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| Jeffrey Field | University Park, Pa. | 2,532 | |
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| FINAL STATISTICS |
Oct. 4, 2014
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - The No. 4 Penn State men's soccer team left it late against conference debutante Rutgers in a 1-0 win Saturday night at Jeffrey Field in front of 2,532 fans. Super sophomore and Big Ten scoring leader Connor Maloney's (Harrisburg, Pa.) 79th-minute goal gave the Nittany Lions the victory.
"I think we clicked offensively. I thought we were great," said head coach Bob Warming. "We got 22 shots and they weren't wild shots from 35 yards out so I don't know many college soccer teams that can play like we did tonight"
In a game that Penn State (10-0-1, 4-0-0 Big Ten) dominated from the start, where a Maloney rocket 10 seconds in caromed off the post, the Nittany Lions couldn't find the back of the net.
In the 79th minute, Drew Klingenberg (Gibsonia, Pa.) forced a turnover in PSU's defensive half. The ball fell to Brian James (Sunrise, Fla.) who and played a long ball over the top of the Rutgers (3-5-1, 1-2-1 Big Ten) defense as Maloney shielded an RU defender 30 yards from net.
Maloney drove into the penalty area and took a touch to his right to get around Rutgers goalkeeper David Greczek (seven saves) and shot into an empty net from 11 yards away. The assist was James's Big Ten leading sixth helper of 2014.
"We had talked at halftime - the goalkeeper comes out so early," Warming said. "So we said `look just anticipate that he is going to slide early and just either chip him or take a touch around him and then you can walk it in.' And Connor decided to take the touch around him. Connor can play around a guy and still score."
Maloney's goal was his conference-leading eighth of the year and the fifth game-winning tally of the season as the Nittany Lions upped their unbeaten streak to 11 matches. The last Penn State team to go 11 matches without losing was in 1972 when the Lions started 9-0-2. The 10-0-1 start is the best in school history for 11 games.
"I saw the ball in flight, and coach has always said `be a beast at all times,'" Maloney said. "Regardless if you're small or not, I don't care, win the ball, do whatever it takes to get the ball' and I did. I got under (the defender), shoved him a little bit, got my chance in front of goal and I slid it home."
The shot was Maloney's fourth of the game as the diminutive striker was thwarted in the opening 10 seconds of the game by the right post. Penn State took the opening tap, sent a ball to Klingenberg who found Maloney open from 25 yards out.
The first half went like that for the Nittany Lions, racking up a 12-0 shot advantage and forcing Rutgers into six saves, five by Greczek and another off the line by a defender from a Brandon Savino (Glen Ridge, N.J.) effort from a corner kick in the 24th minute. That came after Mikey Minutillo (San Jose, Calif.) had a breakaway chance saved by Greczek.
Rutgers finally recorded its first shot of the game in the 56th minute as a rocket from 20 yards out by JP Correa was punched away by Andrew Wolverton (Atlanta, Ga.). Wolverton made two saves, both in the second half, to earn his eighth shutout of the year and his 31st career clean sheet.
MATCH NOTES
• Penn State scored first for the 11th straight game this year. The Nittany Lions have scored in all 11 games and have not trailed this season.
• Connor Maloney leads the Big Ten in scoring (8 goals, 17 points). Maloney is the first Lion to score more than six goals in a season since 2010 when Corey Hertzog bagged 20.
• Penn State improved to 9-8-1 all-time against Rutgers, beating the Scarlet Knights for the first time since Sept. 16, 1994 when PSU won, 3-2, in overtime.
• The 10-0-1 start is the best since 1972 when that team went 9-0-2. The 10-0-1 start is the best 11-game start in school history.
• Penn State won its seventh straight game on Saturday, the first time PSU achieved the feat since 2005 (10-game winning streak).
• Penn State is 12-2-2 in its last 16 Big Ten regular-season matches. Penn State sits in first place in the Big Ten with 12 points from four games.
• Penn State won its 313th game all-time at Jeffrey Field, improving to 313-77-35 (.778). Penn State is 7-0-0 this season, 15-1-1 since 2013 and 22-3-3 since 2012 at Jeffrey Field. Penn State has won 10 straight games at Jeffrey Field.
• The Nittany Lions have won all four Big Ten games by a 1-0 score line. Penn State has recorded nine shutouts in 11 matches this year, out-scoring its opponents 21-3.
NEXT MATCH
The Nittany Lions receive their first week-long break of the season as they prepare for Maryland on Sunday at 1 p.m. Penn State will travel to Ludwig Field to face the Big Ten newcomer on the Big Ten Network.
A student fan bus is being organized by Penn State Athletics for the Maryland game. If you have interest, email Rob Roselli (rmr5214@psu.edu).