No. 19 Penn State to Host No. 22 Maryland on Senior Night TuesdayNo. 19 Penn State to Host No. 22 Maryland on Senior Night Tuesday
Mark Selders

No. 19 Penn State to Host No. 22 Maryland on Senior Night Tuesday

Opens in a new window Penn State Game Notes Opens in a new window Maryland Game Notes

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – The Penn State men's soccer team (9-2-3, 4-1-1 Big Ten) will conclude regular-season play at Jeffrey Field on Tuesday, Oct. 29 when Big Ten foe Maryland comes to town. Kickoff is set for 6 p.m. live on the Big Ten Network with Mike Monaco (play-by-play) and Jamie Watson (analyst) on the call.
 
GAME INFORMATION

  • Date: Tuesday, Oct. 29, 2019 | Time: 6 p.m. ET
  • Location: University Park, Pa. | Venue: Jeffrey Field
  • Live Stats: GoPSUsports.com | Watch: Big Ten Network

PENN STATE AGAINST MARYLAND

  • Penn State trails Maryland in the all-time series results, 17-25-5.
  • The Nittany Lions will look for their first win over the Terrapins on Tuesday since the 2005 season when they upset then-No. 6 Maryland, 1-0.
  • Last season, the Terrapins narrowly defeated the Nittany Lions, 3-2, in double overtime in College Park before eventually going on to win the national championship.

SCOUTING MARYLAND

  • The Maryland Terrapins are 9-4-2 overall and 3-1-2 in Big Ten play, just two points behind Penn State in the conference standings.
  • The Terrapins are ranked No. 22 in week eight of the United Soccer Coaches poll.
  • Malcolm Johnston and Eric Matzelevich are tied for the team high in total points with nine each. Matzelevich has a team-high four goals while Eli Crognale has a team-high four assists.
  • In net, Niklas Neumann has played a majority of the minutes and holds a 0.44 goals against average and a .872 save percentage.
  • As a defense, Maryland has shut out nine opponents in 2019.

LAST TIME OUT

  • Penn State took care of business in its final nonconference game of the regular season, shutting out the Appalachian State Mountaineers, 4-0, Friday evening at Jeffrey Field.
  • The Nittany Lions broke the scoreboard first with a goal from freshman Liam Butts via senior captain Aaron Molloy in the 34th minute that carried the home team to a 1-0 lead at the break.
  • Senior Christian Sload was able to draw a foul in the box in the 58th minute but Molloy's penalty-kick shot went wide left, the midfielder's first miss on a PK this season.
  • However, in the 63rd minute, Sload found redshirt freshman Josh Dabora in the box who was able to get a toe on the ball and into the back of the net for an insurance goal and the first goal of his collegiate career.
  • Less than five minutes later, Molloy had an absolute rocket shot from outside the 18 to make it 3-0 Nittany Lions.
  • Redshirt junior Daniel Gonzalez made it 4-0 Penn State in the 88th minute with the header shot from freshman Alex Stevenson for the Nittany Lions' largest margin of victory in 2019.

SENIOR CELEBRATION

  • Penn State men's soccer will celebrate its nine seniors at the conclusion of Tuesday's match.
  • Aaron Molloy, Mason Deeds, Brandon Hackenberg, Josh Levine, Pierre Reedy, Daniel Gonzalez, Will Campbell, Kyle Perno, and Christian Sload will all be honored.

NATIONAL RECOGNITION

  • Penn State is ranked No. 19 in the United Soccer Coaches week eight poll as announced last Tuesday.
  • It marks the first top-25 ranking for the Nittany Lions since Sept. 22, 2015 when they were ranked No. 21.
  • Previously this season Penn State had received votes in the USC weekly poll three times (weeks 4-5, 7).
  • The Nittany Lions are also ranked No. 15 in Top Drawer Soccer's poll this week.

TOP-10 RPI

  • The third and most recent NCAA RPI ranking of the 2019 season has Penn State ranked No. 10, the highest-ranking team in the Big Ten.
  • Four other 2019 opponents rank in the top 25, including Maryland at No. 18.
  • See the full RPI rankings on ncaa.com.

IRISH MESSI

  • Senior midfielder Aaron Molloy leads the team with 19 points on a team-high eight goals and three assists.
  • Molloy is in the top 50 nationally (39) for total goals and is first in the conference.
  • The team co-captain is also first in the conference in total points and 47th nationally.
  • Molloy has the most goals by an individual player since Connor Maloney had eight in 2016 and the most total points since Chad Severs had 17 (7G, 3A) in 2003.
  • Molloy was named Big Ten Co-Offensive Player of the Week and Top Drawer Soccer's Player of the Week last week (10/22/19).

NO IFS, ANDS OR BUTTS ABOUT IT

  • Freshman forward Liam Butts has 14 points on seven goals through the first 14 games in his rookie season.
  • Butts has two multi-goal games and five game-winning goals, good for first in the conference and second nationally.

WELL-ROUNDED OFFENSE

  • 15 different Nittany Lions have recorded points in the 2019 season, including 11 different goal scorers.
  • Penn State has scored 28 goals through 14 games, the most since the 2005 season.

THREE'S (GOALS) NOT A CROWD

  • Penn State has scored three or more goals five times this season, the most since the 2010 season.

NEXT TIME OUT
Penn State wraps up its 2019 regular-season schedule on Sunday, Nov. 3 on the road at Rutgers. Kickoff is set for 3 p.m. in Piscataway, N.J.