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No. 13 Lions Capture Big Ten Title Behind Tyler's Brace
Jordan Tyler scores game-tying and game-winning goals in 2-1 victory over No. 19 Northwestern
UNIVERSITY
PARK, Pa. - The No. 13 Penn State men's soccer defeated No. 19
Northwestern, 2-1, Sunday afternoon in dramatic fashion to earn the
program's fifth Big Ten championship. Jordan Tyler (Rochester, Mich.)
scored the game-tying and game-winning goal in overtime for the Nittany
Lions.
"Northwestern gave us everything we could handle," Head coach
Bob Warming said. "I thought our guys responded well in the second
half, even though (Northwestern) got the goal. How fun is this? It's a
day our guys will never forget and I'm happy for them."
The
match seemed destined for a 1-1 draw until the 109th minute when NU's
Connor Holloway lost his footing at midfield and Connor Maloney
(Harrisburg, Pa.) took the ball and rushed down field. Maloney drew a
Wildcat defender at the top of the penalty area and passed a perfectly
placed ball to Tyler who sent it into the back of the net for his fifth
goal of the year and fourth game-winner.
The goal set off a wild
celebration as Penn State (10-3-1, 5-0-0 Big Ten) celebrated its second
straight Big Ten title and fifth overall. The victory clinched the No.
1 seed in the Big Ten Tournament for the second straight season as well
as the Lions look to complete the perfect Big Ten season with a win
next week at Ohio State, a feat only accomplished by once before in
Penn State men's soccer history (2005).
In a nip-and-tuck game,
the Northwestern (8-4-3, 1-1-1 Big Ten) struck first in the 60th minute
on a goal from super striker Joey Calistri. Cole Missimo went streaking
down the left flank toward the end line and touched a ground pass to
Calistri on the near post. The crafty sophomore and the Big Ten's
leading scorer back heeled a clever shot into the far right side of the
goal for the lead.
Penn State went into desperation mode and
pressed numbers forward. It took to the eighth shot of the half to
capitalize in the waning minutes as Drew Klingenberg (Gibsonia, Pa.),
last week's Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week, beat his defender on
the left wing. He chipped a cross to Tyler whose initial header looked
to be going wide but struck the back of a Northwestern defender and
went into the goal with 1:47 remaining in the second half.
The
Nittany Lions avoided an early setback when NU's Lepe Seeante ripped a
shot across frame in the 36th minute that required a sprawling save
from two-time Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week Andrew Wolverton
(Atlanta, Ga.). The two teams finished the opening half knotted at one.
The
victory cemented Penn State's record at 8-1-1 in the past nine matches,
which includes a tie over No. 5 California and wins over No. 14
Michigan State and No. 19 Northwestern. Penn State improved to 7-1-1 at
home as Wolverton and defenders Akil Howard (Queens, N.Y.), Martin
Seiler (Stuttgart, Germany), Mike Robinson (Lansdale, Pa.) and Randy
Falk (Tewksburg Township, Pa.) have allowed just six goals in 961
minutes at Jeffrey Field.
Following the match, seniors Micah
Collins (Glen Rock, Pa.), Grant Warming (Omaha, Neb.), Seiler and
Howard were honored for their years of dedication to the Penn State
program.
Penn State improved to 23-5-3 all-time against the
Wildcats with the second-straight win in the series coming in overtime
fashion. Penn State has won five Big Ten championships and four of them
have come since 2002.
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