Men’s Soccer Falls in 2-1 Heartbreaker to No. 3 Pitt – Penn State

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – Penn State men’s soccer suffered a heartbreaking 2-1 loss against No. 3 Pitt at Jeffrey Field on Friday evening.

HOW IT HAPPENED

First Half

Penn State struggled to gain possession throughout the first half, only marking one goal against Pitt’s goalkeeper Cabral Carter. Penn State opened scoring at the 38th minute. Christian Dionne scored his first goal as a Nittany Lion when he capitalized on a Penn State free kick serviced high by Matthew Henderson. Samuel Ovesen was the first to get to the ball and knocked the ball to Dionne, who launched it past Carter.

Second Half

Pitt equalized in the 59th minute after a foul in the box by Mohamed Cisset drawn by the Panthers’ Albert Thorsen. Guilherme Feitosa took the penalty kick for Pitt and was able to bring the score leveled.

The visitors extended their lead in the six minutes later when Lasse Dahl sent a cross over to Casper Svendby who headed the ball past Nittany Lions’ goalkeeper Andrew Cooke.

COACH COOK ON THE MATCH

“I want to thank the fans and the band for being here,” said head coach Jeff Cook. “They created an unbelievable atmosphere.”

“I thought our team was excellent in the first half, but I am bitterly disappointed to give away two goals and a red card. I think we need to develop far more maturity in our game to be successful at this level. I think we’re close, but unfortunately the reality is we’re not close enough and for me to give up a lead at home is unacceptable. I expect better from our guys. We have great characters on the team and I’m proud of them, but we need to find a way to be more professional in our approach in these games where the smallest of details are going to influence the outcome. Unfortunately, tonight it’s a disappointing result for us.”

MATCH NOTES

• Dionne, Bettenhausen and Grabfelder led the offensive efforts with a shot on goal apiece.
• Cooke tabbed two saves in the 90 minutes.
• Freshmen Sebastian Delacruz and Conor Clair made their first collegiate appearances late in the second half.
• Pitt held the advantage on corner kicks, 7-3, and shots, 14-5.
• Despite the loss, Penn State continues to hold the all-time series 24-9-4.
• Penn State falls to 1-2-0 on the season, while Pitt improves to 3-0-0 overall.

UP NEXT

Penn State will be back in action at Jeffrey Field against non-conference St. Bonaventure on Labor Day at 5 p.m. (ET). The match will be streamed on B1G+.