No. 3 Panthers Looking to Remain Undefeated at Penn on Sunday

PITTSBURGH – Following a come-from-behind victory over in-state rival Penn State, the third-ranked Pitt men's soccer team will travel to face defending Ivy League regular season champion Penn on Sunday evening at Rhodes Field in Philadelphia.

Kickoff is slated for 7 p.m. ET, and the match can be streamed via ESPN+.

    Need to Know - Game 4
    No. 3 Pitt (3-0-0) at Penn (0-0-0)
    Sunday, Sept. 1, 2024 - 7 PM - ESPN+
    Philadelphia, Pa. – Rhodes Field

Scouting the Quakers

Penn landed the top spot in the 2024 Ivy League men's soccer preseason poll, as announced by the conference earlier this week.
- The Quakers earned the favored spot with 115 points and seven first-place votes after ending last season as the Ivy League regular season champions with a 4-1-2 league record.
The Quakers return seven projected starters this season, including All-Ivy honorees Leo Burney, Stas Korzeniowski, and Ben Do, along with Phillip Falcon III, Charlie Gaffney, Aaron Messer and Oliver Pratt.
- Burney was named to the United Soccer Coaches Defenders to Watch List and Korzeniowski to the United Soccer Coaches Forwards to Watch List.
Korzeniowski led the offense last year with 20 points and eight assists.
Defender Burney led a stout Quaker back end in 2023 that allowed only 12 goals and 62 shots on net, keeping opponents' shots-on-goal percentage at less than 35 to end the year.

Series History

Sunday will mark Pitt's first-ever match against Penn in the program's 70-year history.

Last Time Out
After facing a 1-0 halftime deficit, Pitt rallied to stun in-state rival Penn State, 2-1, Friday evening at Jeffrey Field in University Park, Pa.

Friday's victory marked the 350th-career win for head coach Jay Vidovich. Additionally, the Panthers improved to 3-1-1 against the Nittany Lions since 2017, while securing their first 3-0 start since the 2020-21 campaign.

Despite controlling possession, and owning a 6-1 shot advantage, Pitt trailed entering the halftime break.

Undaunted, the Panthers remained on the attack following the intermission. In the 60th minute, sophomore forward Albert Thorsen was taken down in the box, resulting in a penalty kick for Pitt.

After a brief video review, the call stood and senior midfielder Guilherme Feitosa stepped to the spot, nailing his 10th-career goal. Over the ensuing five minutes of play, the Panthers' constant offensive pressure began to wear down Penn State's backline.

At the 65:06 mark, freshman forward Lasse Dahl sent a perfect cross into the box, connecting with junior defender Casper Svendby – who headed home his first goal of the year, giving Pitt a 2-1 advantage.

The Panthers' defense held on to secure the victory, allowing only two shots over the final 25 minutes of play.

Of note, Penn State was issued a red card in the 73rd minute and played the remainder of the contest down a man.

Historical Leap
After opening the 2024 campaign unranked, Pitt recently rose to No. 3 nationally, according to the United Soccer Coaches Poll. Of note, Pitt's No. 3 ranking is the program's highest since Aug. 30, 2022.

	United Soccer Coaches	TopDrawerSoccer
Week 1	Unranked	Unranked
Week 2	No. 3	No. 10

Thorsen's Hot Start
Albert Thorsen opened the 2024 season in stellar fashion, recording a goal and an assist in Pitt's 2-0 upset victory over No. 16 Georgetown. Thorsen then followed up his performance with a goal in Panthers' 2-0 win over Mercyhurst on Sunday.

A 2023 ACC All-Freshman selection, Thorsen came into the weekend ranking second in the ACC and 29th nationally in points per game.

Key Players to Watch

Guilherme Feitosa - Captain
- Netted goals in the wins over Mercyhurst and Penn State
- Career Accolades
  - 2021 All-ACC Freshman Team
  - 2021 College Soccer News All-Freshman Second Team
  - 2021 TopDrawerSoccer Freshman Top 100 List (No. 28)
  - ACC Co-Offensive Player of the Week - Oct. 12, 2021
Jackson Gilman - Captain
- Career Accolades
  - 2023 Third Team All-ACC
  - 2023 TopDrawerSoccer Midseason Top 100 List (No. 16)
  - 2023 TopDrawerSoccer Preseason Top 100 List (No. 46)
  - 2022 ACC All-Freshman Team
  - 2022 College Soccer News All-Freshman First Team
  - 2022 TopDrawerSoccer Freshmen Best XI First Team
  - 2022 TopDrawerSoccer Freshmen Postseason Top 100 List (No. 10)
Albert Thorsen
- Has tallied two goals and an assist this season
- Career Accolades
  - 2023 ACC All-Freshman Team
  - 2023 TopDrawerSoccer Freshmen Postseason Top 100 List (No. 43)
  - 2023 TopDrawerSoccer Freshmen Midseason Top 100 List (No. 11)

Up Next
Pitt will conclude its three-match road swing on Saturday, Sept. 7, traveling to face SMU. Kickoff is slated for 7 p.m. ET, and the match can be streamed via ACCNX.