Butts Hat Trick leads Penn State over Ohio State.

COLUMBUS, Oh. - Entering the evening looking to bounce back from its first loss of the season, Penn State opened up Big Ten play with a victory as the blue and white knocked off the Ohio State Buckeyes in Columbus by a score of 3-0, courtesy of a hat trick by Liam Butts.

Following some strong early chances by the red and white, Butts opened the scoring.

In the 12th minute, the fifth-year took advantage of a turnover from the Buckeyes, dribbling the ball from the defensive third all the way inside the 18-yard box before sending a curling right-footed shot past the outstretched arms of goalkeeper Peter Van Euwen and in to give the Nittany Lions the lead.

Ohio State continued to press the attack, but Kris Shakes continued to answer the call and kept the red and white off the board. Frustration began to show for the Buckeyes, and in the 29th minute, they made a costly mistake.

Anthony Samways fouled Sean Bettenhausen, and the two came close together as Alex Stevenson tried to make a quick throw. Samways then shoved Stevenson to the ground. Samways got awarded a red card for the shove, and the Buckeyes were forced to play down a man.

For his part in the exchange, Stevenson got awarded a yellow card, one of two dealt to the blue and white in the game, with Mohamed Cisset accumulating the other in the 48th minute.

Despite being down a man, the Buckeyes continued to press offensively, but a combination of fantastic keeping from Shakes and the woodwork kept them off the board.

In the 59th minute, Butts doubled the Nittany Lions advantage.

On a free-kick opportunity from just outside the box, Caden Grabfelder sent a ball into the box that bounced on target, forcing Van Euwen to parry it away. Butts then corralled the rebound and sent a left-footed shot into the back of the net to make it 2-0 Penn State.

Then just three minutes later, Butts would complete the hat trick. Van Danielson used his speed to get into the box, firing a pair of shots, the first that Van Euwen managed to stop before the second hit the crossbar and stayed out. Butts then pounced on the rebound to secure his first-ever collegiate hat trick.

The Buckeyes would do their best to ruin the clean sheet, but a pair of late saves from Shakes would secure his second clean sheet of the season and a 3-0 Nittany Lion victory.

With the win, Penn State moves to 3-1-2 on the season, while Ohio State falls to 1-3-2.

Next up for the Nittany Lions is another Big Ten matchup, as the blue and white will host Maryland, with kick-off scheduled for 6 p.m. on Monday.

Ben Palillo is a fourth-year majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact him, please email bgp5079@psu.edu.