No. 13 Penn State Shuts Out Wisconsin to Advance to B1G Tournament SemifinalsNo. 13 Penn State Shuts Out Wisconsin to Advance to B1G Tournament Semifinals
Mark Selders

No. 13 Penn State Shuts Out Wisconsin to Advance to B1G Tournament Semifinals

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Box Score

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – The Penn State men's soccer team (12-2-3, 6-1-1 Big Ten) scored three second-half goals en route to a 3-0 shutout victory over Wisconsin (3-11-4, 1-3-3 Big Ten) in the quarterfinals of the Big Ten Tournament Sunday afternoon at Jeffrey Field.

"We're delighted to advance to the next round of the Big Ten Tournament," said head coach Jeff Cook. "It's a huge opportunity and a privilege for us to have a chance to play in the semifinals on Friday. This was a really challenging game, despite winning the game 3-0. When you look back on a game you won by three goals, sometimes you think it might have been easier than it actually was. I give a lot of credit to Wisconsin for the way they approached the game. They were dangerous in the counterattack, defended very well, and it took our best effort to get the result that we got today to advance to the semifinals. I'm immensely proud of our players and the way we went about it. I look forward to next weekend."

The first half was very quiet for both teams, with only six total shots taken (Penn State 4-2), none of which were on net. Senior classmates Christian Sload and Aaron Molloy did have good looks at the goal, but Sload's shot hit off the crossbar and Molloy's went wide right.

The Badgers opened the second half with two shots by Andrew Akindele in the first eight minutes, but both stayed off target of goalkeeper Kris Shakes.

In the 58th minute, freshman Liam Butts found Sload right in front of the near post and he was able to put it away with his left foot to put the Nittany Lions on the board first.


Less than five minutes later, Penn State came running down the pitch in a counterattack led by Molloy. The captain passed the ball out to sophomore Seth Kuhn who then crossed the ball in to Butts and he headed it in for an insurance goal.


Redshirt freshman Josh Dabora really put the game away for the Nittany Lions in the 85th minute with Kuhn and freshman Andrew Privett credited with the assists.


Shakes made two saves within a minute span in the 79th minute for his only saves of the game.

With the win, Penn State advances to its first Big Ten Tournament Semifinal since 2013.

The Nittany Lions will No. 3-seed Michigan in the semifinals on Friday, Nov. 15 at 4 p.m. at Ludwig Field in College Park, Md.

Game Notes:

  • Senior Christian Sload netted his third-straight game-winning goal for Penn State.
  • Penn State is now 4-0-0 all-time against Wisconsin in the Big Ten Tournament.
  • The Nittany Lions have scored three or more goals seven times this season, the most since the 2010 season.
  • Freshman goalkeeper Kris Shakes remains a perfect 9-0-0 in net this season.
  • Shakes has four of the six shutouts to his name.