Box Score Gwynedd Valley, Pa. - The Penn State Abington men's soccer team dropped only their second match of the season this evening, losing a tough-fought 3-2 game to Gwynedd Mercy College. Seniors Josh Clinger and Matt Howard each recorded a goal in the losing effort for the Nittany Lions.
 
The game started out fairly slowly for each side, with each team struggling to put forth much of an attack. Although the teams did manage to record several shots in the first half, goalkeepers James Carlin for the Nittany Lions and Greg Gengaro for the Griffins were only forced to make two saves apiece. In the end, the half would end with each team still scoreless.
 
Although the Griffins (5-10-1, 1-3-1 CSAC) have struggled most of the season, as any sports fan knows, the longer you let an underdog hang around in a game, the more of a chance they have to pull of the upset. In this case, that saying certainly proved true in the second half. Just 49 seconds into the second period, the Griffins took the first lead of the match, and they would not look back.
 
Junior midfielder Tyler Ward took control of the ball and managed to get inside the defenses of the Nittany Lions. From the side of the penalty box, Ward sent a cross into the box, where fellow junior Dan Panepresso was waiting on the ball. Panepresso sent a great flick on goal, simply redirecting the ball past Carlin and into the net for the 1-0 lead.
 
The Griffins managed to get right back on the scoreboard just eleven minutes later. Once again it was Panepresso who tallied for the Griffins, this time in a one-on-one situation with Carlin. This time, junior Trevor Sotell sent a ball through the defense of the Nittany Lions, beautifully paced so Panepresso was able to run onto it an maneuver for a shot. Panepresso sent the ball just past Carlin once again, and the Griffins went up 2-0.
 
With Penn State Abington (9-2, 7-1 NEAC) coming into tonight's game with several come-from-behind and close wins on their schedule, this certainly wasn't a Nittany Lions team that would fold under pressure. In fact, Abington attempted to start a comeback with a goal of their own in the 67^th minute. Senior Josh Clinger took control of the ball in the attacking third for the Nittany Lions, and managed to dribble into the penalty box. New goalkeeper Matt Chilcote came out to stop any shot from Clinger, but the senior knew exactly where to put the ball, slipping it past Chilcote and into the net, bringing the Nittany Lions back within one.
 
However, the Griffins would get the next goal, a dagger in the 79^th minute that would be the eventual game winner. Trevor Sotell was once again the creator of the goal for Gwynedd Mercy, driving all the way down the right side of the field before cutting in towards the goal just off the end line. Sotell managed to slip past one Nittany Lions defender before sending a low cross right in front of goal. All that was needed was for Tyler Ward, leading goal scorer for the Griffins, to tap the ball past Carlin, and suddenly Gwynedd Mercy was back in front by two.
 
Penn State Abington continued to show their resilience in making a comeback effort, and they did in fact managed to get another goal back. With just over 7 minutes left, sophomore Alex Martins sent a cross across the penalty box in the direction of senior Matt Howard. Howard managed to shake off his defender and get a foot to the ball, sending it past Chilcote and making the score 3-2 in favor of the Griffins.
 
However, it simply wasn't meant to be for Penn State Abington on this night. The Nittany Lions were unable to register another shot on goal in the match, and the Griffins came away with the unexpected 3-2 victory.
 
This loss does nothing, though, to change the playoff situation for Penn State Abington. Although it was a disappointing loss, the game was an out-of-conference affair, meaning they lose no ground to those teams chasing them in the playoff race. As it sits at the moment, both Morrisville State and Cazenovia sit at 19 points in the conference standings. Penn State Abington leads the standings with 21 points so far. If Penn State Abington can win out against Penn State Harrisburg and Gallaudet, the Nittany Lions will claim first place in the NEAC regular season and host the conference playoffs. As always, be sure to stay up-to-date with all your Penn State Abington men's soccer happenings right here on abingtonsports.com.