Oct. 12, 2007
Penn State-Boston University Game Notes
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UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - The Penn State men's soccer team (4-5-2) will play the first of two consecutive non-conference road contests this weekend when it visits Boston University (6-5-0) for a 2 p.m. game on Sat., Oct. 13. The Nittany Lions will square off with BU on the banks of the Charles River at the home of the Terriers, Nickerson Field.
Penn State enters Saturday's match-up after earning a 1-1 tie in a physical game with Lafayette on Wednesday evening at Jeffrey Field. Freshman forward Treavor Gelsinger (Shady Grove, Pa.) netted his second goal of the season in the 58th minute, providing the Nittany Lions with a 1-0 lead. Senior defender Grady Renfrow (Washington, D.C.) and junior forward Jason Yeisley (Allentown, Pa.) were credited with assists on the play. But after freshman defender Casey Derkacz (Hamburg, N.Y.) was sent off with a controversial red card in the 69th minute, Lafayette scored the equalizer with just 1:31 remaining in regulation. Penn State battled through the game's final 41 minutes, including the two overtime periods, down a man and salvaged a tie.
Through 11 games, Yeisley and Gelsinger have emerged as a potent front line duo for Penn State. Yeisley, a team co-captain, leads the Nittany Lions in nearly every offensive category, including goals (6), assists (4), points (16), shots (33), and shots on goal (15) and is a legitimate All-America candidate. Gelsinger, a starter of four straight games, is second on the team in goals (tie, 2), assists (tie, 3), and points (7).
Boston University is coming off its first America East victory of the season, a 2-0 defeat of Maine at home on Wednesday night. However, the Terriers biggest win of the year came earlier this month when they upset No. 15 Brown on the road by a score of 1-0. The BU attack has gotten contributions from a variety of sources in 2007. Led by freshman forward Aaron O'Neal's five goals, five different Terriers have registered two or more goals and 12 players have tallied at least one point. Sophomore goalkeeper Hrafn Davidsson has started 10 of 11 games for BU, compiling a 1.10 goals against average and three shutouts. A familiar face to the Penn State faithful will be on the opposite sideline on Saturday, as former Barry Gorman assistant Scott Black is now on the Boston University coaching staff.
Penn State has met Boston University on the pitch just once in program history. A year ago, the Nittany Lions and the Terriers battled to a 1-1 tie at Jeffrey Field in the finale of the 2006 Penn State Classic. Playing in what would prove to be his final complete game of the season, Jason Yeisley, with assists from Simon Omekanda and Barkley Miller (New Freedom, Pa.), scored his 10th career goal to lead the Lions.
Fans can follow all of the action of the Penn State-Boston University game on the Internet with live stats and instant scoring updates from Gametracker. Click on the gametrack PSU link on the official website of Nittany Lion athletics, www.GoPSUsports.com, to access all of the Gametracker features.
The Nittany Lions head back onto the road next week, visiting No. 22 Akron (8-2-1) for a 7:30 p.m. game on Wed., Oct. 17. The non-conference contest will mark the fourth-consecutive year that Penn State has traveled to Lee Jackson Field to face the Zips. The Lions will then return to Happy Valley to take on Big Ten opponent Wisconsin (5-4-3, 0-2-1) in a pivotal conference game scheduled for 7 p.m. on Sat., Oct. 20 at Jeffrey Field. Penn State is 11-8-1 in its series history with the Badgers and will be looking to avenge a 2-0 loss suffered last year in Madison.