This weekend marks the return of the Penn State Nike Classic. I'll post observations of the weekend's games here when I get around to it. I'm really looking forward to seeing Simon Omekanda, the Nittany Lions stud freshman who was just named to the Soccer America team of the week. PSU has a nice two game winning streak going after falling twice in California, we'll see if they keep up the momentum. Here's the schedule (team records in parenthesis), Penn State is #12 and Hartwick is #25 in the Soccer America poll, while Hartwick is #13 in the NSCAA poll. September 12 5:00 pm - Ohio State (1-3) vs. Hartwick (3-0) 7:00 pm - Penn State (2-2) vs. Boston College (1-2) September 13 5:00 pm - Ohio State (1-3) vs. Boston College (1-2) 7:00 pm - Penn State (2-2) vs. Hartwick (3-0) http://www.gopsusports.com/pressreleases/pressrelease.cfm?anncid=4810
Penn State 2 - Boston College 1 Chad Severs and Brian Devlin scored and Simon Omekanda had two assists as Penn State won their home opener before a nice crowd of over 2,000. Penn State improves to 3-2 while Boston College falls to 1-3. A strong second half propelled Barry Gorman's troups to victory after they had fallen behind 1-0 on a Neil Krause goal in the first half. Hartwick 1 - Ohio State 0 Edwin Ruiz tallied the game's lone goal in the 80th minute as the Hartiwck Hawks improve to 4-0 on the season. Ohio State falls to 1-4. http://www.gopsusports.com/pressreleases/pressrelease.cfm?anncid=4818
I was at the match. It was a tale of two halves. PSU looked very unorganized in the first half. They couldn't hold possession whatsoever in the midfield. BC had many more quality scoring opportunities in the first half, resulting in a 1-0 lead at the half. However, PSU came out for the second half and looked like a completely different side. They started to hold possession better and have more organized attacks around the box. They got a nice goal from Chad Severs after he was set up with a low cross right outside the six, collected it and calmly put it into the back of the net. After the goal, PSU really started taking control of the game as they became more aggressive and more attacking. Brian Devlin (a guy I got to know last year) scored on a cross that was poorly played by the keeper and the defender. It was a nice sliding goal by Devlin, but the keeper should have grabbed the cross before it got to Devlin. PSU should have had a third goal after a perfect thru-ball that split two defenders, but the forward (I forget his name) lost control of the ball as he was dribbling around the keeper on the break-away. All-in-all, it was a nice effort from this very young PSU side. A good crowd was on hand, the match was televised by CN8 (a Philadelphia cable channel), and there was even a small marching band on hand in the stands.
Hartwick College is a small liberal arts school in Oneonta, New York. They traditionally have a good soccer program and have beaten Bucknell, Pittsburgh, Hofstra, and Ohio State (all by a 1-0 score) to start off the year 4-0. I was awfully tired last night so didn't post a true match report. CyphaPSU does a good job of telling the story. The first half was sloppy, and Boston College did have more opportunities. But the second half was better for Penn State. Simon Omekanda really did some good things, sending in smart crosses that resulted in the goals. He and Severs compliment each other well and really give fits to opposing defenders. I have always liked Severs' ability to show to the ball and distribute to overlapping midfielders. Omekanda offers some more strength and speed and allows both forwards to show wide as well as making inside runs in the attack. Once PSU started to hold possession and knock the ball around, it seemed inevitable that they'd score some goals. I gotta get some work done but I'll post more after tonight's games.
I saw the second half on ComCast here in Boston. Yep, PSU absolutely deserved the win. As a mostly neutral observer, I was struck by how much more entertaining this was than Maryland-UCLA last week. Less pressing means more passing and a much better flow.
PSU wins Nike Classic Penn State beat Hartwick 2-1 to win the Nike Classic. The Lions didn't look hot the first half as they struggled to string together any passes. Hartwick scored first and went into halftime with a 1-0 lead. Penn State looked much better the second half as they controlled the ball about 70 % of the time. Severs had both goals for Penn State. I believe Omekanda and Zewe had the assists. In the other match Boston College beat Ohio State 1-0.
Penn State 2 - Hartwick 1 Chad Severs scored two second half goals as Penn State rallied to beat previously unbeaten Hartwick College. Eldin Sijercic put the Hawks on top in the first half when he beat PSU keeper Matt Novchich to a cross from the right flank. Penn State came out motivated and really pressed forward in the second half. Simon Omekanda had a cracker of a shot hit the post from 24 yards out before Chad Severs finally broke up the clean sheet. A brilliant through-ball from Gabe Bernstein set up Severs who deftly curled a right-footed shot past the helpless keeper. A diving header from Severs put the Nittany Lions up for good moments later, and he just missed a hat trick when he failed to find net on a breakaway. Hartwick nearly tied it in the closing minutes but a brilliant save from Novchich preserved the win. Boston College 1 - Ohio State 0 Jamen Amato scored at the 60 minute mark to give the Eagles the win. A good save by BC's keeper in the waning minutes preserved the win. Ohio State falls to 1-5 overall, yikes! Chad Severs was named tournament MVP and he now has four goals on the season. Penn State improves to 4-2 overall and have a 4 game winning streak. It poured rain all day here, but the field was covered for most of it and didn't factor into things too much except for a few slips. http://www.gopsusports.com/pressreleases/pressrelease.cfm?anncid=4826
Evaluation? Hax, Cypah, Loop, What is your evaluation on the new guys? Omekanda, and Viitanen seem to play the most. How about the GK Novchich and Chambers? It also seems that PSU is scoring some goals this year. Are Severs and the rest of the attack really clicking? Thoughts.....
To be honest, I don't remember Chambers or Viitanen making an impression either way. Actually, I'm not even sure I remember Chambers playing. But Novchich and Omekanda have really impressed, here's my thoughts. Novchich played very well, especially against Hartwick where he made an incredible diving save late in the game to preserve the win. He's quick and seems to cut down angles well. His clearances are long and overall he's been very solid between the pipes. Omekanda is very good. He's quick and stocky, hard to dispossess. He is not afraid to go at players and has good moves. He hit an absolute rocket off the post against Hartwick from 24 yards out, a fantastic strike. He is not afraid to pull the trigger from anywhere though he also plays smart crosses when he shows out wide. He seemed to jaw with officials now and then, and he definitely wants the ball, has a big of fire in his belly. It's hard to believe he's a freshman, I took a friend who isn't a very big soccer fan to the Hartwick game and she couldn't stop raving about him. The attack for Penn State is really coming together. In both games this weekend they could've scored more goals but some poor finishing doomed them. The Nittany Lions can really play some incredibly attractive soccer when they hold possession. David Walters and Brian Devlin are very savvy midfielders and Gabe Bernstein plays terrific passes through the center of midfield. The wing play is solid when guys like Kenji Treschuk and Joe Zewe overlap. The most fun, however, is watching Severs and Omekanda together. They really are learning each other's strengths and are very dynamic, a handful for any backline. I can't say enough about Severs, he scored so many clutch goals last year and somehow people critcize him as not being fast or big enough. Well that's a load of crap, he's just plain good. He's a lot like a Taylor Twellman in that he has a nose for the goal and can score in many different ways. He's remarkably good in the air, positions himself better than anyone in college soccer, and can flat out finish. He might not have the physical skills of some but he can play. I am mystified that he was not a consensus pre-season All-America. He holds the ball very well and his passing is way underrated. I think he's as good as there is in the college game right now. And now with Omekanda to take pressure off him, Severs can really shine. Severs already has 4 goals and 2 assists, while Omekanda has 2 goals and 3 assists. They're a blast to watch play!