"It got difficult at times," Lions junior midfielder Matt Leahy said. "Especially when it gets colder and later in the game, it's tough to keep your footing."

With players slipping and the field becoming a groundskeeper's nightmare, Penn State had a difficult time handing Seton Hall a loss.

"Tendencies have to be made because the ball skips," Penn State men's soccer coach Barry Gorman said, commenting on the effects of the weather on the Penn State team.

Numerous shots that would be strong kicks on a normal soccer evening were missed. Both teams' players were cramping up as the cold weather attacked their muscles.

Seton Hall player A.J. Panas was on the receiving end of an accidental injury. After receiving medical attention, he paced the sidelines trying to keep his muscles loose, waiting for his re-entry into the game.

Penn State senior midfielder Greg Oldfield writhed in pain after his muscles cramped during the second half. He came to the sidelines, got stretched out by Penn State medical personnel and returned to the game later in the half.

"We have to play with whatever we have," Lions senior midfielder Andy Thompson said, commenting on the atrocious weather and the negative effects it had on the game.

With the frigid weather playing havoc on the defense while the offense was trying to score, Thompson said, "It's more mental than physical."

Numerous opportunities for both teams to alter the game went astray.

During the second half, the players' cleats began to tear the field up, and players were slipping more frequently than in the first half. Ricardo Villar, the Lions leading scorer, made a move on a Seton Hall defender and had a chance to score a goal, but slipped and fell down.

"This kind of weather opens the game up," Gorman said.

However, balls skipping, frozen soccer fields and the frigid autumn weather are what the Penn State men's soccer team must look forward to for the remainder of the season, as it will continue its season into early November.