March 23, 2012
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UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - The No. 17 Penn State men's lacrosse team will return to CAA play when it travels to Philadelphia for a matchup against Saint Joseph's on Saturday (March 24) at 1 p.m.
The Nittany Lions (3-4 overall, 0-1 CAA) will look to end their three-game skid against a Saint Joseph's squad that will enter the contest with identical 3-4 overall and 0-1 conference records. Penn State has faced an extremely challenging schedule to date, playing six ranked opponents, including four top-10 teams and a pair of top-five foes.
In its last matchup, Penn State dropped a 9-5 contest to No. 10/11 Lehigh at the Penn State Lacrosse Field Tuesday night. Seniors Jack Forster (Jenkintown) and Matthew Mackrides (Newtown Square), who continue to lead the Nittany Lions offensively, led Penn State with a pair of points each. In 2012, Forster paces the squad with 17 points, while Mackrides' 12 goals are a team high.
Junior midfielder Danny Henneghan (Beverly Hills, Mich.) and senior midfielder Ryan Link (Englewood, Colo.) have collected a team-high 25 ground balls each, while freshman defenseman JP Burnside (Garden City, N.Y.) has caused a team-best nine turnovers. Sophomore Austin Kaut (Morton), who has been the goalie of record for each game, anchors a unit that has allowed 8.57 goals per game.
The Hawks are led by sophomore attackman Ryan McGee, who leads the team in goals (12), assists (8), points (20) and ground balls (13). Freshman defenseman Will Farrell has recorded a team-high 13 caused turnovers, while senior goalkeeper Griffin Ferrigan is 3-4 with an 8.33 goals-against average and a .576 save percentage.
In their lone CAA matchups of the season, Penn State fell to then-No. 3/4 Massachusetts, 9-8, in overtime on March 17, while Drexel defeated the Hawks by an 8-4 margin on March 6.
The Nittany Lions are 4-0 all-time against Saint Joseph's in a series that date backs to the 2007 season. In their only matchup in Philadelphia during the 2008 season, Penn State defeated the Hawks by a 10-6 margin.