In a dominant 22-13 upset win over No. 11 Virginia, Penn State senior Katie O’Donnell tallied a career-high eight points to become the 14th player in program history to surpass the 200-point mark. Her efforts earned her Brine/US Lacrosse Player of the Week honors.
The victory was the third straight for the then-No. 18 Nittany Lions and its first over a Top 20 opponent since defeating then-No. 17 Cornell 16-11 on Feb. 21. They moved up two spots in this week’s Nike/US Lacrosse Division I Women’s Top 20.
After Virginia got a quick 2-0 lead less than two minutes in, O’Donnell scored Penn State’s first goal at the 24:43 mark, sparking its first offensive spurt of four straight goals.
O’Donnell scored two more goals in the Nittany Lions’ six-goal run six minutes later before recording her final tally of the half to take them up 12-5 with 3:53 left on the clock.
HALFTIME: No. 18 @PennStateWLAX leads No. 11 @UVAWomensLax 13-6. O'Donnell has a team-high 4G for the Nittany Lions, becoming the 14th player in program history to tally 200 career points. #NCAAWLAX pic.twitter.com/oZbAdJu6sw
— US Lacrosse Magazine (@USLacrosseMag) April 7, 2018
In the second half, O’Donnell had a balanced offensive effort with two goals and two assists, with her first assist sparking one more three-goal spurt five minutes in. She got one goal apiece in two separate back-to-back PSU scores before her final assist of the day handed the Nittany Lions their 22nd goal.
O’Donnell also added two draw controls and one caused turnover in the win. She extended her goal streak to 36 straight games and moved up to ninth in Penn State’s all-time points list with 205 in her career.
UPSET: No. 18 @PennStateWLAX dominates No. 11 @UVAWomensLax 22-13 behind 8PTs from O'Donnell. Nicolai had 6PTs. #NCAAWLAX pic.twitter.com/5YZpskIJ8q
— US Lacrosse Magazine (@USLacrosseMag) April 7, 2018