Oct. 18, 2009
COLUMBUS, Ohio - The No. 24 Penn State men's soccer team (8-4-2, 2-1-1 Big Ten) dug itself a hole it couldn't fully get out of in its Big Ten showdown with Ohio State (8-3-3, 2-1-0 Big Ten) on Sunday afternoon in Columbus and fell 2-1. The setback was the Nittany Lions' first in conference play this season and their first since Sept. 20.
Despite the setback, Penn State remains alone atop the Big Ten standings with seven points by virtue of Michigan State's 1-0 upset overtime victory over No. 23 Indiana on Sunday. The Hoosiers, Ohio State, and Wisconsin are in a three-way tie for second place with six points.
"We had our chances, but we didn't put them away," said Penn State head coach Barry Gorman. We didn't play our best, but we didn't play bad. We just didn't have our `A' game. Ohio State had a game plan and stuck to it and was successful."
"I keep talking to the guys about things getting harder down the stretch. Every game is going to be tough."
Senior midfielder Frank Costigliola (Dix Hills, N.Y.) accounted for Penn State's goal in unassisted fashion, netting his second of the season and sixth of his career. The Nittany Lions outshot Ohio State, 18-8, and had a 7-5 advantage in shots on goal but couldn't capitalize on opportunities created. Senior forward Jason Yeisley (Allentown, Pa.) and junior midfielder Drew Cost led the team with four shots each.
Penn State gave up the lead and surrendered just its second first half goal of the year when Ohio State's Austin McAnena scored in the 14th minute. Assists went to Konrad Warzycha and Sam Scales on the play. The Nittany Lions battled the Buckeyes to a scoreless tie for the remainder of the half and went to the break down, 1-0.
Ohio State upped its lead to a deuce early in the second half, scoring the eventual game winner in the 49th minute. Warzycha put it in net, with assists going to Scales and McAnena.
The Nittany Lions answered back less than 10 minutes later when a shot hit by Frank Costigliola down the middle of the field deflected off an Ohio State defender and into goal. Penn State pushed to tally the equalizer in the game's remaining 31-plus minutes but could not put together a scoring run.
The Nittany Lions will continue their road swing on Wed., Oct. 21 when they visit nearby Lewisburg, Pa. to meet Bucknell (11-3-0) in a non-conference tilt. Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. at Emmitt Field at Holmes Stadium. The rivalry with Bucknell is one of Penn State's longest running, dating back to 1930, and its most successful, totaling 57 wins against just seven losses and three ties. The Lions had their 25-game winning streak against the Bison snapped last year when BU earned a 2-0 victory in the finale of the Penn State Classic.
Senior forward Jason Yeisley has been named a finalist for the Lowe's Senior CLASS Award, an honor that recognizes excellence in four areas - classroom, community, character, and competition. Fans can vote for Yeisley EVERY DAY by texting M9 to 74567 and by visiting www.seniorclassaward.com. Fan balloting, which counts for 1/3 of the final vote, continues until Nov. 13.