CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. -- Freshman Sarah Teegarden scored on a 30-yard strike in the 81st minute to lead Wake Forest to a 1-0 win against fourth-seeded Penn State on Friday at Klockner Stadium
Teegarden burst out of the midfield to find a short clearance and ripped a first-time half-volley that Penn State goalkeeper Britt Eckerstrom could only get fingertips on as it sailed inside the right post to give her the first goal of her career and Wake Forest a spot in the third round.
"I'm so proud of the kids. They really executed the game plan to perfection," head coach Tony da Luz said. "It was a great goal from Sarah. No player deserves it more and does more of the quiet work behind the scenes than Sarah does. For her to get that winner is just incredible."
"I've been practicing them a lot, so it's due time that one went in," Teegarden said about her blast. "I was just thinking to keep it low and hit it hard, and that's what I did."
The Demon Deacons move on to face either No. 1 seed Virginia or Georgetown at 5 p.m. Sunday in Charlottesville.
"We'll have our work cut out, but I told the kids before the game that we just have to take care of today and worry about Sunday on Sunday," da Luz said. "It really doesn't matter who we play Sunday. We just have to get the job done and keep advancing - that's our goal."
A participant in the past 18 NCAA tournaments, Wake Forest reached the third round for the fourth time and the first since the 2011 College Cup season. The Deacons are now 3-0-0 all-time against the Nittany Lions, including 2-0-0 in NCAA tournament play.
After a back-and-forth first half, the Demon Deacons took control of the game after halftime, outshooting the Nittany Lions 8-2 in the final period.
Goalkeeper Aubrey Bledsoe kept her eighth shutout of the season and the 33rd of her career, tied for the seventh most for any player in ACC history.
With her 90 minutes played in the contest, Bledsoe moved into second place in NCAA Division I history in career minutes played by a goalkeeper with 8,607:09. She is 246:03 minutes shy of the NCAA record of 8,8:53:12 held by Emily Olesksiuk, who played at Penn State from 1998-2001.
Defense was key for the Demon Deacons, who held U.S. national team player and active NCAA career scoring leader Maya Hayes without a single shot. After Wake Forest went in front, Penn State peppered the Wake Forest box but the Deacon defenders held strong, clearing the ball time and time again.
