UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa.- The Big Ten Regular Season Co-Champions, Penn State men's soccer, earns a 3-1 victory against Rutgers to move to the semifinals of the Big Ten Tournament. The Nittany Lions will host the second round of the Big Ten Tournament at Jeffrey Field on Wednesday, Nov. 8. Penn State will take on Ohio State at home with a kickoff time to be announced at a later date.
Three different goal scorers for Penn State contributed to the three-goal performance including a first career goal for freshmen defender Mohamed Cisset. Peter Mangione and Van Danielson were responsible for one goal apiece.
The Nittany Lions move to 10-3-4, 4-2-2 Big Ten heading into the second round of the conference tournament.
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Half
A period of good offensive momentum for Penn State through the first 20 minutes began with a shot from Samson Kpardeh after he beat his defender in a one vs. one. Atem Kato also found two shots through the first period of play.
A duo of freshmen, Caden Grabfelder and Morgan Marshall had the two most threatening shots of the early minutes. Both took chances from outside the box and just missed the left top corner of the net.
The defense also had a balanced performance, with two massive stops from Femi Awodesu and Cisset to stop Rutgers breakaway opportunities.
Kris Shakes proved his dominance in goal kick saving a shot from a Scarlet Knights attacker with a rare open chance. The Goalkeeper of the Year was tested again, making a diving save to stop a shot from going to the top corner of the goal.
Matthew Henderson stood over the corner kick that started the Nittany Lions first goal. He passed the ball to Grabfelder who curled the ball just outside the corner of the net and found the head of Cisset. The defender's diving header put the ball passed the Rutgers keeper.
Penn State owned a 1-0 advantage after 45 minutes of play.
Second Half
The Scarlet Knights came out of the halftime break applying immediate pressure with some early shots off target as well as a threatening chance that Alex Stevenson made a diving effort to block.
Marshall showed his abilities as winger, moving quickly down the right side and cutting the ball around a Rutgers defender. The freshman sent a pass to Mangione who easily put the ball in the back of the net to give the Nittany Lions a two-goal edge in the 53rd minute.
A defensive stop from Freddie Bell turned into a counter attacking third goal for Penn State. Bell blasted a ball from the Nittany Lions' defensive end to Danielson in the Rutgers defensive half. The redshirt-junior forward went up against the keeper and used his head to push it past him. Danielson was left with a Rutgers defender in goal but found the back of the goal for a 3-0 lead in the 74th minute.
Rutgers managed to put a goal on the board with just over two minutes remaining in the game to make the final score 3-1.
OF NOTE
- Cisset's goal was the first of his collegiate career.
- The Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year Mangione notched his 10th goal of the season and 31st of his career. This moves the senior into the 11th spot all-time at Penn State in career goals.
- Danielson earned his fourth goal of the season, marking back-to-back games scoring a point.
- Shakes matched his season high six saves, making crucial stops between he pipes.
- Penn State has outscored opponents 11-2 over the last four games.
UP NEXT
The Nittany Lions will host sixth seeded Ohio State in the Big Ten Tournament Semifinals on Wednesday, Nov. 8 at Jeffrey Field. The time will be announced at a later date.