Michigan
Penn State
U-M to Face Penn State in Big Ten Tournament Semifinal
4/12/2021 2:00:00 PM | Men's Soccer
THIS WEEK: Big Ten Tournament Semifinal
Wednesday, April 14 -- at Penn State (State College, Pa.), 5 p.m.
TV: Big Ten Network | Live Video | Live Stats
Tournament Central
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The University of Michigan men's soccer team (6-3-1) will face No. 14-ranked Penn State in the Big Ten Tournament semifinals on Wednesday (April 14). First touch is set for 5 p.m. at Jeffrey Field in State College, Pa., and the contest will air on Big Ten Network. No. 1 seed Indiana hosts No. 4 seed Maryland in the other semifinal match at 7:30 p.m. The higher remaining seed after the semifinals will host the championship game Saturday (April 17).
Team Notes
• The Wolverines won their 200th program victory on Saturday (April 10) in a 1-0 game versus Michigan State that saw Kevin Buca net his third goal against the Spartans this season.
• Michigan won two major Big Ten awards including Midfielder of the Year for Marc Ybarra and Defensive Player of the Year for Jackson Ragen. Both claimed first-team All-Big Ten honors along with Joel Harrison.
• Buca and Ybarra sit atop the scoring column with nine points apiece. Ybarra has a team-best five assists and two goals, while Buca has three tallies and three helpers. Ragen has the most goals on the team with four.
• Bryce Blevins and Quin Rogers both captured Big Ten All-Freshman Team honors.
• Owen Finnerty's 0.78 goals-against average ranks second in the Big Ten. He has allowed six goals on 27 shots and has a .778 save percentage, third in the conference. Finnerty has four shutouts this season.
• Michigan has reached the Big Ten Tournament championship tilt in each of the last two seasons and five times in program history.
• Michigan dropped out of this week's United Soccer Coaches poll (April 13), while Penn State moved up five spots to No. 14.
The Series
Michigan meets Penn State for the first time this season after the regular-season meeting on March 3 was postponed and eventually canceled. The series is even at 11-11-4 with Michigan taking the last match, 1-0, in the Big Ten Tournament in 2019. The squads are 3-3 when playing each other in the conference tournament, with Michigan going 3-0 in the last three conference matches.
Scouting the Nittany Lions
No. 14 Penn State is 7-1-1 on the season. As the No. 2 seed in the Big Ten Tournament with a 6-1-1 conference mark, the Nittany Lions defeated Ohio State, 3-1, in the quarterfinals on Saturday. When playing at home, the squad is 5-1-1. Daniel Bloyou paces the offense with 15 points on a team-high six goals and two assists. He had a career-high five-point game against the Buckeyes on Saturday. Peter Magione and Pierre Reedy add four goals and 10 points apiece. In goal, Kris Shakes owns a 0.84 goals-against average and a 80.6 save percentage.
