UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa.; Sept. 30, 2005 ¨C With 4:02 remaining in overtime, freshman forward Jason Yeisley (Allentown, Pa.) found net from 18 yards out to propel the Penn State men¡¯s soccer team to a critical 2-1 win over the fifth-ranked Hoosiers in Bloomington, Ind. Senior midfielder David Walters (Hunlock Creek, Pa.) provided Yeisley with a seamless pass to set up the game winner. The goal was Yeisley¡¯s team-high fourth of the season.

The win was Penn State¡¯s second victory against a top 10 opponent in nine days. On Sept. 21, the Nittany Lions downed then No. 6-Maryland, 1-0, at Jeffrey Field. The Penn State victory also deals Indiana just its third Big Ten regular season loss ever on its home field of Bill Armstrong Stadium and its first defeat of the 2005 season.

The Hoosiers got on the scoreboard first, taking a 1-0 lead at the 12:38 mark. Redshirt freshman midfielder Josh Tudela crossed a perfect pass to a streaking Jacob Peterson. The junior forward, who was blanketed on the play by Penn State defender Geordie MacNeill (Richmond Hill, Ontario), appeared to punch in the score for his sixth goal of the season. However, the ball glanced off MacNeill and the score was ruled an own goal.

Penn State responded quickly, gaining the equalizer in the 15th minute, thanks to an exceptional effort from reigning Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week Simon Omekanda (Rochester Mills, Mich.). The junior forward gained controlled of the ball and pushed it upfield down the right flank. Crowded by three defenders, Omekanda broke through the pressure, maintained his balance and got off a beautiful crossing pass to strike partner Jason Yeisley. From eight yards out, the freshman forward blasted the ball past the kick save attempt of Indiana goalkeeper Chris Munroe. The Nittany Lion score was the first goal allowed by Indiana this season that did not come off a restart.

In the second half, Simon Omekanda created two prime opportunities that nearly gave Penn State the lead. With 52:29 expired, Omekanda received a feed from defender Marku Viitanen (Pirkkala, Finland) and fired a shot from 23 yards out that skipped just wide of the goal. Twenty-eight minutes later, Brian Devlin (Philadelphia, Pa.) dribbled the ball to the left near corner and slipped a pass to the center of the pitch. Omekanda received the pass with his back to the goal, spun, and booted a one-timer that narrowly missed wide left.

The play of the half was undoubtedly made by goalkeeper Conrad Taylor (Colorado Springs, Colo.). In the 81st minute, Indiana was awarded a penalty kick, but Taylor thwarted the left-footed attempt of senior forward Brian Plotkin with a spectacular diving save to preserve the 1-1 tie.

Next week, the Nittany Lions will be in action on Mon., Oct. 3 when they travel to meet Akron of the Mid-American Conference in a 7:30 p.m. showdown. Penn State will then host Big Ten opponents Northwestern on Fri., Oct. 7 (5:00 p.m.) and Wisconsin on Sun., Oct. 9 (2:00 p.m.) at Jeffrey Field.