UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – The Penn State men's soccer team (1-1-0) completes a three-game road stretch this weekend in the Sunshine State, with matches at No. 15 UCF and Stetson, respectively. The Nittany Lions will face the ranked Knights on Friday, Sept. 6 at 7 p.m. in Orlando before playing the Hatters on Sunday, Sept. 8 at 1 p.m. in DeLand, Fla.
GAME INFORMATION
at UCF
- Date: Friday, Sept. 6, 2019 | Time: 7 p.m. ET
- Location: Orlando, Fla. | Venue: UCF Soccer and Track Complex
- Live Stats: ucfknights.com | Watch: UCF Knights TV
at Stetson
- Date: Sunday, Sept. 8, 2019 | Time: 1 p.m. ET
- Location: DeLand, Fla. | Venue: Athletic Training Center
- Live Stats: gohatters.com | Watch: ESPN+ ($)
PENN STATE AGAINST UCF
- Penn State will face Stony Brook for the second-straight season and the third time in program history.
- Last season, the Nittany Lions took the early lead in the ninth minute before the Knights tied the game right before the half. The game went to double overtime after no goals were scored in the second half or the first period of overtime before the Knights found the game-winner in the 102nd minute.
- Goalkeeper Josh Levine made a season-high eight saves in the match.
SCOUTING UCF
- The UCF Knights are 1-1-0 to start the 2019 season and are ranked 15th in the most recent United Soccer Coaches poll.
- Both the Knights' matchups have been against ranked opponents on the road (No. 4 Wake Forest, L, 1-2; No. 6 UNC, W, 2-1).
- Gianluca Arcangeli leads the team with two goals.
PENN STATE AGAINST STETSON
- Penn State has matched up against Stetson twice in program history but will face the Hatters for the first time since 2012.
- The last time the Nittany Lions and the Hatters played, Penn State pulled away with a 3-0 win after falling to Stetson the previous season, 2-1, at the Wolstein Classic hosted by Ohio State.
SCOUTING STETSON
- The Stetson Hatters are 2-0-0 to start the 2019 season and have yet to lose a game.
- The Hatters have won both their games by a single goal on the road.
- All three goals scored by Stetson in 2019 have been by different players (Ian McCauley, Franck Kouentichi, Chris Degance).
LAST TIME OUT
- Penn State picked up its first victory of 2019 on Labor Day with a 4-1 win at Stony Brook.
- Senior captain Aaron Molloy scored twice in the win for the first multi-goal game of his career, while Christian Sload and Alex Stevenson were responsible for the other two goals.
- Stevenson (goal), along with freshman classmate Andrew Privett (assist), recorded their first collegiate points.
COOK'S FIRST ROAD WIN AT THE HELM
- The Nittany Lions' road win at Stony Brook on Sept. 2 marked second-year head coach Jeff Cook's first road win at the helm.
- Last season, Penn State went 0-6-2 on the road.
CAREER FIRSTS
- In Monday's win at Stony Brook, three Nittany Lions recorded career firsts.
- Senior captain Aaron Molloy had his first multi-goal game while freshman Alex Stevenson scored his first career goal and Andrew Stevenson recorded his first career assist.
STRENGTH OF SCHEDULE
- Five of Penn State's 16 regular-season opponents are ranked in the top 25 of the United Soccer Coaches' week one poll while two more are receiving votes.
- Indiana holds the highest ranking at No. 2 while defending national champion Maryland sits at No. 3 after a loss over the weekend.
- Stanford moved up to No. 4 and UCF (No. 15) and Michigan State (No. 16) round out the rankings.
- Michigan and James Madison are the two Penn State opponents who are receiving votes.
NEXT TIME OUT
Penn State returns to Happy Valley and Jeffrey Field to play host to Villanova on Friday, Sept. 13 at 7 p.m.