MIDDLETOWN, Pa. – Penn State Harrisburg's men's soccer team gave the nation's top team a run for its money before falling by the slimmest of margins in a 2-1 setback to No. 1 Messiah on Tuesday night, Oct. 3.

HOW IT HAPPENED

Penn State Harrisburg (4-4-4) struck first but top-ranked Messiah (10-0-1) netted a pair of goals early in the second half to overcome the early deficit, escape with the narrow victory, and remain undefeated on the season.

The Lions wasted little time getting the scoring started, with Kobe Harris breaking through less than two minutes into the contest. The forward worked his way around a couple of Messiah defenders and fired a one-hopper past a diving Adam Carter and into the right side of the goal to give the home team a quick advantage just 1:54 into the game.

Things held heading into halftime but the Falcons responded quickly after the break when Sam Phillips chased down a long ball and got around a defender before putting his shot into the back of the net just 1:32 into the second half. Phillips' big night continued 11 minutes later when he finished off a feed from Josh Bratager and gave the visitors a lead they wouldn't relinquish in the 57th minute.

NOTABLES

- Tuesday's contest was the third one-score game in the series between the two programs. Messiah now leads the all-time series 2-1.  

- Messiah is the third nationally-ranked team the Lions have faced this fall along with Lebanon Valley and Franklin & Marshall.

- Harris' marker was his first goal of the season and 12th of his Penn State Harrisburg career.

- Goalkeeper Hossam Aly made five saves for the Lions.

WHO'S NEXT?

The Lions return to conference action when they travel to face United East rival St. Mary's (Md.) on Saturday afternoon.

STAY CONNECTED

Fans can keep up with Penn State Harrisburg Athletics all season long on Instagram, X (formerly Twitter), Facebook, Threads, and Youtube using the handle @pshbgathletics.