Penn State vs. Ohio State game grades

Last season the Nittany Lions beat the Buckeyes twice: once in the regular season, when Liam Butts scored a hat trick and once in the playoffs at Jeffrey Field, when Penn State beat Ohio State 4-3 on penalties.

Tuesday night, the Buckeyes embarrassed the Nittany Lions on national television 5-0, giving Penn State its third consecutive loss.

Here are the game grades from this match.

Goalkeeping A-

Andrew Cooke played well. Andrew Cooke let in five goals. Both things can be true.

The keeper faced 22 shots, 13 on target and made nine saves, a season-high. Multiple times, Cooke made spectacular saves to keep Ohio State from scoring, including two point-blank reflex saves in two minutes.

If it hadn’t been for Cooke, Ohio State would’ve won by seven or eight.

Defense D-

I had a tough time ranking the backline’s performance last night.

On the one hand, Penn State’s midfield and attack did not support Mohamed Cisset, Jack Bonas, Samuel Ovesen and Matthew Henderson. Penn State’s defense also played incredibly well for the first 25 minutes, with Cisset and Ovesen making several goal-saving blocks and interceptions.

On the other hand, when the dam broke, it broke into a thousand Luciano Pechota-shaped pieces.

Penn State’s game plan, whether intentional or not, was to park the bus for 90 minutes. The Buckeyes smelled blood in the water and kept their foot on the Nittany Lions’ neck.

Penn State tried to contain Ohio State’s relentless pressure, but the Nittany Lions struggled to clear their lines, giving the visitors unearned chances.

The Buckeyes spend most of the first hour with the ball in Penn State’s half. Ohio State turned its possession into chances and turned those chances into 18 shots and four goals through the first 60 minutes.

Penn State’s backline had no answer for Ohio State’s front three and earned its lowest grade this season.

Midfield F

The Buckeyes’ midfield outplayed Penn State’s and took Ben Liscum, Micheal Hewes, Caden Grabfelder, and Morgan Marshall out of the match.

The Nittany Lions could not sustain possession the entire first half. When Penn State won possession off of Ohio State, the Buckeyes swarmed the ball, winning it back or forcing Penn State into a wayward clearance.

Ohio State man marked Penn State’s midfield, and the midfield couldn’t find an answer to the Buckeyes press.

Ben Madore was the only Nittany Lion midfielder to make an impact in this match. His forward runs created a few good chances for the hosts.

Forwards F

Aboubacar Camara and Christian Dionne started up top for the Nittany Lions, but Ohio State held both players in check for most of the match. Both players had to sit deep in Penn State’s half to help the rest of the team defend Ohio State's onslaught.

The Nittany Lions managed five shots with just one on goal.

Penn State has struggled to score goals from open play this season but has made up for that with goals from set pieces. However, the Nittany Lions attackers managed to win just one corner kick compared to Ohio State’s 18.

People expected the seventh-ranked Buckeyes to control this match. People didn’t expect Penn State’s attack to disappear for 90 minutes altogether.

Coaching D-

Ohio State was Penn State’s third opponent ranked inside the top ten, alongside Clemson, who was ranked No. 1 at the time, and Pitt No. 3 at the time.

Penn State played well against Clemson despite the 3-0 loss and even better against Pitt, who barely beat the Nittany Lions 2-1. But Penn State couldn’t tactically match the Buckeyes Tuesday night.

While Ohio State played with furious intensity for 90 minutes, Penn State looked sluggish. Part of the blame for the Nittany Lions' poor tactics and slow play falls on the manager.

Owen Cameros is a second-year majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact him, please email ohc5024@psu.edu.