Nov. 15, 2009
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - The Penn State men's soccer team (12-7-2) suffered a heartbreaking defeat at the hands of No. 25 Ohio State (12-4-4), falling 1-0 in the final minute of regulation time in the Big Ten Tournament title game on Sunday afternoon in Bloomington, Ind.
The Nittany Lions will now await their postseason fate, which will be revealed on Monday evening when the NCAA Championship field is announced on ESPNews between 5:30-6 p.m.
Corey Hertzog (Reading, Pa.), who led Penn State with four shots in the championship contest, was named Offensive Most Valuable Player of the Tournament . The sophomore forward performed brilliantly throughout the postseason event, highlighted by a hat trick in the Nittany Lions semifinal win over Michigan State. Jason Yeisley (Allentown, Pa.) earned the award in Penn State's Big Ten Championship season of 2005 as a freshman.
Redshirt sophomore goalkeeper Warren Gross (Saratoga Springs, N.Y.), who allowed just one goal in three games, was also honored on the all-tournament team.
Ohio State scored the game winner with just 42 seconds remaining when David Tiemstra put a shot in net off a throw in from 16 yards out. On the ensuing possession, Hertzog had a chance to net the equalizer, off a header pass from Jason Yeisley, but he was taken down in the box and his shot went high.
Penn State came out the aggressors early on, setting the pace by maintaining possession. As a result, an excellent scoring opportunity came quickly; one that would start a string of chances for the Nittany Lions. In the ninth minute, Penn State pushed the ball deep into the Ohio State. After a pass attempt was tipped high by a Buckeye defender, Jason Yeisley headed the ball to Corey Hertzog. Off his line to negate any shots, OSU goalkeeper Matt Lampson was out of position when Hertzog chipped the ball high in an attempt to drop it in behind him. However, his touch was too hard and it sailed over the net.
Warren Gross was named to the all-tournament team for his standout play |
The Nittany Lions kept up the pressure and another chance came just over three minutes later. Corey Hertzog initiated the play off a throw in. His toss found the head of Jason Yeisley who flicked it wide to junior midfielder Matheus Braga (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil). Jumping to get his head on the ball, Braga just missed and the ball rolled out of bounds.
In the 20th minute, junior midfielder Drew Cost (West Chester, Pa.) battled through a crowd of defenders to gain possession on the left wing. He crossed it, targeting Jason Yeisley. The Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year connected with a header but it went wide.
Perhaps Penn State's best opportunity to stake its claim to a lead came with 10:30 remaining the first half. In the game as a sub, junior forward Treavor Gelsinger (Shady Grove, Pa.) held the ball at the top of the box in the middle of the field. He sent a pass to wide to Braga, who fired off a twisting, left-footed shot that was hauled in by the Ohio State goalkeeper.
The tide turned, however, after that point and Ohio State put together some potential scoring attempts. The Buckeyes nearly went up when midfielder Sam Scales sent a long cross into the box from the far right wing 30 yards away. Warren Gross couldn't control it at first and went to the ground. Ohio State tried to get off a shot but Gross was able to cover the ball up to end the chance.
In the second half, Penn State didn't come out sharp and played on their heels for the first 15 minutes but the Nittany Lions escaped unscathed. Bouncing back, PSU began to regain control. At the 31:50 mark, Drew Cost hit Corey Hertzog with a pass, who was on a run down right the wing. He received the ball, moved to his left to the middle of the field, and got off a lining shot. Yeisley maneuvered himself in position for a rebound but the Ohio State keeper smothered the shot.
Hertzog and Yeisley had back to back chances off throw ins from sophomore defender Patrick Krispin (The Woodlands, Texas) but both players' shots went wide of net.
In the 70th minute, Hertzog again also gave Penn State the advantage. He blasted a slicing shot from 22 yards out towards the far post that Lampson could only get one hand on. However, Jason Yeisley couldn't reach the uncontrolled ball in time for a follow-up and it went out past the endline.
With the loss, Penn State is now 24-15-4 all-time in Big Ten Tournament play.
Penn State last qualified for the NCAA Championship in 2005 when it defeated No. 20 Seton Hall, 1-0, before falling to No. 11 Creighton, 3-1, in the second round at Jeffrey Field.