Sept. 16, 2002
Bucknell joined the list of Patriot League men's soccer teams Monday that are rising to the occasion this season against nationally-ranked teams.
The Bison opened its home ledger in style Monday, handing 18th-ranked Pittsburgh its first loss of the season. Sophomore Jonathan Hemmert converted a penalty kick in the game's 47th minute to lift the Bison to the 1-0 victory.
Just 24 hours earlier, defending PL champion American topped the host Nittany Lions, 2-1, in the final round of the Penn State/Nike Classic in State College, Pa. Soph. Shawn Kuykendall, the Patriot League Offensive Player of the Week, scored the game-winning goal against PSU to earn tournament MVP recognition.
AU already has wins this season against Georgetown, Boston College, which was ranked in the Top 15 at the time of the game, and Ohio State, which was the Eagles' first-round opponent in the 2001 NCAA Tournament. American's only loss this season is to nationally-ranked Connecticut.
After a one-week hiatus, American returned to the NSCAA/adidas national poll in the No. 12 spot. Two weeks ago, the Eagles made their first appearance in the national rankings at the No. 22 position.
AU is also ranked No. 22 in the Soccer America poll and No. 25 in the College Soccer News poll. In the NSCAA/adidas regional rankings, the Eagles are currently second in the South Atlantic Region.
Other results that indicate League teams are moving to a higher level of play include Holy Cross' season-opening tie against Duke, followed by a shutout victory over North Carolina State; Colgate's early-season victory over Top 10-ranked St. Bonaventure, Lehigh's victory over The College of Charleston and Navy's triumph over Massachusetts.
Monday's Bucknell victory marked only the third time since 1974 that a Bison men's soccer squad has defeated a nationally-ranked program. The last win came in the 2000 season when the Orange and Blue upset 8th-ranked South Carolina, 2-1 in overtime.
Bucknell and the Panthers played to a scoreless tie at halftime, despite scoring opportunities for both squads.
Just over two minutes into the second half, BU was awarded a corner kick. Hemmert crossed the ball in front of the cage, and a header shot appeared to be going in when a Pittsburgh defender was called for a handball on the goal line. Hemmert took the penalty kick and sailed the ball into the left corner for the 1-0 lead just 2:22 into the final frame.
Pittsburgh threatened to tie the contest in the final five minutes, but the Bison defense continued to come through to preserve the fourth shutout of the year.