McKeesport, PA. – The Penn State Greater Allegheny Soccer team (0-0, 0-0) kicks off the 2019 season on Wednesday when they take on Point Park (1-1, 0-0) at 4 p.m. PSUGA begins its attempt to claim a sixth straight Penn State University Athletic Conference playoff spot with a tough non-conference match-up to get ready for the level of competition they will see this season.
PSUGA enters 2019 with a very young team featuring only four returners from last year’s PSUAC Semifinal appearance. With the new generation comes a lot of speed which head coach Dale Odim wants to use to his advantage throughout the season to create goal-scoring opportunities for his team.
However, PSUGA will once again rely heavily on their veteran defense led by senior Dario Marina (Pittsburgh, PA./Baldwin HS) and junior Colin Bucsok (Pittsburgh, PA./Thomas Jefferson HS). Marina was elected team captain for the second consecutive season and will serve as the team’s center back in 2019. Last season, he scored his first career goal while playing in 12 games on the defensive side of the ball.
Bucsok was elected a team captain for the second time in his career and returns as the team’s starting goalkeeper in 2019. Bucsok holds the program record for wins and shutouts by a goalkeeper and enters the season just 14 saves shy of the saves record at PSUGA. Bucsok has been named a PSUAC All-Conference Honorable Mention goalie in each of his first two seasons and looks to keep the opponent off the board once again in 2019.
On the offensive side of the ball, midfielder Namy Makiese (Pittsburgh, PA./Allderdice HS) looks to lead the way leading all returners with two goals scored last season. Makiese was elected the third captain for PSUGA and will be used as a midfielder this season to help get the ball in the attacking zone. Freshman Derek Huang (Kaohsuing, Taiwan/Kaohsuing American School) is looking to make an impact in his collegiate debut after being the top goal scorers for the Kaohsuing American School Dragons during his senior season.
UP to VB is this year’s team motto as PSUGA soccer tries for the first PSUAC Championship in school history followed by a trip to the USCAA National Tournament in Virginia Beach, Va. After making it to the semifinals each of the last two seasons, PSUGA is looking to get over the hump and make it to the championship game for the first time since 2015.
Their first obstacle to overcome is a Point Park team that has split their first two games of the 2019 season. They defeated Culver-Stockton College in their season-opener on Friday before dropping their last game to Lincoln College 3-2 on Sunday. After falling behind 1-0 in the first half, Point Park tied things up in the 53rd minute on a goal by Sam Truchot and took the lead in the 87th minute when Kay In’t Ven found the back of the net. However, Lincoln College responded in the 88th minute to take a 3-2 lead downing Point Park.
All-Time Matchup
Wednesday’s game will be just the second time these two teams have met with Point Park holding the early 1-0 advantage over PSUGA. Their previous match-up was on September 12th, 2018 when Point Park defeated PSUGA 5-0 at Highmark Stadium. Bucsok made 12 saves on 17 shots on net in the game, while former Lions Belmo Nurkic and Jagesh Subba combined to produce the only offense shooting five times, three on goal.
Kick-off for Wednesday’s game is scheduled for 4 p.m. at the Francis McClure Intermediate School located at 500 Longvue Dr., White Oak, PA. 15131
