The Indiana men’s soccer team beat Penn State 4-2 Friday night at Armstrong Stadium:
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 14, 2022
Indiana Earns 800th Win, Powers Past No. 25 Penn State
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – No. 16-ranked Indiana men’s soccer (6-2-4, 2-1-3 B1G) became the fastest program to reach 800 wins all-time on Friday (Oct. 14) with an emphatic 4-2 victory over No. 25 Penn State (5-4-3, 2-1-2 B1G) on Jerry Yeagley Field at Bill Armstrong Stadium.
IU is the seventh program to ascend to 800 wins, but the only one to do so within 50 seasons.
With a goal and two assists, redshirt senior Ryan Wittenbrink tallied four points in the win while six different Hoosiers provided a goal contribution.
KEY MOMENTS
• 4’ – For the second straight match, IU scored within the opening five minutes. Indiana earned four corners within the first four minutes, and on the fourth they got in. Wittenbrink’s service from the corner swerved in towards the back post and may have gone in on its own, but junior defender Joey Maher was there to make sure it did.
• 17’ – Wittenbrink dribbled into space from the left wing and just outside the 18-yard box but fired just wide of goal.
• 18’ – Penn State equalized as a lofted through ball from graduate midfielder Seth Kuhn got through the IU back line and into the path of senior forward Liam Butts, who avoided a challenge from IU redshirt senior goalkeeper Bryant Pratt and scored.
• 20’ – A throw in from senior Nyk Sessock sailed in and found the head of redshirt senior defender Daniel Munie. Munie flicked on towards the back post where senior defender Brett Bebej was all alone to head in.
• 48’ – Sophomore forward Samuel Sarver earned a penalty after a penetrating dribble into the box from the right wing. Wittenbrink stepped to the spot and sunk the penalty.
• 51’ – Wittenbrink received a pass on his wing and took on his mark. He dribbled into the box, cut to his left and took a shot that forced PSU senior goalkeeper Kris Shakes to leap to make the save.
• 59’ – Countering from a corner, Sarver played a through ball to senior forward Herbert Endeley into space deep in IU’s attacking third, but his shot was saved by a diving attempt from Shakes. On the resulting corner, Wittenbrink passed to Sarver who took a shot from about 16-yards out in the center of the pitch, but Shakes was up to the task again.
• 64’ – Wittenbrink provided his second assist of the evening with a great cross after racing past his mark on the left wing. Endeley met it with his head at the near post and powered it past Shakes.
• 72’ – Bebej slipped in IU’s box and unintentionally brought down PSU junior forward Peter Mangione to give the Nittany Lions a penalty. Mangione converted to cut the deficit to two.
• 75’ – Wittenbrink had another shot on goal saved with 15 minutes to play, and an attempt from senior forward Maouloune Goumballe on the rebound was put wide.
• 84’ – Freshman midfielder Jack Wagoner collided with a Penn State player in an aerial challenge and was given a second yellow. IU would play with 10 men in the final six minutes of the match.
NOTABLES
• Indiana earned its 800th win all-time, becoming the fastest NCAA Division I men’s soccer program to reach the milestone. The next fastest, UCLA, won its 800th match during its 60th season in 2004. IU is the seventh program to touch 800 wins but is the winningest program, by percentage, in NCAA DI men’s soccer history (800-191-109 – .777).
• IU is undefeated in 16 straight matches at Bill Armstrong Stadium going back to 2021 with a 14-0-2 record in that span and a 5-0-2 home mark this season. Friday’s win was Indiana’s 350th win all-time at Armstrong Stadium.
• The Hoosiers are undefeated in six consecutive matches overall.
• IU improved to 36-15-5 all-time versus Penn State and earned its seventh win in nine matches versus the Nittany Lions going back to 2016. It was also Indiana’s fifth straight against PSU in Big Ten regular season play.
• Indiana recorded its third win over a ranked opponent this season as Penn State was ranked No. 25 by Top Drawer Soccer this week. IU is 3-2-0 versus Top 25 teams this year.
• IU’s four goals tied its season-high tally and were the most scored on Penn State this season. IU outshot the Nittany Lions, 17-7, and held the visitors to just one shot in the opening half.
• Wittenbrink’s four points tied a career-high after he tallied as many on March 19, 2021, at Rutgers. The redshirt senior pushed his team-leading season goal count to six. He also leads IU with 17 points.
• Wittenbrink is a perfect 3-for-3 on penalty attempts this season, and IU has scored 4-of-4 attempts from the spot in 2022.
• With the final assist to Bebej’s goal, Munie has tallied a goal contribution in three of four matches since returning from injury as well as a three consecutive conference contests.
• Sessock earned his team-leading sixth assist of the season and fourth from a throw-in. The senior has provided assists from throws in back-to-back matches.
• Maher scored his first goal of the season. Indiana has scored 22 goals from 12 unique goal scorers this year.
• Endeley tallied his third goal of the year, which sits third on the team. The senior ranks No. 2 in points for IU with 10 (three goals, four assists).
UP NEXT
Indiana has a quick turnaround as it travels to Madison, Wisconsin, for a Big Ten road match on Tuesday (Oct. 18). The match will be televised on Big Ten Network with kickoff set for 8 p.m. ET.
#GoIU
