On Sunday afternoon, the Quinnipiac Bobcats will be making their first appearance in the NCAA tournament since 2000 when they take on the Penn State Nittany Lions.

Penn State comes into this matchup as the number two seed on this side of the bracket, proving to be a challenging foe for the no. 15-seeded Bobcats.

“There’s a lot of talent, there’s a lot of depth,” said head coach Dave Clarke. “A lot of pace, very much a 1 v. 1 team.”

Penn State, the winners of the Big 10 conference, will be hosting this matchup at Jeffrey Field where they are 7-1-1 on the season, another tall task for the Bobcats.

The Nittany Lions have outscored their opponents so far in the season 38-18 showing off their offensive prowess.

“They’re a really good attacking team,” said senior midfielder Markela Bejleri. “Their forwards, midfielders are great, so we know that’s something we have to deal with.”

The offense has been led all season by the likes of senior forwards Ally Schlegel and Penelope Hocking, who have 47 points combined between the two them.

Do not let the seedings fool you, however, as the Bobcats are no slouches themselves.

Coming into this, the Bobcats have outscored their opponents 53-15 as they steamrolled through the MAAC with a conference record of 9-1 and a MAAC conference championship.

The players that have done the most damage for the Bobcats would be junior forwards Courtney Chochol and Rebecca Cooke, Cooke has led the country in scoring with 22 goals on the season.

“I think we’re gonna play great,” said junior goalkeeper Sofia Lospinoso. “I have a lot of confidence in the players in front of me.”

Something that has got the Bobcats this far would be the contributions from everybody on the team, especially the underclassmen.

“It means a lot to me,” said freshman defender Molly Andrews. “Coming in I didn’t know how I was gonna have an impact on the team, but now playing in most of the games for periods of time, has been a lot.”

The Bobcats have been the favorites in most of the games they have played this season, but for Sunday, they are embracing the challenge of being an underdog.

“The pressures off a little bit,” said graduate defender Lauren Triglione. “That’s on Penn State, we’re here for it, we’re ready.”

These two teams will be facing off on Sunday at 1:00 p.m. with both having their eyes on the next round.