They say cats have nine lives. The Penn State men's soccer team hasn't done anything this season to prove otherwise.
After a season full of ups and downs, the Nittany Lions will have a chance to prove that they're for real when they host Wisconsin in the opening round of the Big Ten Championships today at 1:30 p.m. at Jeffrey Field.
Unlike during the regular season, there is no room for error for Penn State. With an 11-7 overall record and a 3-3 record in the Big Ten during the regular season, the Lions may have to win the Big Ten championship to earn a berth in the NCAA tournament. If they fail do to so, they could miss the tournament that they have reached in seven of their last 10 seasons.
No. 4 seed Penn State isn't looking to its match against No. 5 seed Wisconsin (9-9, 3-3 Big Ten) feeling a sense of urgency, however. The team is relaxed, but eager to begin the tournament, Penn State assistant head coach Marlon LeBlanc said.
The Lions couldn't have picked a better time to start winning. They've won four of their last five games, and in three of those wins, they posted shutouts.
After a disheartening loss to conference rival Michigan State down the regular season stretch, Penn State's season appeared to be over. But after road wins against No. 14 Boston College, the Big East conference champion, and Lehigh, the former No. 1 team in the Middle Atlantic region, the Lions' playoff hopes have been reignited.
"The wins reinstated that this is a good team and that Penn State is somebody to contend with," LeBlanc said. "We're right in the thick of things."
Public Enemy No .1 for the Lions is a tough Wisconsin team that handed Penn State a 2-1 loss in October. The difference in today's rematch, though, may be senior tri-captain Brent Jacquette, who sat out the teams' first meeting due to a mandatory one-game suspension after receiving his fifth yellow card of the season.
With Jacquette missing from the backfield, the Badgers were able to break through the Lions' defense to knock two goals past sophomore goalkeeper Ryan Moate. Jacquette figures that things will be different this time.
"We have to come out and play our game and dictate the tempo and hopefully make Wisconsin follow our lead," Jacquette said.
Even if Penn State beats Wisconsin, the road to the NCAA championships isn't going to get any easier. With a win, the Lions will be greeted with a second-round match against heavily favored No. 3 Indiana. The possibility of having to face the Hoosiers early in the tournament doesn't seem to faze Penn State.
"I don't think the guys would have it any other way," LeBlanc said. "We knew we were going to have to face Indiana at some point if we were going to win the Big Tens."
The Lions will be at full-strength as Penn State men's soccer coach Barry Gorman, who also missed the Lions' first meeting against Wisconsin when he underwent surgery Sept. 30, would return to the Jeffrey Field sidelines tomorrow in hopes of guiding Penn State to a second-round match against Indiana.
"He's picked up right from where he left off," Jacquette said.
One team who looks to pick up where they left off from the regular season is No. 2 Michigan (9-6-2, 3-3) who faces No. 7 Northwestern (8-11, 0-6) at 4 p.m.
The Wolverines have lost just one game in their last seven, and are beginning to show signs of contending in the Big Ten.
"With the Big Ten tournament we want to show that we can play against anyone," Michigan assistant men's soccer coach Ernie Yarborough said. "If we take care of our offense and sure up on defense then we'll have good chances to do well."
This afternoon's task should not be overly daunting against a Wildcat team, which scored one lone goal in conference play this season.
The early game tomorrow will feature two teams who have no trouble scoring.
Ohio State (11-6-1, 3-3) will meet Michigan State (11-6, 3-3) at 11 a.m. in what should be the most competitive game of the first round.
These two teams post the second and third best overall records in the conference but as a result of the Big Ten's unusual goal differential being the tiebreaker.
The winner of this game appears to be the favorite to take on Indiana in the championship game on Sunday.
