No. 24 Penn State Set for Michigan in Big Ten SemifinalsNo. 24 Penn State Set for Michigan in Big Ten Semifinals
Mark Selders

No. 24 Penn State Set for Michigan in Big Ten Semifinals

Opens in a new window Game Notes

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – The Penn State men's soccer team, under fourth-year head coach Jeff Cook, continues its postseason run in the Big Ten Tournament on Wednesday, Nov. 10 as it's set to host Michigan at Jeffrey Field in the semifinals. Kickoff between the top-seeded Nittany Lions and No. 4-seed Wolverines is set for noon and will broadcast live on Big Ten Network with Chris Vosters (pxp) and Tim Lenahan (analyst) on the call.
 
GAME INFORMATION

  • Date: Wednesday, Nov. 10, 2021 | Time: Noon ET
  • Location: University Park, Pa. | Venue: Jeffrey Field
  • Live Stats: gopsusports.com | Watch: Big Ten Network

Parking Information
Parking for all Penn State Athletics' non-football events will require a valid permit or payment of the applicable parking fee for campus lots. Fans with valid Penn State University Park parking permits will be permitted to park at non-football athletics events for free, following Transportation Services parking policies and access.
 
For men's soccer matches, fans are asked to park in the Jordan East, Stadium West or Porter North lots. Fans without a permit are encouraged to prepay for event parking at a discounted rate of $5.50 through ParkMobile - https://psu.parkmobile.io/. Prepayment is available through 11:59 p.m. the day prior to each event. Event day parking will be $10 per vehicle and is cash only/can be purchased on the ParkMobile app. The East Deck is also available for most events for $1 per hour.
 
Parking for all non-football athletics events is managed by Penn State Transportation Services. For more information or questions, visit transportation.psu.edu or email parking@psu.edu.
 
PENN STATE IN THE BIG TEN TOURNAMENT

  • Penn State is 33-22-6 (.590) all-time in the Big Ten Tournament since it started in 1991.
  • After winning the Big Ten regular season title, the Nittany Lions received the No. 1 seed in the conference tournament for the first time since 2013 after spending the previous two seasons as the No. 2 seed.
  • Penn State is 3-1-1 all-time as a one-seed and is 1-2-0 against the four-seed.
  • The Nittany Lions are 4-3-0 against the Wolverines in tournament play.
  • Penn State and Michigan have met in the Big Ten Tournament each of head coach Jeff Cook's now four seasons at the helm, including the last two seasons in the semifinals. The Nittany Lions won last season's semifinal matchup, 4-1, at Jeffrey Field after falling 1-0 in 2019 in College Park, Md.

LAST TIME OUT

  • With a goal from Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year Peter Mangione just 25 seconds into the match, Penn State set the pace early in the Big Ten Tournament quarterfinals and went on to shut out Michigan State, 2-0, Sunday at Jeffrey Field.
  • Off the opening kickoff, Penn State moved the ball up the field and earned a throw-in nearly in line with the box. Alex Stevenson threw the ball into the box, finding Mangione who flicked it over to Liam Butts who turned and took an initial shot at the near post that was saved by Michigan State's keeper. But with the ball still in play, Mangione took a diving header that hit off the near post and went in to give the Nittany Lions the lead less than 30 seconds in.
  • In the 17th minute, Butts forced a Spartan turnover around midfield and after fending off multiple green jerseys, Butts passed the ball to Seth Kuhn who slotted a perfect pass to Andrew Privett running up the left side. Privett took the ball into the box and made a move on a defender before taking a great right-footed strike that went right past the keeper to make it 2-0.
  • Michigan State came out of the halftime break looking to get on the scoreboard and back in the game, firing off a total of 10 shots in the second 45.
  • The Penn State backline in front of goalkeeper Kris Shakes stood strong to maintain the shutout while Shakes made four saves in the second half as the Nittany Lions would go on to advance in the tournament.

GAME-WINNERS ONLY FROM MANGIONE

  • Forward/midfielder Peter Mangione is clutch when needed most.
  • The Hunt Valley, Md., native has a career-high seven goals this season, with four the eventual game-winners.
  • Mangione's latest game-winning goal came just 25 seconds into the Big Ten quarterfinal match against Michigan State (11/7).
  • His four game-winning goals is tied for first in the Big Ten and 15th nationally.
  • Mangione has 13 career goals, eight of which are game-winners.

BIG TEN REGULAR SEASON CHAMPIONS

  • For the first time since 2013 and for the sixth time in program history, Penn State won the Big Ten regular season crown, finishing with a 6-2-0 record in conference play to total 18 points.
  • The Nittany Lions had finished runner-up in the league the previous two seasons with a 6-1-1 Big Ten record and were picked to finish second again this season behind Indiana in the coaches' preseason poll.

TOP-30 RPI

  • The fifth NCAA RPI ranking for the 2021 season was released Monday and has Penn State ranked No. 25, rising again after a win to start the conference tournament.
  • Five 2021 opponents currently rank ahead of the Nittany Lions: No. 4 Pittsburgh, No. 13 West Virginia, No. 16 Indiana, No. 21 Maryland, and No. 24 Akron.
  • Semifinal opponent Michigan sits just outside the top 30 at No. 33.

SCOUTING MICHIGAN

  • Michigan is led by 10-year head coach Chaka Daley and is 8-6-3 overall after finishing Big Ten play with a 4-3-1 record to earn the No. 4 seed in the conference tournament. The Wolverines are coming off a 2-1 win over No. 5-seed Wisconsin in the Big Ten quarterfinals (11/7) to advance to the semifinals.
  • Senior Kevin Buca paces the Wolverines with 12 points on a team-high five goals and two assists. Junior Inaki Rodriguez leads the team with four assists. In all, 14 Michigan players have recorded at least one point this season.
  • In net, freshman Hayden Evans has played 12 of the Wolverines' 17 total games. He holds a 1.20 goals-against average and 0.741 save percentage with 43 saves and one shutout.
  • Senior Marc Ybarra and freshmen Jason Bucknor and Hayden Evans all earned season awards from the Big Ten as Ybarra was honored on the All-Big Ten First Team and Bucknor and Evans were named to the All-Big Ten Freshman Team.

PENN STATE AGAINST MICHIGAN

  • Penn State holds a 13-11-4 all-time series advantage over Michigan, including a 2-1 win at Jeffrey Field during the regular season (10/10).
  • The Nittany Lions and the Wolverines have faced off in the Big Ten Tournament semifinals the last two seasons, with Penn State winning in 2020-21 at Jeffrey Field and Michigan winning in 2019 in College Park, Md.

NEXT TIME OUT
The winner of Penn State/Michigan will go on to face the winner of Indiana/Northwestern in the Big Ten Tournament Championship on Sunday, Nov. 14. The match will be played on the campus of the higher remaining seed with kickoff starting at noon live on Big Ten Network.