Following an opening day handling of Maryland, Penn State men’s soccer was the clear favorite heading into its second match in Holuba Hall last Saturday.

However, Jeff Cook’s team lacked the quality in front of goal to down the Spartans, and a late goal secured the upset for Michigan State.

There was one other big storyline from Penn State’s first loss of the season: injuries.

“I’m not sure if this is a response to playing every four days after the long layoff,” head coach Jeff Cook said. “I think we have tried as best we can to prepare the guys for the physical demands.”

Four different Nittany Lions had to leave the match at one point or another, three of them being starting defenders. Alex Stevenson, Adam Laundree, and Jalen Watson were all forced off during the first 55 minutes of the match. Captain Brandon Hackenberg was the only starter on the backline that played the full game.

53': And another Penn State defender leaves the pitch. Alex Stevenson is replaced after a tough challenge.

Brandon Hackenberg is the only defensive starter uninjured.

— Onward Sports (@OnwardStSports) February 27, 2021

Additionally, midfielder Callum Pritchatt was subbed off shortly after Stevenson’s injury after a slide tackle. The Englishman appeared to have overextended his leg on the challenge and walked back to the bench in crutches.

Injured starters mean chances for other players. Penn State’s rarely used backline depth answered the call on Saturday, despite giving up a late winner to Michigan State.

Freshman Tyger Evans filled in at left back for Watson, while Femi Awodesu slotted alongside Hackenberg in the heart of the defense. Both players showed their speed and agility and minimized Spartan star Olu Ogunwale’s effectiveness in the final third.

Cook said that the newcomers’ strength shown in Saturday’s contest is a good sign of what is to come.

“I thought Femi and Tyger had two really good performances,” Cook said. “You never want to look past where we are right now, but it was really encouraging for those guys to come in versus a quality opponent and perform really well. Really good days for those two guys in terms of growth and getting some experience in a very competitive game.”

Evans and Awodesu were bright spots, but the Nittany Lions will need their experienced defenders back sooner rather than later.

Penn State may have only played three games so far, but by the end of the week, the squad will be halfway through the regular season.

The NCAA Tournament is shortened this year to 32 teams, meaning every game counts in the competitive Big Ten conference. Penn State’s loss put the team outside of TopDrawerSoccer’s weekly rankings, which is enough to see the Nittany Lions out of the tournament picture entirely.

Cook doesn’t see any reason to panic. After all, it’s just one loss.

“I don’t fault the players,” Cook said. “Despite the best efforts of the players, it didn’t go our way. We are creating those opportunities, and although we didn’t score today, we did clearly create a number of goalscoring chances.”

Penn State won’t get to take a breather as it takes on the only undefeated Big Ten team left, No. 19 Michigan, on Wednesday. Following that will be one of the best matches of the season, a trip to No. 13 Indiana, on Sunday.

Cook will need stalwarts Watson, Laundree, and Pritchatt back, but it is unclear what their timetables for returning are just yet. Stevenson was able to sub back in against Michigan State and appeared to be at 100% during the remainder of the match.

“It was a difficult day, and at this point, I’m not too sure,” Cook said on the injured players. “We have a top sports medicine team here at Penn State. It was a difficult day because of the intensity of the games at this level, so I was sorry to see a couple guys get injured. I have total confidence in our medical team and our guys to rehab and get back as soon as possible.”