Oct. 25, 2011
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - The Penn State men's soccer team will travel east to Lewisburg for its third road trip in the past week, visiting regional rival and defending Patriot League champion Bucknell (7-7-1) on Wednesday for a 7 p.m. non-conference clash at the Bison's Emmitt Field at Holmes Stadium.
Penn State (7-7-2) suffered another bout with hard luck on Sunday, falling to Ohio State, 1-0, in overtime in Columbus despite controlling the run of play for 95-plus minutes. The Nittany Lions outshot the Buckeyes, 19-11, and had a 10-3 advantage in corner kicksbut could not convert on its offensive opportunities. The PSU defense was strong once again, rendering five of Ohio State's 11 shots harmless by blocking them and holding the Big Ten leading scorer to just one shot for the game.
Bucknell enters Wednesday's game in the midst of a two-game losing streak, dropping back-to-back road games at Adelphi (1-0) and at Army (2-1). The Bison are 3-3-0 at home in 2011, outscoring opponents 11-8.
The Bucknell offense has produced 22 goals and has been shutout just three times in 2011. Sophomore Mayowa Alli has emerged as the Bison's top weapon, totaling a team-high seven goals and 16 points. Luke Joyner (5 goals, 3 assists), Patriot League Preseason Offensive Player of the Year Brendan Burgdorf (2 goals, 5 assists), and Josh Plump (3 goals) have also been productive.
Senior goalkeeper Tommy Caso has started 13 of Bucknell's 15 games, compiling a 7-5-1 record, a 1.09 goals against average, and a .712 save percentage.
The rivalry with Bucknell is one of Penn State's longest running, dating back to 1930, and its most successful, totaling 58 wins against just eight losses and three ties. A year ago, the Nittany Lions dropped a 2-1 decision to the Bison in Happy Valley at the 2010 Penn State Classic. In its last visit to Lewisburg, in 2009, Penn State came away 2-1 victors, using a Bucknell own goal and a tally from Corey Hertzog to gain the road win.
Fans can also follow all of the action of the Penn State-Bucknell match on the Internet with live stats and instant scoring updates from GameTracker. The game will also be streamed live on the web and can be viewed by fans with the payment of a subscription fee. Find links on the official website of Nittany Lion athletics, www.GoPSUsports.com.
After getting the weekend off, Penn State will finish out a nearly two-week long, four-game road stretch when it visits Hempstead, N.Y. for a 7 p.m. match with Hofstra (6-8-0) on Tuesday, Nov. 1. The Nittany Lions have faced the Pride only once in program history, a 5-1 home win at the 2009 Penn State Classic. Hofstra has lost four of its last five games with CAA match-ups with George Mason and William & Mary on the schedule before hosting Penn State.