COLUMBUS, Ohio – Penn State men’s soccer dropped a 1-0 decision to Ohio State on Halloween night at Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium in Columbus, Ohio. PSU took 11 shots in the contest, but only two were on net, both stopped by the Buckeye goalkeeper.
Penn State falls to 5-8-3 (1-6-2 B1G) with the result, while the Buckeyes improve to 6-9-0 (3-6-0 B1G).
HOW IT HAPPENED
First half
Penn State was the first side to get a shot on goal in just the seventh minute. The shot came off a quick counter after the Penn State defense turned an Ohio State corner kick into a quick PSU counterattack. The clearing passes ended up at the feet of Van Danielson, who beat his defender to get a shot off, but his near-post boot was collected by the OSU goalkeeper.
Jonathan Evans held strong to hold up his half of the first-frame shutout, making a pair of stops just five seconds apart from each other in the 38th minute to keep the score level.
Second half
Ohio State opened the second half with a majority of the possession, playing deep into Penn State’s half for the first 12 minutes of action.
The Blue and White began to retaliate in the 58th minute, but strong defensive efforts from OSU kept the ball from getting to the Buckeye netminder.
Ohio State broke the stalemate in the 76th minute. The Buckeyes began the play with a full field build up. A quick switch saw an OSU forward one-on-one with Evans, who pushed the shot just wide enough to clip the right goalpost. The ricochet found the feet of another OSU striker, who put away his shot to take a 1-0 lead.
Penn State put up three more shots down the stretch, including one on goal, but none cracked the wall as Ohio State took the win on the team’s senior day.
OF NOTE
- Evans made four stops in the contest.
UP NEXT
The Nittany Lions return home to Jeffrey Field for the final contest of the 2025 season to face off against No. 12 Michigan in University Park, Pennsylvania. Kickoff is set for 8 p.m. on Friday, November 7. Action will be streamed live on B1G+.