The Penn State women's soccer team will kick off its Big Ten season this weekend against the state of Michigan.

The Lions (4-2-2) host Michigan State (4-3-1) at 7 tonight and Michigan (4-2-2) on Sunday, both games at Jeffrey Field. Each game will be a challenge for a Penn State squad that appears to be more vulnerable than last year's Big Ten-champs.

The Spartans, who were defeated last year by the Lions 3-0 at home, have a 2-11-0 record versus the Lions.

Even with the graduation of key players from the 2005 team that went undefeated, Big Ten coaches won't be expecting anything less than a battle when they come to Jeffrey Field. Especially the one that will be standing opposite of Penn State coach Paula Wilkins on the sideline Friday.

"Absolutely, they're a class program in our conference," Michigan State head coach Tom Saxton said. " They keep reloading once one [player] goes. It seems like once they lose someone, somebody else follows in her footsteps."

Both programs share similarities in the makeup of its squads, featuring a strong group of young talent looking to gain experience.

While Michigan State has its concerns coming into Happy Valley, the coaching staff is excited to have the chance to begin the season against such a well-known Penn State program, Saxton said.

The Spartans will be coming into tonight's game with a similar record as the Lions, but will be relying on game-plan changes that are necessary when confronting a team that has won eight straight Big Ten titles.

"Penn state may have an edge, [it] may have played a tougher non-conference schedule," Saxton said. "We need to make quick adjustments [to play Penn State]."

That difficult schedule will continue on Sunday when a fresh Michigan team comes to State College.

The Wolverines, who open up their own Big Ten season against the Lions, will be more rested compared to Penn State.

"It's gonna be a huge battle for us," Wilkins said. "Especially for the fact that we don't have anybody who plays opposite of us [on Friday]. So that means that Sunday Michigan will have played nobody on Friday. For us it's gonna have to be focus and bringing it each game. I think Michigan's gonna be very good."

The tension will rise, because one of Penn State's two ties last year came against Michigan. The head-to-head record between the two schools is 10-3-5 in Penn State's favor.

"We're playing well defensively," Michigan head coach Debbie Rademacher said. "Our Penn State game is always a great game, our girls really look forward to the rivalry. There are a lot of people to look out for; they're a good team."