Oct. 1, 2013
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- The Nittany Lion men's soccer squad looks for its fifth straight win when it hosts the Saint Francis Red Flash on Wednesday night at Jeffrey Field. Kick-off is set for 7 p.m. as Penn State celebrates Pink Night in honor of breast cancer awareness in conjunction with the University's fraternities and sororities.
| PENN STATE (6-2-1, 1-0-0 B1G) vs. SAINT FRANCIS (6-2-1, 0-0-0 NEC) | |
| Match 10: Oct. 1, 2013 • 7:00 p.m. • Jeffrey Field • University Park, Pa. | |
| VENUE | Jeffrey Field (5,000; Grass) |
| STREAMING COVERAGE | BTN.com ($) |
| LIVE STATS | |
| SERIES RECORD vs. SFU | Penn State leads 10-0-0 |
| LAST MEETING vs. SFU | Sept. 14, 2011; W, 1-0 at PSU |
| NEXT MATCH | Oct. 6 at Indiana, 1:00 p.m. on Big Ten Network |
| Penn State Game Notes | |
PROMOTIONS
Penn State is encouraging fans to wear pink to the match and bid on auction items on the West Stands behind the team benches. Also, all members of Penn State fraternities and sororities will receive community service credit for attending the match on Greek Night. All regular season home games are free of charge.
MATCH STORIES
• Nittany Lions host the Red Flash in a mid-week clash at Jeffrey Field
• Penn State is 10-0-0 all-time against the Saint Francis including 2011's 1-0 win
• Saint Francis fell to Duquesne, 1-0, on Sunday, Sept. 29
• Martin Seiler & Eli Dennis netted goals in Sunday's Big Ten win vs. Wisconsin
• PSU has broken out of an early season scoring slump, tallying 5 goals in past 2 games
• The Nittany Lions are 194-39-21 all-time against Pennsylvania foes
• Penn State is 4-0-1 in its past five matches and an unbeaten 5-0-1 at home
• PSU has allowed just two goals in 560 minutes at Jeffrey Field this season
• The Nittany Lions are 12-2-3 the past two seasons at Jeffrey Field
ABOUT THE RED FLASH
Saint Francis (6-2-1) is coming off a split weekend with a win at Howard (2-1) and a home loss to Duquesne (1-0). The Red Flash have outscored their opponents 13-5 through nine matches. The offense runs through Nick Kolarac as he has scored seven of the team's 13 strikes and is the only SFU player with multiple goals. In net, Daniel Valcicak has gotten the last seven starts, posting three shutouts and allowing just four goals in 650 minutes of play. The fifth-year senior has a .875 save percentage.
SERIES HISTORY vs. SFU
All-Time Series: Penn State leads 10-0-0
PSU Streak: 10 wins
First Meeting: 9/7/1993, PSU 3-0
Last Meeting: 9/14/2011, PSU 1-0
Last PSU Win: 9/14/2011, PSU 1-0
Last SFU Win: n/a
Largest PSU Win: 8-0, 9/1/1998
Largest SFU win: n/a
LAST THREE MEETINGS vs. SFU
9/14/2011: W, 1-0 - H
9/29/2010: W, 4-3 - H
9/1/2009: W, 5-0 - H
LIONS OVERWHELM BADGERS
The Penn State men's soccer team won its Big Ten opener on Sunday afternoon (Sept. 29) at Jeffrey Field by defeating Wisconsin, 3-1. Martin Seiler and Eli Dennis tallied strikes and the Badgers provided an own goal as Penn State won its fourth straight match.
With the game deadlocked at one through 77 minutes, Shane Campbell beat his defender down the right wing and passed a ball to the near post to a running Jordan Tyler. The crafty redshirt-junior beat his defender and crossed a ball in front of the net that was knocked in by the Wisconsin defense for an own goal and a 2-1 Penn State lead.
Five minutes later Penn State salted the game away as Randy Falk sent a beautiful cross to a running Dennis on the left side of the penalty area for the final 3-1 score line. The goal was Dennis' second of the year and Falk's first assist. Connor Maloney set the play up as Falk made an overlapping run on the right wing.
OFFENSIVE BREAKOUT
The Nittany Lions have broken out of a seven-game scoring slump where they tallied just six goals (0.86 per game). Over the past two games, Penn State has scored six times (2.5 per game). Leading the way during the drought was Mark Wadid with three of the team's six goals. Over the past two matches, Jordan Tyler, Martin Seiler, Eli Dennis and Shane Campbell have all scored.
KEYSTONE STATE DOMINANCE
Penn State holds a hefty 194-39-21 all-time record against the current Division I teams in Pennsylvania. Penn State has the most all-time wins against Bucknell (59) and has unblemished marks against five other squads (Duquesne, La Salle, Robert Morris, Saint Francis and Saint Joseph's). Four Pennsylvania teams are on the schedule in 2013: Robert Morris, Duquesne, Saint Francis and Penn.
STINGY HOME DEFENSE
Junior goalkeeper Andrew Wolverton has allowed just two goals in 560 minutes of action this season, collecting 18 saves through the first six home games. The netminder has made a career on clean sheets, posting 19 shutouts in 37 career starts (51%). Wolverton set the Penn State single-season record for shutouts as a freshman (12), and is currently tied for fifth on the PSU career shutout list.
LIONS COMPLETE COMEBACK WIN
Penn State went down a goal to West Virginia in the opening five minutes, but recovered behind goals from Shane Campbell and Jordan Tyler in a 2-1 victory on Wednesday night (Sept. 25). Campbell tallied his first collegiate goal in the 12th minute, while Tyler supplied the heroics in the 71st, his first goal since Sept. 9, 2011. Grant Warming, Mason Klerks and Connor Maloney provided assists from the midfield. Andrew Wolverton made four saves as the Nittany Lions earned their third straight victory and are unbeaten in the last four.