COLUMBUS, Ohio - Austin McAnena and Konrad Warzycha each scored and tallied an assist as the Ohio State men's soccer team defeated No. 24 Penn State, 2-1, on a crisp fall day at Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium. The win gives Ohio State an 8-3-3 record on the season and a 2-1-0 mark in the Big Ten, while the Nittany Lions drop to 8-4-2 with a 2-1-1 conference record.
With the three points, McAnena takes over the Buckeye scoring totals with four goals and three assists, totaling 11 points. Sam Scales, the team leader in assists, also helped out on both goals, extending his total to five.
"The race for the Big Ten championship started today," head coach John Bluem said. "Had we lost, we very well may have been out of it, so to pick up a win is a big step in the right direction ... Austin had a great goal early in the game and Konrad's was just electric in the second half to give us a little more room."
Penn State took five shots in the first 10 minutes of the game, but Chris Hegngi took the first attempt for the Buckeyes in the 12th minute and it ignited an offensive burst that included McAnena's goal late in the 14th minute. Scales centered the ball to Warzycha who sent an outlet pass out to McAnena just outside the left side of the goal box. The rookie from Laguna Niguel, Calif., native drove the ball inside the left post for the early lead.
From there, the Buckeyes continued to push forward, while the defenders limited Penn State to four shots in the latter part of the half. OSU goalkeeper Matt Lampson made five stops in the first period, tying a career high, four of which came in that Nittany Lion barrage in the opening minutes. The redshirt freshman finished the day with a personal-best six saves.
Coming out of the intermission with the 1-0 lead, Ohio State did not wait long to strike again. Just under four minutes into the half, the same trio went to work again. This time, McAnena fed Scales, who in turn passed the ball to Warzycha midway through the penalty area. The junior from Dublin, Ohio, launched a shot into the upper right corner of the net for his first goal of the season and the 2-0 lead.
Penn State stepped up its attack with the two-goal deficit and cut the margin in half within 10 minutes. Frank Costigliola took a shot from well outside the penalty area that deflected off a Buckeye defender and into the right side of the net before Lampson had a chance to change directions.
With 31:25 to play, both sides were ignited by the one-goal game and physical play ensued. Fourteen of the 17 second-half fouls occurred from this point on and three yellow cards were given out in a two-minute span midway through the period as Ohio State fought to maintain control.
The Buckeyes were able to do just that and they wrapped up regulation with a 2-1 win, ending a two-game home losing streak.
Elsewhere in the Big Ten, Michigan State defeated Indiana, 1-0, in double overtime Sunday afternoon. The Hoosier loss gives Ohio State six points and allows it to move into a tie for second place with Indiana and Wisconsin. Penn State remains atop the conference with seven points, though it has played one more game than IU and Ohio State.
The Buckeyes return to action at 5:30 p.m. Wednesday against Big East foe West Virginia at Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium. The match was originally scheduled for 7:30 p.m., but was moved earlier to accommodate traffic and parking stemming from the Cavaliers vs. Boston Celtics NBA preseason game at the nearby Schottenstein Center. Ohio State resumes its conference schedule Sunday in Wisconsin before traveling to Indiana Nov. 1 and then wrapping up the 2009 regular-season campaign Nov. 7 vs. Michigan in Columbus and live on the Big Ten Network.
