Oct. 13, 2011
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UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Penn State will continue Big Ten play on Sunday when it hosts Northwestern (6-4-3, 1-0-1) at 2 p.m. as part of a doubleheader day of Nittany Lion soccer action at Jeffrey Field. The conference match, which will follow the PSU women's game with Iowa, will be broadcast live on the Big Ten Network.
Penn State is coming off a hard-fought, hard-luck 1-0 road loss to No. 5 Akron on Wednesday night. The Nittany Lions pressured the defending national champion Zips from the opening whistle, getting off five shots in the early going, including one that ricocheted off the crossbar. Despite playing down a man for much of the second half, after junior Julian Cardona (Lincoln, Neb.) was sent off with a red card in the 50th minute, Penn State outshot Akron, 5-3, and had an excellent chance to tie the game in its waning moments but was denied.
The Nittany Lions were aggressive on the attack throughout the game, earning 10 corner kicks to Akron's three. Shots finished 10-8 in favor of the Zips. Freshman goalkeeper Andrew Wolverton (Snellville, Ga.) recorded four saves in his 13th straight start.
Northwestern enters Sunday's contest as one of the Big Ten's hottest teams, going unbeaten in seven of its last games (5-1-2), including a 2-0 victory over Northern Illinois on Wednesday in Evanston. The Wildcats' biggest win of the season came last weekend, when they knocked off Ohio State, 3-2, in Columbus.
Senior forward Oliver Kupe is Northwestern's leading scorer, totaling five goals and 10 points, but Chris Ritter (3 goals, 1 assist), Lepe Seetane (2 goals, 3 assists), and Kyle Schickel (2 goals, 3 assists) have also been productive offensive contributors. Reed Losee tops the `Cats in shots (33) and shots on goal (15) while both of Nikko Boxall's goals have been game winners.
The Northwestern defense, which has allowed 13 goals in 13 games, is anchored by freshman goalkeeper Tyler Miller. He possesses a 0.80 goals against average and has recorded six shutouts in his rookie collegiate campaign.
Penn State has posted more wins against Northwestern than any other Big Ten team, compiling a dominating 22-3-3 series record. A year ago, the Nittany Lions drew, 1-1, with the Wildcats in Evanston during the regular season and won 3-1 in a first round match-up of the Big Ten Tournament in University Park. Penn State is 10-0-1 all-time versus Northwestern at Jeffrey Field.
Fans can also follow all of the action of the Penn State-Northwestern match on the Internet with live stats and instant scoring updates from GameTracker. Find a link on the official website of Nittany Lion athletics, www.GoPSUsports.com.
Next week, Penn State will begin a grueling four-game road swing that will see the Nittany Lions log nearly 1,700 miles of round trip travel when it visits the Charm City on Wednesday, Oct. 19 for a 7 p.m. contest with UMBC (6-3-3). In 2010, the Lions fell to the Retrievers, 2-1, in overtime at Jeffrey Field in the first-ever meeting between the two programs.