COLUMBUS, Ohio – The Penn State men's soccer team (8-6-1, 4-2-0 Big Ten) attempted to front a comeback on the road at Ohio State (5-8-1, 1-5-0 Big Ten) after going down by two goals early, but the effort would come up just short, 2-1, Friday evening at Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium.
"This was a very difficult road game tonight, as every game in the Big Ten is," said head coach Jeff Cook. "We created a number of quality scoring chances and forced their goalkeeper into several outstanding saves. However, we all have to accept responsibility for improving our set-piece defending. I'm confident that our group will bounce back and be ready to go for Tuesday night's match against Maryland."
Ohio State struck first in the seventh minute off a corner kick to take an early 1-0 lead.
Seconds after kickoff, junior Liam Butts tried to answer with a shot on frame, but the Buckeye goalkeeper was there for the save.
After continuing to maintain possession, the Buckeyes made it 2-0 on another set piece, this time a free kick outside the 18, in the 17th minute.
Senior Seth Kuhn had a rocket of a shot that he fired off in the 36th minute straight at Noah Lawrence for the punch save.
The Nittany Lions had their offensive chances with a 6-1 advantage in corner kicks in the first half, but would ultimately find themselves in a two-goal hole at the break.
Redshirt senior Brandon Hackenberg had the first chance at net for Penn State in the second half with a header shot off a free kick in the 53rd minute, but Lawrence would push it just over the crossbar to keep the Nittany Lions out of the back of the net.
Penn State finally got on the scoreboard in the 67th minute thanks to a set piece of its own as Kuhn originally had a great look at net that was saved to set up a corner kick. Kuhn then took the corner and placed a perfect ball into the box to find the head of junior Andrew Privett for the score to make it a one-goal game.
The Nittany Lions would do their best to find the equalizer in the remaining 20 or so minutes, getting the ball into the offensive zone and taking four more good looks at net, including one on frame in the last 30 seconds by sophomore Femi Awodesu, but ultimately would come up short.
Junior goalkeeper Kris Shakes did all he could to keep his team in the game, making a season-high seven saves, including five in the second half alone.
UP NEXT
Penn State is set for one final regular season match within the friendly confines of Jeffrey Field when it hosts No. 7 Maryland on Tuesday, Oct. 26. Kickoff is slated for 8 p.m. and will broadcast live on Big Ten Network with Chris Vosters (pxp) and Tim Lenahan (analyst) on the call.
GAME NOTES
- Senior Seth Kuhn recorded his sixth assist of the season on junior Andrew Privett's goal for a new single-season career high in that category.
- Junior goalkeeper Kris Shakes recorded a season-best seven saves, including five in the second half.