Feb. 12, 2008
STATE COLLEGE, Pa. - TODAY'S GAME: The Penn State Nittany Lion men's lacrosse team will open up the 2008 season when it hosts in-state rival Robert Morris on Saturday, Feb. 16. Action in Holuba Hall will begin at 1:30 p.m. Head coach Glenn Thiel's squad is coming off a 5-8 season while Robert Morris went 3-9 in 2007. The Colonials are 1-0 on the year after opening the season with a 16-2 victory over Seton Hill on Feb. 9.
Penn State will be led by five returning starters, including junior goalie Drew Adams and captains Andrew Mackrides and Tommy Zichelli, the Nittany Lions will feature a solid blend of talented veterans as well as exciting new players looking to make their marks early for Penn State. Junior Rob Forster returns as Penn State's leading scorer. Forster had 18 goals and two assists in 2007 for 20 points and will be joined by classmate Max VanArsdale. VanArsdale had 15 points off eight goals and seven assists. The Nittany Lions will begin a three-game road stretch in their next game. The Nittany Lions travel to South Bend, Ind., on Sunday, Feb. 24, for a 1 p.m. game with Notre Dame.
PENN STATE VS. ROBERT MORRIS: THE SERIES Penn State and Robert Morris have never met in a regular season game, making this year's contest the series opener between the two schools.
ZICHELLI AND ADAMS NAMED TO 2008 PRE-SEASON ALL-ECAC LACROSSE TEAM Two members of Penn State's men's lacrosse team have been selected to the 2008 Preseason All-ECAC Team as chosen by the conference's eight head coaches. Senior Tommy Zichelli ( Severna Park, Md.) and junior Drew Adams (Springfield, Pa.) represent Penn State on the squad. Zichelli, a defender, has played in 38 games during his Penn State career. He heads into his senior season as one of Penn State's captains and is coming off a solid 2007 that saw him collect 25 ground balls. He has six points off four goals and two assists with 64 ground balls during his Nittany Lion career. Adams, the lone goalie on the preseason squad, is a two-time All-ECAC Lacrosse League first team pick and league Goalie of the Year. In 2006, he was also voted ECAC Lacrosse League Rookie of the Year and was an honorable mention All-American. Adams has started all 26 games of his prior two seasons and has an 8.01 goals against average with 317 saves and a .603 save percentage.
ADAMS EARNS PRE-SEASON HONORS FROM INSIDE LACROSSE MAGAZINE Penn State Nittany Lion men's lacrosse goalie Drew Adams (Springfield, Pa.) has been named to the Inside Lacrosse Magazine Pre-Season All-ECAC Team, helping Penn State to earn the No. 2 spot in the magazine's pre-season team poll. Adams, the two-time ECAC Goalie of the Year, has started all 26 games of his collegiate career. He has a superb 8.01 goals against average in over 1500 minutes played. Adams has 317 saves and only 209 goals against and sports a .603 save percentage. As a freshman, he was ECAC Rookie of the Year as well and is a two-time first team All-ECAC pick. In addition, the Nittany Lions were picked to finish second by Inside Lacrosse in the pre-season team poll. National power Georgetown was predicted to win the team crown, followed by Penn State, UMass, Loyola, Rutgers, Fairfield, St. John's and Hobart.
MACKRIDES AND ZICHELLI NAMED CAPTAINS Penn State Nittany Lion lacrosse coach Glenn Thiel has announced that seniors Andrew Mackrides (Newtown Square, Pa.) and Tommy Zichelli (Severna Park, Md.) have been named team captains for the 2008 season. The seniors are two of only four seniors on a very young Penn State roster. Mackrides is a 5-8 middie who is coming off a solid 2007 that saw him play in all 13 games for Penn State, scoring two goals. He has played in 40 games during his first three seasons at Penn State and has nine goals and one assist for ten points. Zichelli is a 6-3 defender who also played in all 13 games for the Nittany Lions in 2007. He had 25 ground balls, which was fourth on the team. Zichelli has played in 38 games over three years, has four goals and two assists for six points as well as 64 ground balls.
NITTANY LIONS HAVE TWO TV DATES The Penn State Nittany Lion lacrosse team, under the guidance of veteran head coach Glenn Thiel, will have two of its games televised during the 2008 season. Penn State's contest at Loyola on March 1 has been moved to a 2 p.m. start and will air on the Mid-Atlantic Sports Network. MASN is the first Regional Sports Network in the mid-Atlantic area owned by two Major League Baseball franchises -- the Washington Nationals and Baltimore Orioles. It can be seen regionally all throughout the Mid-Atlantic region. The Nittany Lions' contest at St. John's on April 12 will begin at 1 p.m. and air on CN8. CN8 provides more than 9 million Comcast cable viewers with a unique brand of live, interactive television delivered over its own fiber-optic network to 12 states and 20 television markets stretching from Maine to Virginia and Washington, D.C.
UP NEXT The Nittany Lions begin a three game streak on the road when they visit Notre Dame on Feb. 24 for a 1 p.m. contest.
FREE- DOWNLOAD THE PENN STATE SPORTS DESKTOP APPLICATION HERE