COLLEGE PARK, Md. – First-year Maryland women's soccer head coach Ray Leone announced the Terrapins' 2016 schedule Wednesday. Six Big Ten home contests highlight the slate, including one against reigning national champions Penn State.

“We are very excited about the schedule we have this fall,” Leone said. “The combination of teams we will play will provide us with a diverse set of challenges and we are thrilled to welcome some of the top teams in the nation to Ludwig Field.”

In total, the Terrapins will play 10 home contests (four non-conference/six conference) at Ludwig Field, with the home opener coming Friday, August 19 at 7 p.m., against Big 12 Conference foe TCU. The Terps will follow that up with a home match Sunday, Aug. 21 at 1 p.m. versus Gardner Webb.

Maryland then hits the road for the first time with a two-game swing against William and Mary (Aug. 25, 7 p.m.) and Penn (Aug. 28, 5 p.m.). Pepperdine travels to College Park on Friday, Sept. 2 at 4 p.m. before Maryland treks to Appalachian State (Sept. 4, 1 p.m.).

The Terps will play its annual game with Navy in a midweek affair on Sept. 7 at 7 p.m. in Annapolis. Maryland then returns home to take on local rival George Mason at Ludwig Field on Sunday, Sept. 11 at 7 p.m.

Big Ten play begins on Friday, Sept. 16 as the Terps travel to face Rutgers. The match against the Scarlet Knights, who advanced to the College Cup semifinals last season, will kick off at 7 p.m.

Maryland's conference home slate opens with a Thursday night (Sept. 22) match against Illinois, with kickoff scheduled for 7 p.m. The match will be broadcast live on BTN. The Terps will follow with Northwestern on Sunday, Sept. 25 at 1 p.m.

The Terps then take a two-game trip to the state of Michigan to face Michigan State (Sept. 29, 4 p.m.) and Michigan (Oct. 2, 2 p.m.). Maryland welcomes Ohio State on Thursday, Oct. 6 at 7 p.m. before Penn State comes to College Park on Sunday, Oct. 9 at 1 p.m.

Big Ten action continues in West Lafayette, Ind., on Oct. 13 when the Terps face Purdue at 7 p.m. The Terps then finish out their home schedule with contests against Indiana (Oct. 16, 1 p.m.) and Iowa (Oct. 21, 4 p.m.).

Maryland closes out the regular season on the road at Minnesota on Oct. 26 at 8 p.m. The top-8 teams in the Big Ten would qualify for the Big Ten Tournament, with the quarterfinals beginning at October 30.

The Terps will also contest to preseason exhibition matches; at UMBC (Aug 8) and at Georgetown (Aug. 13).

-Terps-