MADISON, Wisc. -- Tim Shaw let the air pass through his lips as he was seated after Saturday's game. He wanted to take a moment to find the words to describe how the team felt.

In the end, he only needed one word: Disappointment.

"That's all you can say," the defensive end said. "That's not why we worked so hard ... but we're going to keep working, try to get better."

Penn State lost to No. 17 Wisconsin, 13-3, at Camp Randall Saturday. It was the Nittany Lions' last opportunity to beat a ranked team in the regular season -- and the loss virtually eliminated the Capital One Bowl as a postseason possibility.

It was an unwanted climax to a season punctuated by four losses. The dream of a national championship was replaced by a BCS Bowl, then a New Year's Bowl. Now, even that last dream is no guarantee.

"It really wasn't the season we were expecting," wideout Derrick Williams said. "We were expecting to be right at the top because that's the type of program, that's the type of players we have.

"A lot of things just didn't go our way."

A deflected pass here, an inch there, and Saturday's story might have been constructed differently, maybe with linebacker Paul Posluszny's milestone of surpassing Greg Buttle's career tackles mark highlighting a big victory. As it was, the Lions still won't be making any move toward the top 25.

In a play that defined how the game flowed for Penn State, linebacker Sean Lee recovered a fumble by Badgers quarterback John Stocco in the second quarter. The Lions were 22 yards away from a touchdown. But one play later, Anthony Morelli's pass was deflected for a Wisconsin interception.

According to quarterbacks coach Jay Paterno, it was "a fluke thing" and wasn't a bad decision by Morelli. The pass was intended for Williams on a curl route, and Williams laughed when asked if it would've worked, adding he was open.

"We beat ourselves every time we lose," Morelli said. "We make mistakes, and you can't do that at this level of football."

Even the Badgers' lone touchdown drive was punctuated with a key play that could've completely changed the face of the contest.

It was fourth-and-1 on the Penn State 33-yard line, when the Wisconsin coaches called on tailback P.J. Hill to run up the middle.

It was so close, the chains were brought in. Safety Anthony Scirrotto jumped up, signaling to the sideline that it was the Lions' ball.

It wasn't.

"It was close. I wish they woulda stretched the sticks out a little more because it was centimeters. I thought we had it," Lee said, pinching two fingers together to show just how close. "It was a big play, something that coulda changed the tide of the game. It's a play we need to make."

Penn State's defense held Wisconsin to 341 yards -- 48 yards fewer than it normally gains -- and 19 points less than the Badgers scoring average.

Still, the Lions' offense struggled and couldn't score after kicker Kevin Kelly nailed a 39-yard field goal in the second quarter.

Penn State didn't make a single trip inside the red zone.

"There's always those key moments where you can make a key play, and maybe we didn't make that," Shaw said.

"We hung in there in tough situations, a lot of our guys sticking it out. At the same time, we know we can be better, so we're not happy."