Men’s Soccer Earn 4-0 Shutout Over St. Bonaventure – Penn State

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – Penn State men’s soccer dominated St. Bonaventure, 4-0, at Jeffrey Field Monday evening. Their performance was fueled by goals from four different Nittany Lions.

HOW IT HAPPENED

First Half

Ben Liscum just needed 12 minutes to put the Nittany Lions ahead with a rocket from the top of the box for the captain’s first goal of 2024.

After some back and forth, graduate transfer Michael Hewes returned a service from the Bonnies goalkeeper into the back of the net from 20 yards out to score his first goal as a Nittany Lion in the 39th minute.

Penn State controlled the first half, outshooting St. Bonaventure 9-3.

Second Half

Penn State and St. Bonaventure both had good looks on goal nearly 30 minutes into the second half. Goalkeeper Fredrick Grundin made a momentous stop in the 48th minute that restrained a Bonnies 1v1 goal.

Captain Matthew Henderson broke the scoring lull in the 74th minute to score his second goal of the season. Ben Madore ran the ball along the sidelines and passed it to Christian Dionne who snuck a cross to Henderson. The junior launched the ball for a one touch goal.

The Nittany Lions put away the match two minutes later when Dionne gathered a pass from Kojo Dadzie after the graduate transfer’s shot was blocked by a Bonnies defender. Dadzie collected the second effort and quickly sent the ball to Dionne who deposited it into the back of the net.

COACH COOK ON THE MATCH

“To show how much depth we have, and you get a win like that at home is very important for our season,” said head coach Jeff Cook. “I’m really proud of the whole group.

“Once again at Jeffrey field on a Labor Day Monday kickoff time – I thought it was a fantastic crowd. I really appreciate our fans support. I hope we can build on that because it makes a huge difference. I could not express enough how much the fans and the community’s support drives the team forward. It’s really special.”

MATCH NOTES

• Goalkeeper Fredrick Grundin collected a career high three saves in the 90 minutes and the first shutout of his career.
• Senior Sean Bettenhausen made his first start this season, while Bryce Flowers and Conrady Brady made their collegiate debuts.
• The Blue and White held the 9-3 advantage on shots on target, while St. Bonaventure had the 5-4 edge on corners.
• Penn State continues to dominate the all-time series against St. Bonaventure, 7-0-1.
• The Nittany Lions improve to 2-2-0, while the Bonnies fall to 1-3-0.

UP NEXT

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