Penn State Men’s Soccer Ends Season With 3-1 Quarterfinal Loss To Michigan
Penn State Men’s Soccer (6-9-2, 3-3-2 Big Ten) ended its season Sunday with a 3-1 Big Ten quarterfinal loss to Michigan (11-4-2, 4-2-2 Big Ten) on the road.
The Wolverines’ Umar Farouk Osman overtook Jack Hallahan on the Michigan scoring chart, scoring two goals to boost his season tally to nine. Hallahan added a third in the 81st minute to cancel Ryan Gallagher’s first-half header from a corner and cut the Nittany Lions’ playoff run short.
How It Happened
Michigan established its home dominance early in the match through Osman, who scored from a Marcello Borges long throw in in the 28th minute.
Borges and Hallahan threatened throughout the next fifteen minutes, recording a shot each. The Nittany Lions showed some attacking tenacity. Both Ethan Beckford and Noah Pilato recorded shots against goalkeeper Henry Mashburn before Ryan Gallagher powered Callum Pritchatt’s corner into the back of Michigan’s net in the 43rd minute to equalize.
Way to use your head, Gally
— Penn State Men’s Soccer (@PennStateMSOC) November 4, 2018#WeAre #LockedIn pic.twitter.com/19gnTj0Mh0
Michigan failed to capitalize on a corner kick in the following minute, and the two sides entered halftime locked at one.
Michigan began the second half on the front foot, failing to score from three corners and recording one shot inside the first ten minutes. Osman struck again in the 53rd minute to regain the lead for the Wolverines. The sophomore forward collected a redirected corner and blasted a shot inside Josh Levine’s left post to secure his brace.
The Wolverines then established firm control over the match, forcing Jeff Cook to introduce Mac Curran and Daniel Gonzalez in search of attacking inspiration. Michigan continued to pressure Levine and the backline from set pieces, and earned a total of 12 corners throughout the match.
Jack Hallahan capitalized on his side’s attacking pressure with just over ten minutes remaining in the match. He collected Lucas Rosendall’s pass inside the Penn State penalty area, dribbled past Brennan Ireland, and curled a left-footed shot past Levine to give Michigan a firm 3-1 lead.
The Wolverines kept a tight grip on the match from then on, limiting Penn State’s last-gasp attacking effort to a single corner kick. The Nittany Lions failed to record a shot in the second half, and ended the match with a total of four efforts to Michigan’s 12.
The Nittany Lions’ failed to breach Michigan’s solid defense in the final stages of the game, and the Wolverines finished the match with a convincing 3-1 victory. They will face Wisconsin in the tournament semi finals Friday, November 9.
Player of the Match
Umar Farouk Osman| Sophomore|Forward
Michigan’s prolific sophomore forward notched a double against the Nittany Lions and his partnership with Jack Hallahan will likely produce more goals for the Wolverines against Wisconsin.
What’s Next?
Penn State will not advance to the next round of Big Ten play.
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