Two former Penn State soccer standouts helped the U.S. Women’s National Team win its first Olympic gold medal in 12 years on Saturday, with one of the former Nittany Lions turning in a heroic goaltending performance to secure the victory.
Goalkeeper Alyssa Naeher won her second Olympic medal and midfielder Sam Coffey is bringing home her first after the U.S. defeated Brazil in a 1-0 thriller.
Naeher’s incredible one-handed stop of a header on goal four minutes into stoppage time saved the day and preserved the 1-0 win.
The 36-year-old was a stalwart in front of the net all match, stopping an early shot on goal in the opening minutes and then deflecting another that would have broken a scoreless tie in stoppage time at the end of the first half.
That goaltending, and continued strong defensive by the U.S. allowed Mallory Swanson’s goal more than 60 minutes into the match to stand up as the decisive score.
Both Naeher and Coffey were key contributors for the U.S. throughout the six-match gold medal run. Coffey started five games, missing one due to yellow cards during group play, and was a dominant force in the midfield.
Coffey played all 90 minutes of the gold medal match, creating multiple scoring chances and helping shut out the Brazilians, who became just the second Olympic finalists to go scoreless.
Naeher was a three-time All-American and two-time Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year during her Penn State career from 2006-09. She has played in every major tournament for the U.S. Women’s National Team since 2019, including winning a bronze medal at the 2020 Summer Olympics.
After beginning her collegiate career at Boston College, Coffey was an All-American and two-time All-Big Ten pick for Penn State from 2019-21.
Coffey and Naeher are the 10th and 11th Penn Staters to medal at the Paris Games, a group that includes another Nittany Lion soccer alumna, Laura Freigang, who won bronze with Germany on Friday.
