April 7, 2009
STATE COLLEGE, Pa. -
Senior goalkeeper Drew Adams (Springfield, Pa.) notched his second straight games with 20 or more saves to lead the Nittany Lion lacrosse team to a 9-8 win at No. 19 Bucknell. Freshman attacker Matthew Mackrides (Newtown Square, Pa.) had his best offensive game of the year to lead the Lion offense in the win.
Adams shut down Bucknell's high powered offense, facing 46 shots, 28 on goal, and collecting 20 saves in the win. Adams' performance comes just three days after grabbing 24 saves in a 10-8 win over Hobart on Saturday. Adams' defense was the perfect backdrop for Mackrides best offensive night of the year. The freshman had two goals and two assists for the Nittany Lions while senior Rob Forster (Jenkintown, Pa.) had three goals, including the two critical goals in the fourth quarter.
Brian Shea (Gaithersburg, Md.) got the scoring started in a furious first quarter that saw the teams trade three goals a piece. Shea's goal came just three minutes into the game. Bucknell's Tim Brandau answered with a goal at the 8:06 mark. Penn State freshman Jack Forster (Jenkintown, Pa.) took a Mackrides assist at the 6:22 mark and then Bucknell's Perry Menzies scored a man-up goal to tie the game at 2-2 with 3:47 left in the quarter. Mackrides scored unassisted just :12 later and Bison Joe Mele scored just nine seconds after that to tie the game at 3-3 heading into the second quarter.
Much like the first period, the second stanza was an even draw. Penn State scored the first two goals of the period. Rob Forster took a Colton Vosburgh (Kennett Square, Pa.) assist with 10:27 left in the second and Mackrides scored his second goal of the game off a Chris Hogan (Wyckoff, N.J.) assist with 7:02 left to give the Nittany Lions a brief two goal lead. But Bucknell notched the second period's final two goals in man-up situations with Tim Brandau and Joe Mele scoring at with 6:36 and 2:52 on the clock to send the game into intermission tied 5-5.
The Bison got the better of Penn State in the third period, beginning with an Austin Winter goal at the 9:15 mark to put the BU up 6-5. Jack Forster notched his second goal with 7:38 on the clock to tie the game at 6-6. The Bison used goals from Chris Palmer (4:37) and Mele (3:43) to move out to an 8-6 lead before Hogan cut the lead to one, 8-7, with a goal with just 1:40 left in the third period.
Down by one, the fourth quarter belonged to Adams and Rob Forster. Adams shut down a furious fourth quarter rally attempt by Bucknell, collecting six of his 20 saves while Forster scored the only two goals of the period to give the Nittany Lions a come-from behind win. Forster's goals came off a Charley Henneghan (Royal Oak, Mich.) assist at the 14:53 mark and off a Shea assist with 6:01 left in the game.
Forster's three goals were tops for Penn State while Mackrides' four points was a game-best. Jack Forster notched two goals as well. Bucknell outshot Penn State 46-29 and had a solid 38-21 edge in ground balls. The Bison face-off unit won a stunning 20 of 21 face-off attempts, the hosts scored on all three of their man-up chances and Penn State went 0-4 in man-up opportunities. Despite the statistical advantages, the Penn State defense, led by Adams, held firm and the Nittany Lions notched their third game over a ranked opponent.
Penn State is 5-5, 1-3 in the ECAC while Bucknell falls to 6-5. Penn State will host ECAC foe St. John's on Saturday, April 11. Game time at Jeffrey Field is set for 1 p.m.
GAME SUMMARY: Penn State 9, Bucknell 8
SCORING (Goal-Assist):
1st: PSU 12:13 (Shea), BU 8:06 (Brandau, Winter), PSU 6:22 (J. Forster, Mackrides), BU 3:47 (Menzies, Danylyshyn), PSU 3:35 (Mackrides), BU 3:26 (Mele)
2nd: PSU 10:27 (Forster, Vosburgh), PSU 7:02 (Mackrides, Hogan), BU 6:36 (Brandau, Winter), BU 2:52 (Mele, Winter)
3rd: BU 9:15 (Winter), PSU 7:38 (J. Forster, Warner), BU 4:37 (Palmer), BU 3:43 (Mele, Danylyshyn), PSU 1:40 (Hogan, Mackrides)
4th: PSU 14:53 (R. Forster, Henneghan), PSU 6:01 (R. Forster, Shea)
GROUNDBALLS: PSU 21, BU 38 MAN-UP OPPS: PSU 0-4, BU 3-3
SHOTS (SH-SOG): PSU 29-15, BU 46-28 -- FACE-OFFS: PSU 1-21, BU 20-21
GOALIE SUMMARY: PSU Drew Adams (60:00, 20 SV, 8 GA); BU Nick Gantsoudes (22:58, 5 GA, 1 SV), Matt Antonelli (37:02, 4 GA, 5 SV)
SCORE BY QUARTERS: 1 2 3 4 F
PENN STATE 3 2 2 2 9
BUCKNELL 3 2 3 0 8
RECORDS: Penn State 5-5, 1-3 ECAC; Bucknell 6-5
ATTENDANCE: 415