Paula Wilkins stepped down as head coach of the Penn State women's soccer team yesterday to accept the head coaching position at the University of Wisconsin.

After spending 13 years -- six as head coach -- with the Nittany Lions, Wilkins leaves Happy Valley with an overall record of 119-19-11, six Big Ten regular-season championships, two Big Ten tournament titles and two trips to the NCAA College Cup.

"I was looking for the challenge, looking to take on a different part of my life and try something different," she said. "Many times in our life we don't take risks, we don't try different things. We get comfortable in our lives, and I think this is the first time I want to take an adventure."

Wilkins said she made the decision take over the Badgers' program on Wednesday but didn't tell her players until yesterday afternoon, because she "didn't want to make it an issue."

However, many players were very understanding of Wilkins' decision to leave for personal reasons, and even though it was unexpected, they wished her luck in the future.

"I was shocked and I didn't expect it. I was very, very shocked and I didn't know how to react because I couldn't believe it was happening," junior defender Denay Riley said. "I was very surprised and shocked, as were a few of the other girls on the team."

There was no indication that Wilkins was interested in leaving Penn State, but when former Wisconsin head coach Dean Duerst resigned on Dec. 15, the five-time Big Ten Coach of the Year drew interest from the Badgers.

According to the Wisconsin State Journal, Wilkins was one of four finalists for the job opening along with Wisconsin assistant Carrie Barker, Oklahoma State co-coach Colin Carmichael and Central Florida coach Amanda Cromwell. Now, she is the first female coach in program history and will take over a team that was 7-9-1 and 4-5-1 in the Big Ten, last season.

"I am absolutely thrilled that we are adding a coach with Paula's background and abilities to our department," Barry Alvarez, director of Athletics at Wisconsin, said in a press release. "She has been a winner as a student-athlete, assistant coach and head coach. Our women's soccer program is in very good hands."

Wilkins said she was drawn to the Madison area as another reason for leaving Penn State.

"I've been living in Pennsylvania for most of my life and I wanted to live in a different part of the country," she said. "It was one of those things where I thought there were a couple places I wanted to live in the country if they ever came available. What's great is that my success has enabled me to move where I would like to spend a part of my life."

Of Wilkins' 13 seasons at Penn State, seven years were spent as an assistant coach under Patrick Farmer, who brought her along as a graduate assistant in 1994 upon the program's inception. Her time with the Lions saw nine consecutive regular-season and four tournament titles. She leaves as the second winningest coach in program history, four wins behind Farmer; her predecessor.