March 1, 2011
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -
Complete Release plus statistics in PDF Format
THIS WEEK
Penn State (1-1, 0-0 CAA) hosts No. 12 Ohio State (3-1) on Saturday, March 5, at 1:30 p.m. The game will be played at Bigler Field weather permitting, otherwise it will be moved next door to Holuba Hall.
UP NEXT
Penn State plays its first road game of the year after opening the season with three home contests when it treks to Villanova on Tuesday, March 8, for a 7 p.m. game.
LAST TIME OUT
The Nittany Lions dropped a tough 6-2 decision at home to No. 4 Notre Dame last Sunday.
HEAD COACH JEFF TAMBRONI
Veteran head coach Jeff Tambroni is in his first year as head coach of the Nittany Lion men's lacrosse team after ten outstanding seasons as head coach at Cornell University. Entering the season, Tambroni ranked fifth among active Division I coaches in winning percentage. In his last year with the Big Red, he picked up his eighth-straight Ivy League title and led the Big Red to a second-straight national semifinal appearance. Tambroni led Cornell to three NCAA semifinal appearances in the past four seasons (2007, 2009 and 2010), including the NCAA Final in 2009. He currently sports a 110-41 overall record as he enters his 11th season as a head coach. Tambroni is 1-1 at Penn State and in his first year.
GAME NOTES
TODAY'S GAME
The Penn State Nittany Lions (1-1, 0-0 CAA) will host No. 12 Ohio State (3-1) on Saturday, March 5, at 1:30 p.m. The game will be played at Bigler Field weather permitting, otherwise it will be moved next door to Holuba Hall.
Penn State is coming off a tough 6-2 loss to No. 4 Notre Dame last Sunday. Penn State battled the third-ranked Irish hard and trailed by only one goal, 3-2, heading into the final period. But a three-goal-scoring effort in the fourth quarter helped the Irish pull away with the win. Matthew Mackrides (Newtown Square, Pa.) and Tom LaCrosse (Canandaigua, N.Y.) both scored to put the Lions on the board and Austin Kaut (Morton, Pa.) put forth a strong effort in goal for the Lions. Sophomore Danny Henneghan (Beverly Hills, Mich.) won seven of 12 face-offs for the Nittany Lions. Kaut kept Penn State in the game, facing a flurry of Irish shots and collecting 15 saves and posting a gaudy .714 save percentage.
Leading Penn State's offense thus far this season are Mackrides (five points off four goals and an assist), Nick Dolik (one goal) and Shane Sturgis (one goal, one assist). Penn State's midfield is led by Lacrosse (two goals), Colton Vosburgh (three points off one goal and two assists), Billy Lloyd (one goal) and Kyle VanThof (one goal, one assist). The Lion defense is led by senior Matt Bernier and freshman goalie Austin Kaut.
No. 12 Ohio State is coming off a loss to No. 9 UMass in its road opener. The Buckeyes dropped a11-9 decision. Ohio State owns wins over Detroit, Mercer and North Carolina.
Penn State plays its first road game of the year after opening the season with three home contests when it treks to Villanova on Tuesday, March 8, for a 7 p.m. game.
KAUT SUPERB IN HARD FOUGHT LOSS TO NO. 3 NOTRE DAME
Freshman goalie Austin Kaut was superb in Penn State's tough 6-2 loss to No. 3 Notre Dame on 2/27. Kaut kept Penn State close (trailing only 3-2 in the fourth period), facing a flurry of Irish shots and collecting 15 saves and posting a gaudy .714 save percentage.
KAUT NAMED CAA MEN'S LACROSSE ROOKIE OF THE WEEK
Penn State Nittany Lion men's lacrosse player Austin Kaut (Morton, Pa.) has been named the Colonial Athletic Association Rookie of the Week for the week ending February 20. Kaut earned the honor after earning a victory in his first game as Penn State's goalkeeper. Kaut, in his first collegiate game and head coach Jeff Tambroni's first contest as head coach at Penn State, tallied 10 saves against 17 shots in the Nittany Lions' 9-7 win over Binghamton. He also picked up two ground balls in the victory. The frosh now ranks fourth in the league with a save percentage of .588.
LIONS PRE-SEASON No. 6 IN CAA
The Nittany Lions were picked No. 6 in CAA in the Preseason Coaches Poll and begin their season February 19 against Binghamton University. The team opens up CAA play March 19 at Massachusetts.
SUMMER CAMP REGISTRATION OPEN NOW
The Penn State Nittany Lion men's lacrosse staff will be hosting four different boy's lacrosse camps this summer. The camps, which consist of a team camp, a goalie camp, an instructional camp and a freshmen/sophomore elite camp, are now open for registration at www.GoPSUsports.com/camps The camps will be run by Penn State's head coach, Jeff Tambroni, and assistant coaches Chris Doctor and Peter Toner. Tambroni's reputation for developing players in his summer camps has equaled his teams' successes on the playing field. Campers that attend the sessions will be able experience inspirational demonstrations, challenging developmental sessions and fun-filled competitions. The team camp will take place on July 1-3, and is open to U-15 boy's lacrosse teams. This camp is specifically designed to help U-15 boy's lacrosse teams with the opportunity to train and compete under the direction and guidance of an outstanding coaching staff. The goalie camp will take place on July 5-8 and is open to students ages eight through 18. The goalie camp is designed to provide goalies with the use of specialized drills and individual instruction sessions to enhance skill development in the cage. The instructional camp will take place from July 5-8 and is open to students ages eight through 18. This camp will include stick-work practices, games, and solid instruction that will focus on offensive and defensive strategies to help the players further refine their skills. The freshman/sophomore elite camp will be hosted from July 8-9 and is open to students who are entering grades nine and 10 next fall. This is a two-day competitive camp which will focus on advanced skill development and team play concepts for more advanced skill players who are serious about raising their skills in preparation for playing at the collegiate level. Registration for team sport camps is offered online, as well as through surface mail. Enrollment for all camps is limited, so early registration is encouraged and walk-in registrations on the day any camp opens cannot be guaranteed. For more information and to register online, go to www.GoPSUsports.com/camps and click men's lacrosse.
MACKRIDES, HENNEGHAN NAMED TO CAA PRESEASON ALL-CONFERENCE TEAM
Junior attackman Matt Mackrides and sophomore midfielder Danny Henneghan were named to the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) Preseason All-Conference team. Mackrides, a standout attackman from Newtown Square, Pa., was second in the CAA with 2.77 goals per game a season ago. He was fourth in the CAA with 3.38 points per game. Mackrides leads all returning Penn State players with 36 goals and 44 points. Henneghan, from Beverly Hills, Mich., was named to the CAA Preseason All-Conference Team as a face-off specialist. He figures to fill the void left by the graduation of his brother, Charley, who was named to the All-CAA First Team as a face-off specialist a year ago.
PENN STATE'S CAA STATISTICAL LEADERS
Team F/O % Penn State, 1st -- .742
Team Save % Penn State, 1st -- .658
Face Off % Danny Henneghan, 1st -- .742
Save % Austin Kaut, 1st -- .658