Sept. 6, 2014
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -
By Matt Allibone, GoPSUsports.com Student Staff Writer
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa.- The Penn State men's soccer team has always been a second-half squad.
That has especially been true this season. In the Nittany Lions first two games of 2014, all four of their goals came after halftime.
On Friday against Temple, it seemed like that would have to be the case again, as the clock approached the one-minute mark of the first half with the score tied at 0.
Oh, but how quickly things can change in a minute. All it took was for Mark Wadid to loft a corner kick into the box and Owen Griffith to head it into the back of the net with 59 seconds remaining to give the Nittany Lions a 1-0 lead they wouldn't relinquish.
"Coach said to make some runs into the box because he felt like I was dominating the aerial game," Griffith said. "It was good to get in there and try to get on the end of some services and luckily I got on the end of one.
"It's great [to have a lead at halftime]. We're definitely a second-half team and to have a goal in the first half was a huge confidence boost for us."
A mainstay on defense for the Nittany Lions, Griffith's header marked just the fourth goal of his career and his first since he netted the game-winner last year against Michigan on October 11.
Wadid's corner kick gave him his fourth assist in just three games this season. After a freshman season in which he scored three goals but never registered any helpers, the Ontario native is turning into one of Penn State's most reliable playmakers.
"Oh man, [the corner kick] was great," head coach Bob Warming said. "Mark's good in front of the goal but he's our best server. Owen's role is to just go hunt the ball and it was a great goal."
The goal came after 44 minutes in which the Nittany Lions consistently kept the ball in Temple's zone but were unable to score. Penn State got off six shots, including a one-on-one chance between forward Connor Maloney and Owls goalie Dan Scheck that came up just short for the Blue and White.
Even with a halftime lead, the Nittany Lions continued their reputation as a second-half team. Twice in the second half they put the ball in the back of the net only to have Mikey Minutillo and Randy Falk both ruled offside respectively.
With less than a minute left, Wadid nearly gave the Nittany Lions a bigger cushion but a bullet off the sophomore's foot ricocheted off the crossbar.
"You still always win the game in the second half," Warming said. "Hitting the crossbar and hitting both posts...it was a pretty good night in this temperature and this humidity."
Once again, the Nittany Lions defense came up big. When Andrew Wolverton stopped a shot from Stefan Mueller just over five minutes into the second-half, it was the first time in 208 minutes and 57 seconds that the star goalie had had to face a shot.
"Our three other backs, Eli, Mike [Robinson] and Mason [Klerks] have been tremendous," Griffith said. "Any long ball over my head they seem to scoop up. We can also keep the ball and build out of the back which is something our teams have had trouble doing in the past."
Still, the Owls did manage to pressure the Blue and White in the final twenty minutes. Eli Dennis made an excellent clear to stop a Temple attack with 15:31 remaining and two minutes later Wolverton made a terrific save on a rocket that Jared Martinelli sent to the corner of the left net.
With his third shutout of the season, Wolverton now only needs three more to bring his career total to 29 and claim the Nittany Lions all-time record.
"I have complete confidence in Wolvie," Griffith said. "He's an unbelievable keeper."
On a night in which Penn State honored the 60th anniversary of the 1954 and 1955 national championship teams, Jeffrey Field hosted an astounding 4,052 fans, the most to attend a Penn State soccer match since August 31, 2012.
"How special is it for them to come back and see 4,000 people in the stands and this kind of atmosphere and this kind of quality soccer and this kind of field," Warming said. "I'm just so happy."