UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – The Penn State men's soccer team returns to Jeffrey Field to host No. 5 Michigan State on Wednesday, Sept. 26 at 6 p.m.
FOLLOW ALONG
Wednesday's match will be streamed live via BTN+. Viewers must have a login to watch. Fans can also follow along by following the team on Twitter, @PennStateMSOC.
PENN STATE AGAINST MICHIGAN STATE
Penn State and Michigan State have met 39 times with the Nittany Lions leading the all-time series, 22-15-2. Last season, Penn State fell just short, 1-0, in East Lansing, Mich.
SCOUTING MICHIGAN STATE
Michigan State is undefeated so far in 2018, holding a 7-0-2, 1-0-0 Big Ten record. The Spartans have wins over South Florida, Canisius, UC Riverside, Bowling Green, Oakland, Notre Dame, and Rutgers. They recorded draws with Tulsa and Yale.
Senior striker Ryan Sierakowski is the leading man for the Spartans with 14 points (five goals, four assists) through nine games. Fellow senior DeJuan Jones has 12 points (five goals, two assists) and junior Giuseppe Barone has 10 points (two goals, six assists). Redshirt senior goalkeeper Jimmy Hague has led the charge between the posts for the Spartans, playing 826:20 minutes in net. He has 26 saves, four shutouts and has only let six goals through. The other two goalkeepers have combined to let two other goals pass.
LAST SEASON AGAINST MICHIGAN STATE
The Nittany Lions dropped a tough 1-0 match to the Spartans in East Lansing last season. Josh Levine made four saves on the day, while Callum Pritchatt, Aaron Molloy and Ryan Gallagher all took two shots. Ryan Sierakowski was the goal-scorer for the Spartans while Jimmy Hague recorded his ninth shutout of the season.
LAST TIME OUT
The Penn State men's soccer team held its own against a ranked Michigan team on the road Friday, recording a 1-1 draw after double overtime. Junior striker Christian Sload put the Nittany Lions on the board first with his first goal of the season in the third minute. Jeremy Rafanello just outside the top right corner of the box found Sload inside who juke a Michigan defender and slid the ball into the lower left corner of the net for the score.
The Wolverines turned things on in the second half and were able to find the equalizer in the 70th minute to force the game into overtime for the second consecutive season. Junior captain Aaron Molloy took two promising shots in the overtime periods in hopes of finding the golden goal for the Nittany Lions, but was unable to convert.
BIG TEN OPENING DAY VICTORY
The Penn State men's soccer team rallied for a 3-1 victory over Big Ten foe Ohio State in the conference opener at Jeffrey Field Sunday afternoon. Three different Nittany Lions scored in the victory, including a first career goal by redshirt junior Stephen Kenney. Junior Aaron Molloy and senior Mac Curran provided the other two while redshirt senior Ryan Gallagher, sophomore Callum Pritchatt and Molloy added assists. Penn State is now 15-11-2 in Big Ten regular season openers since joining the conference in 1991.
FIRST MULTIPLE-GOAL GAME OF 2018
The Nittany Lions scored three goals in the Big Ten opener victory against Ohio State on Sunday, Sept. 16 to mark the first game of the 2018 season scoring multiple goals in a single match. It was also the first game since Oct. 21, 2016 (vs. Rutgers) that the Blue and White have scored three goals in a single game and the first time since Sept. 20, 2017 (vs. Detroit Mercy) that they have won by multiple goals within the friendly confines of Jeffrey Field.
COACH COOK'S FIRST WIN
First-year head coach Jeff Cook picked up his first win at the helm of Penn State men's soccer on Tuesday, Aug. 28 when the Nittany Lions defeated Bowling Green, 1-0. Ryan Gallagher and Ethan Beckford connected in the 80th minute to lift the Nittany Lions over the Falcons for the team's first win in 2018.
STRENGTH OF SCHEDULE
The Penn State men's soccer team has three 2018 opponents ranked in the fourth week (Sept. 18) of the United Soccer Coaches' national poll (Sept. 11), with three more receiving votes. Indiana (Sept. 30) and Michigan State (Sept. 26) both come ranked in the top-5, at No. 2 and No. 5, respectively. Michigan moved into the top-25 last week, checking in at No. 21 after receiving votes the last few polls. UCF (Aug. 24; L, 1-2 2OT), Rhode Island (Aug. 31; L, 0-1), and Villanova (Sept. 8; L, 1-2) all received votes in this week's poll.
PENN STATE FEATURED ON BIG TEN NETWORK
The Penn State men's soccer team will be featured on the Big Ten Network when it travels to Maryland on Tuesday, Oct. 23 for its 6 p.m. contest. Last season, the Nittany Lions fell to the then-No. 3 Terrapins, 0-2.
NEXT TIME OUT
Penn State men's soccer hits the road again, traveling to Bloomington, Ind. for a Sunday, Sept. 30 matinee match-up with No. 2 Indiana. The game is slated for a 1 p.m. start and will be streamed via BTN+.
