UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – Penn State men’s soccer dropped a tightly contested 2-1 match against in-state rival Pittsburgh on Friday night, pushing the Nittany Lions below .500 for the first time in the Rob Dow era.
PSU dropped to 1-2 in the 2026 campaign, while Pitt improved to 2-1 overall. Senior forward Amadou Kone was responsible for the goal after cleaning up the initial shot from freshman midfielder Peter Doran.
HOW IT HAPPENED
FIRST HALF
As the Jeffery Field bleachers filled up and a cool breeze blew through the pitch, the first whistle turned on the lights and the legs of the Nittany Lions and the Panthers. Pittsburgh immediately took possession of the ball. As the first 20 minutes of the game was a constant back-and-forth it was a slow start from both sides.
Morgan Marshall gave the Blue & White fans hope with the first shot of the match, but it wasn't enough to get into the back of the net.
The last 15 minutes of the first half the pitch started to come alive. In the 32nd minute a foul initially missed in Penn State’s box by Sheridan McNish caused the Panthers to challenge for a possible penalty. As the foul was awarded to Pitt, the former Nittany Lion Caden Grabfelder took matters into his own hands and silenced Jeffery Field with a low right penalty kick.
In the 34th minute Pitt put the first tally on the scoreboard, leading 1-0.
Penn State fired up with momentum as Grant McIntosh got the second shot on goal for the Nittany Lions. Peter Doran took matters into his own hands with a shot that was deflected by a Panthers’ back, but that didn't stop a crashing Amadou Kone from tapping the ball over the keeper's head, leveling the match at one apiece.
As the first half closed, the Panthers returned to dominating possession, but the Nittany Lions created six chances with three of those shots being on target.
SECOND HALF
As the second half commenced Penn State continued its drive, being awarded the first corner of the half. The service was true from Grant McIntosh, but ball was not able to reach the back of the net.
The Panthers’ gained control of the ball as Anders Bordoy was able to get away with a fortunate left shot from the outside of the 18-yard box, scoring in the 54th minute, breaking the stalemate to go up 2-1.
Possession only grew for the Panthers, but the Nittany Lion defense created a forcefield as Pitt was unable to make any shots on goal.
Kone was given the first yellow card of the match in the 63rd minute. With a couple of collisions in the middle of the pitch another yellow card was awarded, this time it was to the Panthers’ Miguel Bertran in the 72nd minute.
In the 73rd minute, Nittany Lions challenged for a possible penalty on a corner kick, but were denied a PK.
Pitt’s captain, Logan Oliver, was the third booked player of the match with a yellow card in the 76th minute. Grabfelder caused a foul and was ultimately awarded a yellow, the stadium came alive as Penn State was given a free kick.
In the 80th minute, the Nittany Lions went down to ten men on the field after losing another Penn Stater to injury and exhausting all available traditional subs. After playing down a man for almost seven minutes, reserve goalkeeper Justin Ross saw the field for the first time in his college career, but it wasn't in the box. Ross was added to the pitch as a center defensive midfielder to help PSU back to 11 personnel.
Noah Forster was booked in the 87th minute before Joe Sheridan attempted a last-minute goal. His shot from beyond the 18 was off-target, culminating in the second loss of the season, first on home turf.
OF NOTE
- Doran earned his first collegiate point on the assist of Kone’s goal.
- Kone’s has tallied at least one point in all three Nittany Lion matches this season.
- Justin Ross made his first collegiate appearance after redshirting at Clemson last year. The goalkeeper subbed on in the final four minutes as a field player to alleviate the Nittany Lions, who were playing with 10 men due to injuries.
- Sam Fielding made his debut with his first collegiate start.