Penn State men’s soccer falls to Georgetown in NCAA Tournament

The Penn State men’s soccer team fell to Georgetown, 3-2, on Thursday in the third round of the NCAA Tournament in Cary, N.C.

The unseeded Lions (9-2-2) attempted to erase a two-goal deficit in the second half, but the No. 8-seed Hoyas (10-1-2) were able to sit on their lead and advance to the tournament quarterfinals.

Penn State fell behind early when Georgetown’s Dante Polvara beat goalkeeper Kris Shakes on a penalty kick that came after the Lions were called for a handball in the box. That happened in the ninth minute, and it gave the Hoyas an early lead.

Penn State evened the game on a penalty kick from forward Peter Mangione less than four minutes later, but Georgetown had the advantage for most of the first half and finished the opening 45 minutes with an 11-2 advantage on shots.

For the most part, the Lions defense held strong. But the group faltered twice in crucial moments. First, Georgetown took the lead in the 30th minute on a goal by Zach Riviere. Then, the Hoyas pushed the advantage out to 3-1 on a goal by Martin Ngoh with only 22 seconds left in the first half. Penn State entered the break trailing by two goals.

The Lions mounted some serious challenges in the second half, with forward Daniel Bloyou scoring on a cross from midfielder Pierre Reedy in the 59th minute to cut the Hoyas lead to 3-2. Despite the chances, Georgetown goalkeeper Giannis Nikopolidis and his defense were there to stymie Bloyou, Reedy and the dangerous Penn State offense. In the final minute, the Lions had a chance to tie, but the offense was offside.

So much to be proud of during this unprecedented season. Good things are ahead for the program as the Fall 2021 season is really not that far away! https://t.co/j8yMtDmjFm

— Penn State Men’s Soccer (@PennStateMSOC) May 6, 2021

Penn State coach Jeff Cook’s third year ended on a high note with the Lions finishing among the final 16 teams in the country. Cook helped the Lions to back-to-back NCAA Tournaments for the first time since 2013-14, and Penn State was close to posting consecutive double-digit win seasons.