UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – The Penn State men's soccer team (12-2-3, 6-1-1 Big Ten) continues its 2019 postseason run in the Big Ten Tournament, facing No. 3-seed Michigan in the semifinals on Friday, Nov. 15 at Ludwig Field in College Park, Md. Kickoff is set for 4 p.m. and will broadcast live on the Big Ten Network with Dean Linke (play-by-play) and Jason Garey (analyst) on the call.
GAME INFORMATION
- Date: Friday, Nov. 15, 2019 | Time: 4 p.m.
- Location: College Park, Md. | Venue: Ludwig Field
- Live Stats: Statbroadcast.com | Watch: Big Ten Network
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PENN STATE IN THE BIG TEN TOURNAMENT
- Penn State is 30-21-5 (.573) all-time in the Big Ten Tournament since it started in 1991.
- The Nittany Lions are a No. 2 seed in the tournament for the first time since the 2009 season when they went on to the title game before eventually falling.
- Penn State is 6-5-0 all-time as a two-seed and is making its first semifinal appearance since 2013.
PENN STATE AGAINST MICHIGAN
- Penn State narrowly leads Michigan in the all-time series history, 11-10-4. The series is tied 3-3-0 in the Big Ten Tournament.
- The teams will meet for the second time in 2019 after recording a scoreless double-overtime draw during the regular season.
SCOUTING MICHIGAN
- Michigan finished the regular season with a 9-4-4 overall record and 4-1-3 record in conference play, including a convincing 4-2 win over then-No. 17 Maryland in the regular-season finale.
- The Wolverines won their quarterfinal game, 2-1, over in-state rival Michigan State.
- Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year Nebojsa Popovic leads the team with 10 goals and three assists for 23 total points.
- Freshman Owen Finnerty took over in net for an injured Andrew Verdi and has played the last three and a half games. Finnerty has a 0.95 goals against average and a .625 save percentage.
LAST TIME OUT
- Penn State scored three second-half goals en route to a 3-0 shutout victory over Wisconsin in the quarterfinals of the Big Ten Tournament Sunday at Jeffrey Field.
- Senior Christian Sload, freshman Liam Butts and redshirt freshman Josh Dabora were the goal scorers for the Nittany Lions.
- Butts, freshman Andrew Privett and senior Aaron Molloy added an assist while sophomore Seth Kuhn had a multi-assist game.
STAY GOLDEN SLOAD
- Senior Christian Sload has scored the game-winning goals in the last three games, including back-to-back golden goals in overtime against then-No. 17 Maryland and at Rutgers.
SHAKE YOUR GROOVE THING
- Freshman goalkeeper Kris Shakes has split time in net with veteran Josh Levine, playing a total of 821:43 minutes with a 0.66 goals against average and .857 save percentage.
- In the national rankings, Shakes has the 14th-best goals against average and the third-best saver percentage.
- He also holds the top spot in both statistical categories in the Big Ten.
- He is a perfect 9-0-0 for the Nittany Lions with four shutouts.
NO IFS, ANDS OR BUTTS ABOUT IT
- Freshman forward Liam Butts has 19 points on nine goals and one assist in his rookie year.
- Butts has two multi-goal games and five game-winning goals, good for first in the conference and tied eighth nationally.
- His nine goals is the most by an individual player since Connor Maloney had 10 in 2014.
TOP-15 RPI
- Penn State slipped a little in the most recent NCAA RPI ranking of the 2019 season to No. 12, but still remains the highest-ranking team in the Big Ten.
- Four other 2019 opponents rank in the top 25.
- See the full RPI list here.
WELL-ROUNDED OFFENSE
- 17 different Nittany Lions have recorded points in the 2019 season, including 13 different goal scorers.
- Penn State has scored 36 goals so far, the most since the 2014 season when they scored 29.
- Freshman Liam Butts leads the team with nine goals while seniors Aaron Molloy and Christian Sload have added eight and five, respectively.
THREE'S (GOALS) NOT A CROWD
- Penn State has scored three or more goals seven times this season, the most since the 2010 season.
NEXT TIME OUT
The winner of this semifinal will play the winner of the Indiana-Maryland semifinal in the Big Ten Tournament Championship on Sunday, Nov. 17 at 2 p.m. at Ludwig Field in College Park, Md.