Rutgers men's soccer downs Penn State at home
The Rutgers men’s soccer team defeated Penn State 2-1 at Yurcak Field on Busch campus earlier tonight. The Scarlet Knights (5-6-2, 3-3-1) extended their winning streak to two games following their victory against the Nittany Lions (7-3-3, 3-2-1).
Rutgers had the first shot of the game as sophomore forward Ian Abbey forced Kris Shakes into an early save.
In the 14th minute, graduate student midfielder Jackson Temple was picked out on the edge of the box and took a shot, but it went just wide of the left post.
The Knights would open the scoring in the 18th minute. Temple played a pass to junior midfielder Matthew Acosta, whose shot took a deflection off a Nittany Lion defender to roll into the back of the net.
Rutgers had a chance to extend its lead to 2 goals in the 25th minute, but Shakes parried away Acosta’s effort.
The Knights would score their second goal of the game in the 34th minute when senior forward Ola Maeland blasted the ball into the top of the net.
Going into halftime, Rutgers had a 2-0 lead and played solid defense to limit Penn State to only five shots.
The Nittany Lions had an opportunity to cut the deficit in the 54th minute, but Peter Mangione’s shot rattled off the left post.
Penn State would continue to settle into the game, having more possession and creating more scoring opportunities.
The Knights were hit with an injury blow in the 63rd minute, as junior midfielder Curt Calov departed the game after picking up an injury.
Sophomore goalkeeper Ciaran Dalton would be forced into his first save of the game in the 76th minute from Femi Awodesu’s shot.
Maeland had a shot on goal approximately 3 minutes later, but it was saved by Shakes.
The Nittany Lions would cut the deficit to 1 goal in the last minute with a goal from Mangione, but it was too late as Rutgers ultimately claimed its second consecutive victory.
"(Temple) got the ball to me, and I capitalized on the opportunity that I got," Acosta said on his goal.
The Knights will look to continue their winning run when they travel to Brookline, Massachusetts, to take on Northeastern on Saturday. Kick-off is scheduled for 1 p.m., and the game will be broadcast on FloSports and NESN.
"It’s a great result for us," said head coach Jim McElderry. "It's always tough to beat Penn State, but I’m happy for our guys."
For more updates on the Rutgers men's soccer team, follow @TargumSports on X.
To view more of Matthew Mangam's work, follow @matthewmangam on X.
