Sept. 16, 2007
LOS ANGELES - The Penn State men's soccer team (2-4-0) wrapped up its two-game west coast trip on Sunday evening by falling to No. 17 UCLA (2-2-1), 4-1, in a wide open-style game at the Bruins' North Athletic Field in Los Angeles. The Nittany Lions finish the road swing with a 1-1 mark after defeating Cal State Fullerton, 2-0, on Friday evening.
UCLA jumped out in front in the game's sixth minute when senior defender Mike Zaher netted his first goal of the season, with an assist from sophomore midfielder Kyle Nakazawa. It would be the only goal of the first half. Despite the halftime deficit, the Nittany Lions outshot UCLA, 5-3.
In the second half, the Bruins' Maxwell Griffin, a junior forward, scored the first of his three goals and what would prove to be the eventual game winner nine minutes in.
Sophomore midfielder Frank Costigliola (Dix Hills, N.Y.) answered back, cutting the UCLA lead in half in the 63rd minute, when he scored his second goal of the year with a shot from the top of the box that found net. Costigliola was assisted on the play by junior forward Jason Yeisley (Allentown, Pa.) and senior defender Stephen Reihner (Washington, Pa.). For Yeisley, the assist was his second of the year and his team-high sixth point.
Griffin would then tally UCLA's final goals by netting scores in the game's 76th and 81st minute.
Penn State ended the game with a 14-10 advantage in shots over UCLA, including one that hit the crossbar. Costigliola and Yeisley led the Lions with three shots each. All three of Costigliola's shots made it on goal.
Senior Conrad Taylor (Colorado Springs, Colo.) played all 90 minutes in goal for Penn State for the 70th consecutive game, collecting five saves.
The Nittany Lions will kick off Big Ten Conference play next weekend when they visit East Lansing, Mich. for a 2 p.m. match-up with Michigan State on Sun., Sept. 23. Penn State has taken the last five meetings with the Spartans, outscoring them 9-2 during the winning streak. Michigan State is off to a fast start in 2007, posting a 5-0-1 record.