It couldn’t have gone any worse for Penn State men’s soccer Sunday, as its NCAA Tournament journey came to a sharp end in the second round at Jeffrey Field.
The No. 12 seed Nittany Lions fell to Hofstra 8-2 in a shocking performance. Femi Awodesu and Danny Bloyou had consolation goals for head coach Jeff Cook’s side.
“First, I would like to say that despite tonight’s result, I remain immensely proud of our players,” Jeff Cook said after the game. “It’s been a great season. Tonight wasn’t us and we can’t make any excuse. We’d like to congratulate Hofstra – they played an outstanding game. They were excellent tonight and deserved to win. The biggest thing is that we’re just so disappointed not to have the chance to advance and continue this wonderful season we’ve had.”
According to Penn State Athletics, the Nittany Lions had 12 players out with non-COVID illness during the week leading up to the game. (The Penn State football team also saw a significant number of players sidelined by illness last week.)
“It was a very difficult week for us. Again, Hofstra deserved to win tonight, and we can’t take anything away from that over the 90 minutes,” Cook said.
Hofstra’s eight goals were the most scored by one team in an NCAA Tournament game since 1978, according to the NCAA Stats Twitter account.
How It Happened
Jeff Cook made two changes to the starting lineup that defeated Indiana in the Big Ten Tournament title. Keegan Ness and Tyger Evans replaced Kyle May and Jalen Watson to start the match, respectively.
The Nittany Lions got punched in the mouth early. Hofstra showed its intent from the opening kick and got into a good area from a set-piece just three minutes in. Two Hofstra players volleyed it on, before finding Ryan Carmichael for a dunk right in front of Kris Shakes’ net for the (very) early lead.
Penn State showed its class by not crumbling early on.
The Nittany Lions promptly dominated the next 20 minutes of the match but looked timid in front of the goal. Seth Kuhn had the best chance of the early going, taking a shot from his range of 25 yards that forced a good save from goalkeeper Wessel Speel.
Penn State wasn’t clinical in the first half, and it came back to bite the hosts. Hofstra left-winger Hendrik Hebbeker was tormenting Alex Stevenson and Pierre Reedy each time he got the opportunity, and he punished them with a fantastic solo effort in the 30th minute for the 2-0 advantage.
After Hebbeker’s goal, the Nittany Lions seemed to lose the plot. Hofstra had the ball in dangerous areas for the remainder of the half, and it wasn’t long — just seven minutes later in the 37th minute — before Hebbeker got his second and Hofstra’s third with an easy tap-in.
Penn State got to the break down 3-0, and they were lucky to not be down more after 45 minutes.
Needing a spark to begin the second half, it just went from bad to worse for the Nittany Lions. Just 23 seconds after the whistle blew, Francesco Perinelli earned Hofstra’s fourth.
If Penn State was already crumbling, the avalanche was released throughout the rest of the second half. Roc Carles scored two nearly identical goals to make it 6-0 by the 62nd minute, before Hebekker clinched his hat trick just 19 seconds later for the extra point.
Penn State had nothing going forward, and a scrum near the Nittany Lions’ goal resulted in Hofstra’s eighth. The Nittany Lions would respond in the 78th minute to finally break Hofstra’s hope for a clean sheet, as Femi Awdoesu bundled in an identical scrum to make it 8-1.
Danny Bloyou scored in the 89th minute for a second consolation goal. Despite it not meaning much, the goal was a nice ending for Bloyou’s impressive Penn State career.
Penn State Player of the Match
Park Avenue Army
There is something honorable to be said for the 35-ish Penn State students who delayed their Thanksgiving travels, braved the cold conditions, and — more than everything else — stayed the full match all while watching their team get demolished in the most important game of the year.
The Park Avenue Army student section had one of its best seasons, fan-wise, in recent memory. This was by no means the best way to end the year, but the fans of Penn State soccer truly showed their true colors by sticking this one out.
What’s Next
That’s it for the Nittany Lions. Meanwhile, Hofstra will play No. 5 Pitt in the Sweet Sixteen next weekend.
StateCollege.com’s Geoff Rushton contributed to this story.
