Nov. 4, 2017
| PENN STATE at INDIANA | | | | 5-9-2 | 13-0-4 |
| Sunday, Nov. 5 | 1 p.m. | Jerry Yeagley Field
Bloomington, Ind. | |
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Nov. 4, 2017
NITTANY LIONS ENTER BIG TEN TOURNAMENT
After securing a 2-1 victory over Northwestern, the Penn State men's soccer team earned the No. 7 seed in the Big Ten Tournament and will travel to Bloomington, Indiana to take on the No. 2 seed Indiana Hoosiers Sunday, Nov. 5. The quarterfinal match will be featured on the Big Ten Network at 1 p.m.
CATCHING THE GAME FROM HOME
Fans who are unable to travel to Bloomington, Indiana can catch all the action live on the Big Ten Network. Fans can also follow along with live stats on IUHoosiers.com or follow along with live updates on Penn State men's soccer Twitter at @PennStateMSOC.
BIG TEN TOURNAMENT HISTORY
The Nittany Lions are 29-19-5 all-time at the Big Ten Tournament and have won three titles. Penn State earned its first Big Ten Tournament title in 1993 before following it up with one in 2002 and one in 2005. The Blue and White has come into the tournament as the No. 7 seed just one time and went 2-1-0 in the 2011 campaign falling to Northwestern in the finals. The Nittany Lions carry a 5-2-0 record when it plays a No. 2 seed in the Big Ten Tournament with its last win coming in the 2011 season over No. 2 Ohio State in the quarterfinals. Finally, Penn State is 8-4-1 when playing in Bloomington, Indiana for the tournament.
NITTANY LIONS vs. HOOSIERS IN B1G TOURNAMENT
Penn State has earned three wins over Indiana in the Big Ten Tournament and trails 3-8-4 in the all-time series with the Hoosiers. The Nittany Lions and the Hoosiers will meet in the tournament for the first time since the 2013 campaign when the two teams played to a double overtime tie before Penn State fell 5-3 on penalty kicks allowing the Hoosiers to advance to the finals. The match between the Nittany Lions and Indiana has come down to penalty kicks on four occasions with Indiana winning three times and Penn State taking the victory in the 2002 season before going on to win the Big Ten Tournament title.
SCOUTING INDIANA
The Hoosiers have yet to take a loss in the 2017 season heading to the tournament with a 13-0-4 overall record and finishing the Big Ten Conference season with a 5-0-3 record. IU also has a 9-0-1 record at home with its lone tie coming against then-No. 18 Michigan in September.
Indiana has outscored its opponents 37-4 this season, led by Big Ten Conference leader Mason Toye. Toye has scored nine goals this season and one assist for 19 points. Andrew Gutman has also had input on offense with five goals and two assists, while seven other Hoosiers have scored two-or-more goals in the 2017 season.
Defensively, goalkeeper Trey Muse has given up just four goals on the season and tallied 13 shutouts. Muse has a .918 save percentage and a 0.22 goals against average this season, making 45 saves in net.
RECENT HISTORY WITH INDIANA
Despite Indiana carrying the advantage in the all-time series with Penn State, the Nittany Lions have been closing the gap in the past few seasons. The Blue and White fell this season and in the 2016 campaign to the Hoosiers but notched a 1-0 victory over then-No. 10 Indiana on Mack Brady Day in 2015. Prior to that, Penn State traveled to Bloomington, Indiana in both 2013 and 2014 and brought wins back to Happy Valley, including handing the Hoosiers their first Big Ten opening day loss in the history of the program in the 2014 campaign.
In the past six seasons, Penn State has seen a lot of success with the Hoosiers, coming away with five wins and three losses and giving up just two goals in 630 minutes of regulation play, dating back to 2011. Prior to the 2016 meeting, the Nittany Lions had not given up a goal in regulation in 450 minutes but were unable to extend the streak as Indiana scored in the first half of play in 2016 and tallied one goal in 2017.
PSU ENDS REGULAR SEASON WITH VICTORY
The Nittany Lions continue to find the momentum at the end of the season as it picked up its third-straight victory in its regular season finale against Northwestern. The Blue and White used a game-winning goal from senior Aymar Sigue on a day that was celebrating the careers of its four seniors. Sigue collected the ball off a rebound in the second half of play to score his first goal of the season and give Penn State the win, while sophomore Aaron Molloy scored his third goal of the season to give the Nittany Lions a 1-0 lead in the first half before the Wildcats tied it up. Offensively, Callum Pritchatt posted his third assist of the season, while Penn State outshot Northwestern 18-12 on the afternoon. Redshirt-freshman goalkeeper Josh Levine made three saves on the day and gave up one goal for his third win of the 2017 season.
FINDING THEIR STRIDE
With the season coming to a close, the Nittany Lions have found their stride in the last few matches. Penn State doubled its goal total from the first 13 matches of the season in two games with six goals against Rutgers and two against JMU.
Individually, freshman Ethan Beckford has scored in two-straight matches for Penn State with two goals against Rutgers and one the game-winner against JMU to bring his stat line to five goals and one assist for 11 points.
NEXT TIME OUT
With a Penn State victory, the Nittany Lions will head to the semifinals of the Big Ten Tournament and take on the winner of No. 3 seed Michigan State and No. 6 seed Ohio State. The semifinal is set for Friday, Nov. 10 at 2:30 p.m. at Grand Park in Westfield, Indiana.
