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| Armstrong Stadium | Bloomington, IN | 3,205 | |
| MATCH LINKS |
| FINAL STATISTICS |
Sept. 13, 2014
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - Sophomore Mason Klerks' (Corona, Calif.) first career goal in the first half propelled the 16th-ranked Nittany Lion men's soccer team to a 1-0 upset victory against No. 11 Indiana in the team's Big Ten opener at Armstrong Field Saturday night.
"Big Ten road wins are hard to come by," head coach Bob Warming said. "I'm so proud of our players. We got a brilliant strike by Mason on the set piece, Kyle MacDonald played a perfect dummy to get (Klerks) the ball and a spot on pass by Brian off the corner. Evan was sharp, but only had to make two saves because of great team defending."
Penn State, which opened its Big Ten campaign against Indiana for the 14th time, improved to 4-0-1 overall (1-0-0 Big Ten), while the Hoosiers fell to 3-1-1 overall (0-1-0 Big Ten) as they lost their conference opener for the first time in 24 seasons.
In the 27th minute, junior midfielder Brian James (Sunrise, Fla.) struck a corner kick to the top of the box as Kyle MacDonald (Yardley, Pa.) dummied to allow Klerks a chance on the ball. The sophomore midfielder-turned-defender sent a rocket from 18 yards out past IU goalkeeper Colin Webb.
At the other end of the pitch, sophomore Evan Finney (San Francisco, Calif.) secured a two-save shutout in his first collegiate start. Finney started in place of 2013 Big Ten Goalkeeper Andrew Wolverton (Atlanta, Ga.) who missed Saturday's match due to red-card suspension.
After holding Indiana scoreless at Armstrong Stadium for the first time in series history last season, the Nittany Lions blanked the Hoosiers in the teams' third straight matchup (2-0-1). Penn State has held Indiana scoreless for 290 minutes since an overtime game-winner for the Hoosiers on Sept. 29, 2012.
The defensive line of Eli Dennis (Easton, Pa.), Mike Robinson (Lansdale, Pa.), Klerks and defensive midfielder Owen Griffith (Lewisburg, Pa.) allowed only two shots on net by the Hoosiers. Penn State has four shutouts in five matches and has given up just a single goal in 470 minutes of play.
MATCH NOTES
-- Penn State also improved to 13-29-4 all-time against the Hoosiers, the best mark of any Big Ten team. No other Big Ten member has a winning percentage over .175, while PSU's is .326.
-- Indiana gave up a goal for the first time since opening night. Klerks' goal snapped a streak of 326 minutes of scoreless soccer for the Hoosiers.
-- Penn State has won back-to-back games at Armstrong Stadium for the first time in team history.
-- The Nittany Lions are unbeaten after five matches for the first time since 2004 when PSU started the year 5-0-4.
-- Connor Maloney (Harrisburg, Pa.) was kept scoreless for just the second time this season.
-- Brian James' assist is his second of the year. James helped on Maloney's second tally against St. John's (Aug. 31).
-- Penn State and Rutgers are tied atop the standings of the Big Ten. The former Atlantic 10 rivals meet Oct. 4 in Happy Valley. RU defeated Wisconsin, 3-2, in overtime in Madison on Friday night. Northwestern and Ohio State meet on Sunday, while Michigan and Maryland drew in their openers.
-- Penn State is 9-2-2 in Big Ten regular-season matches since 2012. PSU went 3-1-2 en route to its co-championship in 2012 and 5-1-0 last year.
NEXT MATCH
Penn State improved to 9-2-2 in their last 11 Big Ten regular-season matchups and will return home Tuesday, Sept. 16 when it welcomes Saint Francis (Pa.) to Jeffrey Field.