Aug 24, 2013
ANNAPOLIS, Md. - ANNAPOLIS, Md. - Thomas Shiiba's 84th minute strike was the difference Saturday night as the Penn State men's soccer team fell to Navy, 2-1, in a preseason exhibition at the Glenn Warner Soccer Facility.
Penn State opens regular season play Friday as it hosts Radford on Jeffrey Field at 7:00 p.m. Fans are reminded that there is a no bag policy on stadium grounds.
Just minutes after a golden opportunity by freshman Mark Wadid (Mississaugua, Ontario) was thwarted by a sprawling save, Shiiba cut through the heart of the Penn State defense and fired a shot into the bottom corner to give Navy the game-winner with six minutes to play.
Navy jumped on the Nittany Lions early in the match, as Jamie Dubyoski fired a low shot into the left corner from the top of the 18-yard box. The ball skimmed just past the outstretched hands of goalkeeper Danny Sheerin (College Park, Md.) to put the Midshipmen ahead, 1-0, in the fifth minute.
Penn State registered chances on shots by Owen Griffith (Lewisburg, Pa.) and Jordan Tyler (Rochester, Mich.), before capitalizing on a beautiful cross by Kyle MacDonald (Yardley, Pa.) in the 32nd minute.
MacDonald curled a cross into Martin Seiler (Stuttgart, Germany), who snuck between Navy defenders and nodded a header off the crossbar. The ball caromed off the bottom of the bar, and Seiler headed home the rebound to square the game, 1-1.
The Midshipmen had most of the opportunities to begin the second half, as Sheerin came up big in a number of situations for the Lions. The keeper saved a Geoff Fries shot in the 56th minute and then disrupted a one-on-one situation with a sliding save.
Penn State broke free with 10 minutes remaining when Mike Robinson (Lansdale, Pa.) fought down the left flank with a strong dribble through the Navy midfield. Robinson found Wadid, who curled a shot to the back post that was thwarted by the Navy goalkeeper.