UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – The Penn State men's soccer team (3-1, 3-1 Big Ten) heads to Evanston, Ill. to face the Northwestern Wildcats (2-3-1, 2-3-1 Big Ten) on Friday, March 19. The game is set for a 1 p.m. ET/noon CT kickoff and will be broadcast live on Big Ten Network with Dean Linke (pxp) and Chris Doran (analyst) on the call.
GAME INFORMATION
- Date: Friday, March 19, 2021 | Time: 1 p.m. ET/noon CT
- Location: Evanston, Ill. | Venue: Lanny and Sharon Martin Stadium
- Live Stats: nusports.com | Watch: Big Ten Network
PENN STATE AGAINST NORTHWESTERN
- Penn State and Northwestern face off for the 38th time in program history Friday. The Nittany Lions lead the all-time series, 26-8-4.
- The Nittany Lions and the Wildcats last matched up during the 2019 season. The regular-season game at Jeffrey Field on Oct. 12, 2019 went to overtime after being tied 2-2 at the end of regulation. Then-freshman Liam Butts scored twice in the contest, including the golden goal in overtime.
SCOUTING NORTHWESTERN
- The Northwestern Wildcats are led by head coach Tim Lenahan who is in his 19th and final season at the helm in Evanston.
- Northwestern is 2-3-1 so far this season, including a 1-0 shutout of Indiana back on Feb. 27.
- Sophomore Ugo Achara Jr. paces the Wildcats with 11 points on five goals and one assist. His five goals are tied for first in the conference and is 11th in the nation while the 11 total points are also tied first in the league and 18th nationally. Achara Jr. was named Top Drawer Soccer's and College Soccer News' Player of the Week on March 2 after recording two goals and an assist in a win over Wisconsin.
- In net, senior Miha Miskovic has seen the most minutes for Northwestern at 331:09. He holds a 2.45 goals-against average and a .609 save percentage with 14 total saves and one shutout. Miskovic was named Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week on March 2 after a win in net over Indiana.
- Grad student Ethan Bandre has played 225:02 minutes in between the pipes, including the most recent game against the Badgers, and holds a 1.60 goals-against average and a .714 save percentage with 10 saves.
LAST TIME OUT
- After a two-week lay off from game action due to COVID postponements and a regularly scheduled bye week, Penn State returned to the pitch on Jeffrey Field in high fashion with a convincing 4-2 win over Rutgers live on Big Ten Network on Monday.
- The Nittany Lion offense put together what head coach Jeff Cook said was "as dangerous as we've looked going forward in recent time," led in part by junior transfer Danny Bloyou's two goals and junior Seth Kuhn's goal and assist in the outing.
- Penn State went up by scores of 2-0 and 3-1 but Rutgers was able to counter back each time to get within one before the Nittany Lions put the game away in the 77th minute with a fourth goal.
- Redshirt senior Pierre Reedy scored the eventual game-winning goal while sophomores Liam Butts and Andrew Privett and freshman Tyger Evans all recorded assists.
- Penn State won its eighth-straight game over the Scarlet Knights and moved to 3-1-0 on the season.
BLOYOU BLASTS
- Junior transfer Danny Bloyou has incredible speed that he's been able to utilize to beat opposing defenders and find the back of the net.
- Bloyou now has a team-high seven points on a team-high three goals and one assist after a two-goal performance against Rutgers on Monday.
- It marked the Philadelphia, Pa., native's first career multi-goal game for a single-game career-high four points.
- All three of Bloyou's goals so far this season have come against the Scarlet Knights.
- His three goals is fourth-most in the Big Ten as is his seven total points.
KUHN IN THE MIDDLE
- Junior Seth Kuhn has been a leader in the middle of the field for the Nittany Lions as a central midfielder.
- The Wyomissing, Pa., native had a single-game career high three-point performance against Rutgers with one goal and one assist.
- Kuhn was considered an honorable mention on Top Drawer Soccer's Team of the Week for the week of Feb. 15-21.
OFFENSIVE FIREPOWER
- Penn State had an offensive outbreak in its most recent game, scoring a season-high four goals at Jeffrey Field against Rutgers on Monday.
- The four goals are the most in a conference game for the Nittany Lions since scoring six against Rutgers during the 2017 season (10/22/17).
- Penn State took a season-high 20 shots during the game, the most since taking 18 against Pitt last season (10/15/19). The team is averaging 13.75 shots per game to lead the Big Ten.
- Nine players have recorded points this season.
NEXT TIME OUT
Penn State returns to Jeffrey Field for a two-game homestand. The Nittany Lions will first host the Ohio State Buckeyes on Tuesday, March 23 with a 5 p.m. kickoff. The game will be streamed live on Big Ten Network+.