Hazleton Soccer tops PSU Wilkes-Barre for second straight win

LEHMAN, Pa. -- Penn State Hazleton won their second straight match on Tuesday, toppling Penn State Wilkes-Barre, 3-1, in a Penn State University Athletic Conference soccer tilt. The win is the first for Hazleton on the road this season, and comes on the heels of a win over Penn State Worthington Scranton on September 18.

Hazleton (2-4, 2-3 PSUAC) got off to a slow start, giving up a goal in the first minute off of a long pass from midfield to Mark Bugelholl who put it in the back of the net for a 1-0 lead. Wilkes-Barre couldn't hold the lead as John Wasserman (Perkasie, Pa.) knotted the score at 1-1 with a penalty kick during the 18th minute. Steven Principe (Jim Thorpe, Pa.) made it 2-1 for Hazleton with a shot from the top of the penalty area, giving the Nittany Lions a lead in to halftime.

Neither team would score for the next 30 minutes, until Michael Principe (Jim Thorpe, Pa.) took a corner kick. The kick sailed towards the back post, and eventually ended up in the net for a 3-1 Hazleton advantage. Hazleton's defense kept the two-goal advantage, holding Wilkes-Barre to seven shots, including only three in the second half.

Hazleton's Logan Yacowatz (Sugarloaf, Pa.) made five saves, going unblemished for 89 minutes after the early Wilkes-Barre goal. Hazleton outshot Wilkes-Barre 18-7, forcing the goalkeeper to make 12 saves. The Nittany Lions also forced six corners while giving up only one.

Hazleton returns to the pitch at 6:00 p.m. on Thursday, September 25 as they host the University of Valley Forge on the Penn State Hazleton campus.