Northwestern
Penn State
No. 9 Penn State Rallies to Tie Wildcats, 2-2
10/8/2004 12:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
Oct. 8, 2004
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EVANSTON, Ill. -- The ninth-ranked Nittany Lions mounted a furious comeback Friday afternoon at the Leonard B. Thomas Athletic Complex, scoring two goals in the final 44 seconds of play to earn a tie with Northwestern, 2-2.
NU junior Kevin Earnest scored both NU goals, staking the Wildcats to a 2-0 lead over their Big Ten foes.
Earnest's first score came in the 38th minute when he hustled to disrupt a defensive play, intercepting a pass from the PSU goalkeeper and putting the ball past him into an open net.
He added his second tally just a minute into the second half, taking a cross from Brad North (The Woodlands, Texas/The Woodlands) and slotting it inside the near post. Gerardo Alvarez (Aurora, Ill./Marmion Academy) also assisted on the play, springing North up the touchline.
Northwestern (6-3-2, 0-1-1 Big Ten) controlled much of the play against its ranked rivals, holding a 9-5 shot advantage in the second half. Justin Pines (Media, Pa./Strath Haven) made four saves to keep Penn State scoreless through 89 minutes.
The Nittany Lions (5-1-5, 0-1-1 Big Ten) found a way onto the scoreboard with 44 seconds remaining when a loose ball in the box found its way to the feet of Richard Costanzo, who put it past Pines.
Pushing its entire team forward, Penn State scored again with 12 seconds remaining in the match.
Northwestern held its surging opponent to only two shots in the 20 minutes of extra-time to hang on and earn the point.
The Wildcats return to action at 2 p.m. Sunday, hosting a nonconference match against Western Illinois.
