Nov. 3, 2014
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -
By Matt Allibone, GoPSUsports.com Student Staff Writer
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa.- For the second straight game, it took over 100 minutes for a winner to be decided in a Penn State men's soccer game.
A week after Michael Gonzalez gave the Nittany Lions a thrilling 2-1 victory in double overtime against Wisconsin, the Blue and White were not as fortunate this time around, falling to Northwestern 2-1.
Entering the game needing only a tie to clinch their third straight Big Ten title, the Nittany Lions were just 100 seconds away from a draw when Wildcats forward Mike Roberge took a long pass and got the winning shot by Andrew Wolverton.
Although the loss was heartbreaking, it certainly wasn't because of a lack of effort. The Lions got off 14 shots and rallied to tie the game after falling behind 1-0 15 minutes in on a goal by Eric Weberman.
"I couldn't be prouder of my guys," head coach Bob Warming said afterwards. "Northwestern can be such a tough place to play. Our guys played with great cohesion and great organization."
A few weeks ago, the Nittany Lions may not have even gotten into overtime in a game like that.
In back-to-back losses against Maryland and Michigan State, the Lions fell behind early and were never able to recover. Against the No. 20 Wildcats however, they managed to fight back, tying the game on a Mikey Minutillo goal off of a penalty with eight minutes remaining in the first half.
In the second half, the Lions took control early on and looked poised to break the tie. Brandon Savino, Mason Klerks and Connor Maloney all had prime chances stopped by Northwestern goalie Tyler Miller, who played terrifically and made eight saves.
"They really kept playing hard and battling," Warming said. "They showed a lot of fight in them today.
"Northwestern is really organized and well coached and they just don't give up a lot of chances. We had a couple of good ones that were just a little off today."
One player who epitomized the attitude that Warming wants to see is Minutillo, who scored his sixth goal of the year despite coming off the bench for the first time all season.
Entering the season with the expectation of being one of the keys to Penn State's offense, Minutillo was a consistent producer early in the season yet entered Sunday having not scored since October 1 against Bucknell.
With Owen Griffith returning from an injury that kept him out of the Wisconsin game and Gonzalez having proven himself as a capable starter on defense, Warming moved Griffith up to forward and decided to see if Minutillo would be a better fit as a spark off the bench.
That certainly proved to be correct, as the California native didn't complain about the change and gave the Lions the offensive boost they needed. On the goal, the senior had his initial attempt and first rebound blocked before finally knocking it home on the third try.
"I thought [Mikey] could be the type of guy that could come in and really give us a spark off the bench," Warming said. "He certainly did that."
As heartbreaking as the loss was, it doesn't end the Nittany Lions season or their chances of winning the Big Ten title. They can still win the conference if Rutgers can win or tie against Maryland on Wednesday.
The Lions could still wind up playing Northwestern again in the conference tournament, and at the very least their effort today gives them the confidence that they can play with the Wildcats.
"We are all really disappointed in the loss," Warming said. "I still think the guys are really focused. They came here a good team and left an even better one."