last weekend at then-No. 3 UCLA returned against Maryland but sat out Sunday.

Meanwhile M.A.C. Hermann Trophy candidate senior Natalie Jacobs did not start against Maryland because of an injury of her own but returned to anchor the defense Sunday.

"We thought their defenders were going to be the suspect part," James Madison coach David Lombardo said. "We knew that their front six were very good. We'd seen and had scouting reports that their backs were going to be a little shaky, but you have to have the ball, and they have creative players."

The forwards perhaps should have taken notes as the defenders became the early goal scorers picking up for an offense that did not register a shot on goal in the first 20 minutes. Again, failed opportunities were the Achilles heel.

Penn State failed to capitalize on sloppy goaltending in the first half. Senior James Madison goalkeeper Jessica Hussey routinely found herself out of position at the top of the box.

"We know what Penn State does," James Madison coach David Lombardo said. "They want to lob balls in behind the center backs so it becomes a sprint for Tiffany Weimer. She's a special player and we were trying to stop that. Stopping service, stopping Weimer with a man-marker, and having our goalkeeper cover that space. We rolled the dice, and it didn't really hurt us until late in the second half."

The dice rolling did catch up with them, as Weimer delivered the knock-out blow. On a serve from Moscato, Weimer avoided a near collision with James Madison defender Caitlin Walko and Hussey and maneuvered around the fray for an easy 12th goal of the year with 3:42 left. Weimer has scored in all eight games this season.

With the Big Ten schedule opening Friday, Penn State coach Wilkins knows her team has to work on finishing opportunities and solidifying the lineup if Penn State is going to win it's eighth consecutive conference title.

"We have several things we need to work on. The biggest problem is we haven't had a constant back four to be able to solidify," she said. "We're hoping to be able to do that by the end of the week with the Big Ten but injuries have allowed us to play with a lot of different players, and I'm confident with all the players that we have."