The Nittany Lions and Wolverines both proved their ferocity on yesterday, but it was the Lions who came out on top.

The Penn State men's soccer team opened their Big Ten season with a bang, defeating rival Michigan 4-0 in a dogfight at Jeffrey Field.

The Lions improved to 3-1 and earned their second consecutive shutout.

Fifty-two total fouls were called in the contest, as the two teams pushed and shoved each other all afternoon.

"Soccer's all about contact," Penn State head coach Barry Gorman said. "We're pleased they came to play."

Gorman also noted that physical play is often indicative of a new program. Michigan is only in its second season of play after soccer was added as a varsity sport last year.

But in just two short years, the Penn State-Michigan soccer rivalry has grown to near-football proportions. The two teams had previously battled twice, with Penn State winning both games in overtime.

No overtime was necessary in this contest, however, as Penn State dominated offensively. The Lions had several chances early but failed to put the ball in the net.

Finally, at 29:07, junior defender Ben Dawson deflected a pass from senior Derek Potteiger, and the ball dribbled past Michigan goalkeeper Joe Zawacki to make the score 1-0. Dawson's goal was the only score of the first half.

The Penn State offense then exploded in the second half, typical of the Lions' play this season.

Senior Chris Stout notched his fourth career goal and first of 2001 off assists by freshman Chad Severs and team co-captain Ricardo Villar at 63:51.

"I was pretty lucky," Stout said. "The ball came right at me, I couldn't miss."

Midfielder Brent Jacquette followed with a goal of his own just under four minutes later to make the score 3-0. Villar tallied a second assist.

The Lions added one more goal with just over four minutes remaining in the game, as forward Ken Lear scored off a pass from freshman Trevor Gorman.

Penn State has now scored 11 of their 16 goals this year in the second half.

"A lot of times last year we'd score a goal in the first half and get so complacent just that we're winning," Jacquette said.

"This year, we're trying to go first to 10, just see how many (goals) we can get on the board."

Penn State nearly did score 10 goals against the Wolverines. The Lions outshot Michigan 16-6, but Michigan's strong defense kept their team in the game. Zawacki made five saves for the Wolverines, and the Michigan defenders stopped several Penn State breakaways.

The Lions' defense also had a solid showing, thanks in part to Dawson's return from the World University Games in Beijing, China.

"He's just one part of our puzzle that was missing," Gorman said.

Since Dawson's return to the lineup last Thursday against Villanova, Penn State has not allowed a goal.

"The defense is more and more solid," Gorman said. "We're starting to play more as a unit."