Aug. 30, 2012
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UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -The Penn State men's soccer team will play a pair of contests this weekend, hosting Duquesne at 8 p.m. Friday before heading to Washington, D.C., to face No. 21 Georgetown at 1 p.m. Sunday. Admission to all regular-season home matches and parking are free at Jeffrey Field.
ON THE HORIZON
Following the matches with Duquesne (1-1-0) and Georgetown (2-0-0), the Nittany Lions (2-0-0) will enjoy their second three-game homestand of the season. Penn State will face West Virginia Sept. 6, Albany Sept. 14 and Adelphi Sept. 16.
FOLLOW ALONG!
The men's soccer program has its own Twitter account for the first season this year! Be sure to follow @PennStateMSOC, along with all of the Penn State athletics accounts, to get the most up-to-date and behind the scenes information. Join the Nittany Lions fans on Facebook as well, at Facebook.com/pennstatemenssoccer.
'TWAS THE NIGHT BEFORE KICKOFF
The Nittany Lions football team will kick off its season with the ninth annual Penn State Football Eve at 7 p.m. Friday. The festivities at Beaver Stadium are scheduled to wrap up at 7:40 p.m. and from there fans will be able to march from the stadium to Jeffrey Field or Rec Hall for the 8 p.m. men's soccer and women's volleyball matches, respectively.
Admission and parking are free for Penn State Football Eve. The Nittany Lions' season opener against Ohio is set to begin at noon Saturday. For more information about the event, click here.
WHAT AN HONOR!
Senior defender Brian Forgue (Glenmoore, Pa.) picked up the first Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week honors of the season, the conference announced Monday, and senior Julian Cardona (Lincoln, Neb.) garnered a spot on the TopDrawerSoccer.com National Team of the Week after a two-goal performance in the 3-0 win over Stetson.
Forgue earned the award, the first of his career, after guiding the Penn State defense to a shutout of Stetson Aug. 25. The Nittany Lion back line denied the Hatters a shot on goal while allowing just two shots, both in the second half.
Cardona tallied the second and third goals in the Stetson contest, first sending a header into the back of the net in the 64th minute before firing a right-footed blast past goalkeeper Andreas Schnabl from 27 yards out less than a minute later. Cardona tied Minh Vu (Tuscon, Ariz.) for the team lead in goals (4) in 2011.
LAST TIME OUT
Penn State's offense thrived in its first two outings, netting a combined six goals on the way to victories over Stetson and Hartford. Cardona jump-started the efforts by adding four goals, but the senior forward was the beneficiary of several setup passes as the team tallied six assists throughout the weekend. Daniel Burnham (Boise, Idaho) claimed the game-winning goal against Stetson, heading home a cross in the first half, while Owen Griffith (Lewisburg, Pa.) secured the victory against Hartford off a pass from Burnham.
The PSU defense put together an impressive performance against Stetson, shutting out the Hatters while allowing just two shots.
SCOUTING THE DUKES
The Dukes hosted the Duquesne Invitational over the weekend, opening the tournament with a 4-0 thrashing of Howard before dropping a 4-2 decision to Niagara. Senior Joshua Patterson led the team with a pair of goals on 11 shots while adding an assist. Goalkeepers Sam Frymier and Sasa Miskovic split time at the back of defense. Miskovic started and played the first half in both contests before Frymier handled second-half duties. Duquesne outshot its opponents, 33-14, and held a 7-1 advantage in corner kicks during opening weekend.
Seventh-year head man Jake Ouimet manages Duquesne on the pitch. Last season, the Dukes finished 7-9-2, including a 4-4-1 ledger in the Atlantic 10. Patterson and then-sophomore Simon Gomez shared the team lead in goals (9) as the squad notched two or more goals in nine contests.
A LOOK AT THE HOYAS
Georgetown, under the direction of seventh-year head coach Brian Wiese, enters the weekend with two wins after a 2-1 overtime victory over Virginia and a 1-0 edging of Florida Gulf Coast. Brandon Allen and Steve Neumann, named first team All-Big East last season, accounted for the two Hoya goals, while the gamewinner against Virginia resulted from a Cavalier own goal. Keeper Tomas Gomez has played all 185 minutes for Georgetown in 2012.
A HISTORY OF THE SERIES
The contest against Duquesne will be the first for the Nittany Lions. The teams were scheduled to play at the 2001 Penn State Nike Classic, but the match was cancelled. Penn State holds a 1-0-1 advantage with the Hoyas. The Lions picked up the win in 2004, battling to a 3-2 victory in double overtime. The meeting in 2011 ended in a tie as neither team could produce a goal.
TUBE-ULAR COVERAGE
The men's soccer team will have at least two games aired on the Big Ten Network in 2012. The Nittany Lions make their BTN season debut Oct. 6 at Michigan before hosting Michigan State Oct. 14 at 3 p.m., which will air live on the BTN. The Michigan contest air time will be announced at a later date. Additionally, both Big Ten Tournament semifinal contests and the championship game will be aired live on the BTN.
PRESEASON POLLS
Penn State was selected fifth in the Big Ten men's soccer Preseason Coaches' Poll. Reigning conference champion Northwestern and 2010 Big Ten champion Indiana shared the top spot, followed by Michigan State and Ohio State. Following the Lions, Wisconsin and Michigan round out the list.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Three Nittany Lions found spots on the 2012 Big Ten Players to Watch list. Seniors Minh Vu and Jacob Barron are expected to produce in the midfield this season, while sophomore Andrew Wolverton was one of just two goalkeepers on the list. Wolverton was joined by classmate and fellow keeper, Tyler Miller of Northwestern.
GETTING PROMOTIONAL
Free t-shirts will be available to fans at the Duquesne match Friday night. The t-shirts are designed to match the Nittany Lions' on-field tops and feature a 2012 schedule on the back.
NSCAA TO OFFER COACHING COURSES
The National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) will offer two opportunities this fall for individuals to attend a special topic course, "Reading the Game", at a Penn State soccer game. The first opportunity will come on August 24, as the Penn State women's soccer team hosts defending national champion Stanford. The second chance to attend the course will come on Sept. 29, as Penn State men's soccer hosts Indiana. For more information, click here.