Liberty Hosts Queens and No. 9 Penn State

LYNCHBURG, Va. – The Liberty Lady Flames soccer team (3-1-2) welcomes Queens (0-3-2) and No. 9 Penn State (3-2) to Osborne Stadium this week. Thursday's contest is set for 5:30 with Sunday's meeting scheduled at 1 p.m. Sunday's matchup against No. 9 Penn State will be broadcast live on ESPN+.

Liberty is coming off a 1-0-1 week, including a 1-1 draw against No. 24 Virginia Tech and a 1-0 shutout victory at Old Dominion. No. 9 Penn State will mark the Lady Flames' third consecutive week hosting a nationally ranked opponent (2-0 loss vs. Virginia, Aug. 24).

Goalkeeper Ainsley Leja was named the Conference USA Goalkeeper of the Week. The redshirt senior secured her first shutout of the season, totaling four saves last week.

Liberty is meeting Queens and Penn State for just the second time in program history. The first meeting against Queens resulted in a 2-0 Liberty triumph in 2022. The initial meeting against Penn State, also in 2022, concluded with a 2-1 Nittany Lions victory.

Lady Flames News & Notes

With Sunday's triumph at ODU, Liberty became an all-time winning program for the first time in program history. The team holds an all-time 312-311-60 record dating back to 1988.
Penn State is the only Big 10 program Liberty has ever faced.
Liberty has faced a top 10 ranked program four times (0-4) in program history. Previous meetings have been against No. 6 Virginia (9-1 loss, 2011), No. 7 Virginia (5-0 loss, 2008), No. 8 Virginia (3-0 loss, 2012) and No. 9 Virginia (0-6).
Penn State will be coming off a run against common opponents with Liberty. The Nittany Lions played to a 1-1 draw against James Madison on Aug. 31 and will face No. 8 Virginia on Thursday. The Lady Flames drew JMU 2-2 on Aug. 17 and lost to No. 17 Virginia 2-0 on Aug. 24.
The Lady Flames are still seeking their first home win of the 2025 season (0-1-1). Their previous results were against ranked teams, including No. 17 Virginia (0-2) and No. 24 Virginia Tech (1-1).
Forward Ivy Garner, who scored the game-winning goal at Old Dominion in the final five minutes, leads the team with three goals and seven points this season (one assist).
Liberty midfielders have combined for eight points this season (3g, 2a).
Leja (2-1-2) has started every game this season. She has completed a full 90-minute performance in four contests. The redshirt senior owns a 0.94 goals-against average (GAA) and a 0.737 save percentage.

Schedule

Liberty Hosts Queens and No. 9 Penn State

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Players Mentioned

Ivy Garner

Ainsley Leja