Feb. 22, 2013
Please note that Sunday's game is at Holuba Hall
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - The eighth-ranked Nittany Lion men's lacrosse team (2-0) will try to take down its second straight top 10 foe on Sunday when No. 3 Notre Dame (1-0) visits Holuba Hall. The highly anticipated matchup is set for a Noon opening faceoff.
PROMOTIONS
Penn State hosts its CODE BLUE Blast as the first 100 students will receive Penn State lacrosse pinneys and free pizza will be served. Also, all students who swipe in earn triple rewards points for attending the game.
PARKING & ADMISSION
All Penn State regular season lacrosse games are free to attend and park. Parking near Holuba Hall, which is located at the end of McKean Road off Bigler & Hastings Roads, can be found in Orange Lots F, C and G.
#8 PENN STATE NITTANY LIONS (2-0) vs. #3 NOTRE DAME (1-0)
Game 3: February 24, 2013 // Noon // Holuba Hall // University Park, Pa.
GAME DAY
VENUE: Holuba Hall (turf; indoors)
SERIES RECORD: 5-14
LAST MEETING: Feb. 26, 2012; PSU 4-3 (OT at South Bend, Ind.)
NEXT GAME: Mar. 2 vs. #19 Ohio State
GAME NOTES
• Penn State hosts Notre Dame in first top-10 matchup at Holuba Hall • PSU defeated Notre Dame last season in South Bend, 4-3, in overtime • Penn State knocked off No. 9 Denver, 15-12, last Sunday in Jacksonville • Shane Sturgis named CAA Player of the Week for scoring four goals vs. Denver • Jack Forster added four goals and TJ Sanders had a hat trick vs. Denver • Goalkeeper Austin Kaut made 10 saves for PSU • Notre Dame won last week at Duke, 13-5 • Penn State is ranked eighth for the third time, matching highest ranking ever • Austin Kaut was named to the Tewaaraton Award Watch List on Friday • Kaut and ND's John Kemp were USILA's All-American goalkeepers in 2012 • Sanders and ND's Matt Kavanagh are top attackers for their teams as freshmen • Nick Dolik was named a Senior CLASS Award nominee on Wednesday • Nick Dolik and Jack Forster are riding 12- and 13-game point streaks, respectively • Notre Dame will be PSU's second ranked foe in a row of five • Next week Penn State hosts Ohio State in a key Creator's Trophy matchup
SCOUTING THE FIGHTING IRISH
Third-ranked Notre Dame (1-0) is coming off a 13-5 season-opening win at No. 4 Duke on Saturday, Feb. 16. Junior Jim Marlatt scored a career-high five goals, while freshman Matt Kavanagh tallied five points on four goals and an assist. In net, 2012 USILA All-America First-Team selection John Kemp made 10 saves with just five goals against. The Irish attack also received two-goal contributions from Sean Rogers and Steve Murphy. At the faceoff X, Liam O'Connor won 7-of-18 attempts.
ALL-TIME SERIES VS. ND
All-Time Series: 5-14
PSU Streak: 1 win
First Meeting: 3/18/89, PSU 9-1
Last Meeting: 2/26/12, PSU 4-3 (OT)
Last PSU Win: 2/26/12, 4-3
Last ND Win: 2/27/11, 6-2
Largest PSU Win: 9-1, 3/18/89
Largest ND Win: 17-7, 2/29/04
ND at PSU: 7-2
PSU Goals vs. ND: 147-196
LAST TIME VS. ND (Feb. 26, 2012)
Matthew Mackrides scored the game-winning goal with two seconds remaining in overtime to propel No. 20 Penn State to a 4-3 win over No. 2 Notre Dame at Arlotta Stadium. The Nittany Lions broke Notre Dame's 15-game February win streak with the victory against their highest ranked opponent in program history.
With the game knotted at 3-3 in the extra frame, Mackrides took the ball from behind the cage, beat the man coverage and slipped the shot past Notre Dame goalkeeper John Kemp (18 saves) in the waning seconds. The victory marked Penn State's first over the Fighting Irish since a 10-9 overtime win in 2002.
Michael Richards and Drew Roper also scored for the Nittany Lions, while sophomore goalkeeper Austin Kaut was sensational in net and made 18 saves.
Penn State outshot Notre Dame, 33-32, and collected more ground balls, 27-20.
LAST FIVE MEETINGS VS. ND
2/26/12: W // 4-3 (OT) - A
2/27/11: L // 2-6 - H
2/28/10: L // 8-12 - A
2/22/09: L // 8-13 - H
2/24/08: L // 9-15 - A
Note: Penn State and Notre Dame have met every year since 1997. 2013 will be the 17th straight season in the series.
NITTANY LIONS THWART DENVER
No. 15 Penn State took down No. 9 Denver, 15-12, at EverBank Field in the Moe's Southwest Grill Classic on Sunday (Feb. 17) afternoon. Shane Sturgis and Jack Forster each tallied four goals in the Penn State (2-0) victory.
Fueled by a 7-3 surge in the third period, Penn State extended a two-goal halftime margin into a six-goal lead after three periods. TJ Sanders added three goals and Kyle Zittel posted his first multi-goal game of his career to help pace the Nittany Lion offense. Austin Kaut had a sluggish start, but made some key saves down the stretch, finishing with 10 stops on the day.
STURGIS IS CAA PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Penn State attackman Shane Sturgis was named Colonial Athletic Association Men's Lacrosse Player of the Week on Monday, Feb. 18. Sturgis scored four goals on eight shots to lead Penn State past No. 9 Denver, 15-12, on Sunday.
For Sturgis, the honor is his third weekly conference award. He was twice named CAA Rookie of the Week in 2011 on Mar. 14 and Apr. 11 en route to a All-CAA Rookie Team laurel.
Sturgis impressed on a national stage keying an attack that defeated No. 9 Denver in Jacksonville, Fla. Sturgis took just eight shots and scored four times, including a highlight-reel inside roll in the third quarter.
NITTANY LIONS IN THE RANKINGS
Penn State was ranked eighth by the USILA Coaches this week, matching the highest ranking in school time. This is the third time the Nittany Lions have achieved a ranking of eighth, which last came on Apr. 1, 1996. Before that, Penn State was ranked eighth on Apr. 13, 1992.
KAUT ON TEWAARATON WATCH LIST
Goalkeeper Austin Kaut was named to the Tewaaraton Award Watch List on Friday. The Tewaaraton Award honors the best players in NCAA lacrosse across all divisions.
A 2012 nominee as one of the top 25 players in NCAA lacrosse, Kaut is the first Nittany Lion to be on the Tewaaraton Award Watch List since 2008-09 when Drew Adams accomplished the feat. Kaut was a USILA All-American Second Team honoree in 2012 following an honorable mention campaign as a freshman in 2011.
TOP NETMINDERS
Austin Kaut and Notre Dame counterpart John Kemp are both Teewaraton Award Watch List candidates and represent arguably the two best goalkeepers in the country. Kemp, a senior, earned first-team USILA All-America recognition in 2012, while Kaut was a second-team honoree.
BATTLE OF FRESHMAN ATTACKERS
In his first collegiate game, TJ Sanders started, scored four goals and dished an assist. In Matt Kavanagh's first game, he started, scored four goals and dished an assist. Indeed, they were impressive starts for each freshman attacker in their collegiate debuts. Sanders backed his five-point performance at Michigan with a three-goal showing in a win over No. 9 Denver.
SENIOR CLASS AWARD NOMINEE
Midfielder Nick Dolik was named a nominee for the prestigious Senior CLASS Award on Wednesday, Feb. 20.
Dolik is one of 20 nominees who excel both on and off the field for the award. To be eligible, a student-athlete must be a Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence: community, classroom, character and competition. The Senior CLASS Award is an acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School, which focuses on the total student-athlete and encourages students to use their platform in athletics to make a positive impact as leaders in the community.
GOING STREAKING
Penn State's potent attack has three Nittany Lions riding point streaks from last season. Leading the way is Jack Forster whose 14-game streak started on March 3 against Ohio State. Nick Dolik has a 13-game streak, while Shane Sturgis is at eight games.
RUNNING THE GAUNTLET
Penn State is currently in a stretch of five games against USILA ranked opponents. So far, PSU is 1-0 after Sunday, Feb. 17's defeat of No. 9 Denver. A sterner test awaits this Sunday when No. 3 Notre Dame comes to town. Three more games await PSU over the next three weeks: No. 19 Ohio State, No. 12 Lehigh and No. 5 Massachusetts.
Another Penn State opponent, No. 20 Hofstra (April 27) is also ranked. Bucknell (March 26), Villanova (March 30) and Drexel (April 6) received votes in last week's poll.
ROAD WARRIORS
Of the 14 regular-season contests, Penn State will be home for just five of them, making the Nittany Lions one of the most road tested teams in the country. In total, seven games are true road contests along with two neutral site games. So far this season, Penn State is 2-0 away from Happy Valley.
NEXT TIME OUT
Penn State welcomes Ohio State to Happy Valley on Saturday, March 2 for a 1:00 p.m. opening faceoff. All Penn State regular-season home games are free of charge and parking is available in Lot 44 near the Multi-Sport Complex.
--NITTANY LIONS--