March 28, 2013
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UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - The No. 16 Nittany Lion men's lacrosse team will try to win its fifth straight game overall and 10th straight true road contest when it plays at Villanova on Saturday night. Penn State is coming off an exciting 11-3 win over No. 7 Bucknell on Tuesday, while the Wildcats beat then-No. 4 Syracuse at Villanova Stadium last Saturday.
#16 PENN STATE NITTANY LIONS (6-3, 2-0 CAA) at VILLANOVA WILDCATS (2-5, 1-0 Big East)
Game10: March 30, 2013 // 7:00 p.m. // Villanova Stadium // Villanova, Pa.
GAME DAY
VENUE: Villanova Stadium (turf; 12,500)
STREAMING COVERAGE: Villanova.com All-Access ($)
SERIES RECORD: 15-3
LAST MEETING: March 31, 2012; PSU 13-8 (University Park, Pa.)
NEXT GAME: April 6 vs. Drexel, 1 p.m.
GAME NOTES
• Penn State brings four-game winning streak to Villanova on Saturday night
• PSU beat the Wildcats, 13-8, in Happy Valley last season
• Villanova is coming off a remarkable win over then-No. 4 Syracuse
• Penn State defeated No. 7 Bucknell 11-3 on Tuesday in Lewisburg, Pa.
• TJ Sanders scored four goals, Shane Sturgis posted five points & Tom LaCrosse netted a hat trick against the Bison on Tuesday
• Austin Kaut made 14 saves vs. BU and has .775 save percentage in last 4 games
• Lion midfield has scored 17 goals in past four games, had 10 in first five games
• Penn State is riding a nine-game road winning streak dating back to 2011
• Jack Forster has 10 career hat tricks, seven in the past two years
• Forster is riding a 21-game point streak dating back to Mar. 3, 2012
• Nittany Lions have played six ranked teams with two more left on the schedule
• Penn State returns to CAA action with a home contest vs. Drexel on Saturday, Apr. 6
SCOUTING THE WILDCATS
Villanova (2-5, 1-0 Big East) comes into Saturday's game on an emotional high after an 11-10 upset win over then-No. 4 Syracuse last weekend. The Wildcats, who have faced six ranked opponents in seven games, have the highest rated strength of schedule according to LaxPower.com. All five losses are to ranked teams, none of which were by more than four goals.
The Wildcats are a high-powered offensive team, which scores 10.14 goals a game, but their defense gives up 11.29 goals per game. VU's attack is kick started by faceoff man Thomas Croonquist. Croonquist won a school-record 22-of-24 faceoffs vs. Syracuse and has a 60.1 winning percentage at the X this season.
Jack Rice and Max Hart lead the team with 14 points apiece. Rice has a team-best 14 goals. Nick Doherty and Kevin O'Neil each have 13 points, while John Kluh checks in with 11.
Villanova has played all three of its goalkeepers this year with Reed Carlson getting the last two starts, going 1-1. Carlson has a 10.00 GAA with a .429 save percentage. Greg Stamatov has the other five starts, going 1-3 with a 12.73 GAA and a .424 save percentage. Billy Hurley, Villanova's Rookie of the Year in 2010, rounds out the goalkeeping corps.
ALL-TIME SERIES VS. VILLANOVA
All-Time Series: 15-3
PSU Streak: 1 win
First Meeting: 3/17/90, PSU 13-6
Last Meeting: 3/31/12, PSU 13-8
Last PSU Win: 3/31/12, 13-8
Last NOVA Win: 3/8/11, 17-5
Largest PSU Win: 16-3, 3/9/96
Largest NOVA Win: 17-5, 3/8/11
PSU at NOVA: 6-2
PSU Goals vs. NOVA: 202-133
LAST TIME VS. VILLANOVA (March 31, 2012)
Tied 6-6 at the half, the Nittany Lions exploded for seven second-half goals en route to a 13-8 victory against Villanova at the Penn State Lacrosse Field on Saturday afternoon. Penn State, which entered the game averaging less than eight goals per contest, registered 13 tallies against the Wildcats. The Nittany Lion defense also held Villanova scoreless for a span of 31:57, which included the entire third frame. Goalkeeper Austin Kaut dominated between the pipes as he turned aside 17 shots for his sixth double-digit save performance of the season.
Attackman Jack Forster, who collected an assist, extended his goal-scoring streak to six games with four markers, while Matthew Mackrides recorded his second hat trick of the season. Midfielder Nick Dolik and Shane Sturgis,who netted his first multi-goal game since scoring twice against Lehigh in 2011, added three points (2g, 1a) each.
PENN STATE RIPS BUCKNELL
No. 16 Penn State crushed No. 7 Bucknell, 11-3, on Tuesday night (March 26) at Christy Mathewson-Memorial Field behind a punishing defense, 14 saves from Austin Kaut and four goals from TJ Sanders. The Nittany Lions ended the game on an 8-0 run in front of 1,250 fans.
Attackman Shane Sturgis boasted a game-high five points on two goals and three assists, while midfielder Tom LaCrosse pitched in with a hat trick. Kyle VanThof tallied his first multi-point game of the season on a goal and an assist. Seven Nittany Lions tallied a point in all. Penn State won its second game over a top-10 foe this season after defeating No. 9 Denver on Feb. 17 in Jacksonville, Fla.
The Penn State defense was even better than its offense on the night, causing 14 of Bucknell's 17 turnovers in the game. Leading the way was Michael Richards with three caused turnovers, while Steven Bogert, Tyler Travis and James Burke each caused two. Faceoff specialist Danny Henneghan set the tone on offense winning 10-of-17 faceoffs, including all four in the third period that set off the 8-0 burst. Henneghan had a game-high five ground balls.
KAUT STANDING TALL
A preseason All-American and Tewaaraton Award Watch List candidate, junior Austin Kaut is considered one of the best goalkeepers in college lacrosse. Following an average start to year three in Happy Valley, Kaut has stepped up his game. Kaut opened the season with a 9.79 GAA and .490 save percentage behind 48 saves and 50 goals allowed. In the past three outings, he has posted a 4.05 GAA and a .775 save percentage, allowing just 16 goals and saving 55 shots. Penn State started the season 2-3, but is 4-0 since.
ROAD WINNING STREAK
With Tuesday's win at Bucknell, Penn State has ticked off nine straight true road wins. This season Penn State is 4-0 on the road after going 5-0 in 2012. The Lions' last road loss was Apr. 30, 2011 at Hofstra. Penn State has won 11 of its last 12 true road games.
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. Penn State will look to improve to 6-1 away from Happy Valley on Saturday at Villanova.
RUNNING THE GAUNTLET
Penn State recently finished a stretch of five games against USILA ranked opponents as PSU went 2-3. After Tuesday's win at Bucknell, Penn State's record improved to 3-3, including 2-1 against top 10 teams. Two more ranked opponents remain this season: No. 14 Drexel (Apr. 6) and No. 16 Hofstra (Apr. 27).
MIDFIELD SCORING EMERGES
Through the first five games, Penn State's attack carried the offensive load scoring 42 of the team's 52 goals (77.7%). Meanwhile, in the last four games, PSU's midfield has shined, scoring 17 of the team's 37 goals (46%). Leading the midfield scoring this season is Tom LaCrosse with 13 goals and Kyle Zittel with five. Nick Dolik registered a hat trick on Tuesday, March 19 at Binghamton, accounting for three of his four goals this season. Kyle VanThof has four tallies as well. Erik Myers (2), Gavin Ahern (1) and Michael Richards (1) round out the midfield scoring. PSU has one goal from the defense (Jack Donnelly vs. St. Joe's).
DIFFERENCE A YEAR MAKES
Penn State's offense has improved mightily in 2013 with the attacking trio of Jack Forster (30 points) TJ Sanders (27), and Shane Sturgis (24). Penn State is averaging nearly over 10 goals per game this season with a shooting percentage of .279. Last season, the Nittany Lions scored just 8.73 goals per game and post a percentage of .258. Also, assists, points, shots and ground balls per game are up from 2012.
HAT TRICK HEROS
TJ Sanders scored four goals on Tuesday, his fifth hat trick of the season and fourth game with four goals or more. Additionally, Tom LaCrosse pitched in with his second hat trick of the season and third career hat trick. Jack Forster leads the way with 10 career high tricks, while Shane Sturgis has five. Nick Dolik tallied his third career hat trick on Tuesday, March 19 at Binghamton.
Jack Forster 10
TJ Sanders 5
Shane Sturgis 5
Tom LaCrosse 3
Nick Dolik 3
Gavin Ahern 2
Kyle VanThof 1
GOING STREAKING
Penn State's attack has Jack Forster with a 21-game streak, which started on March 3, 2012 against Ohio State. Forster has 42 goals, 19 assists and 61 points during the streak.
NITTANY LIONS ON TV
On Thursday, it was announced that Penn State's regular season home finale vs. Towson would be aired live by Big Ten Network. The TV broadcast is Penn State's third this season.
Previously, Penn State lacrosse was televised on Feb. 17 against Denver at Jacksonville, Fla. by NBC Sports Network and March 9 vs. Lehigh in Chester, Pa. on ESPN3.com and the WatchESPN app for mobile devices.
Penn State's appearance on NBC Sports Network is believed to be the first nationally televised men's lacrosse game in program history. The BTN broadcast will be the second. The last time Penn State was on television before this season was in 2010 vs. Towson on WMAR in Baltimore.
NEXT TIME OUT
Penn State returns to CAA play when it hosts Drexel on Saturday at 1 p.m. The Nittany Lions will be celebrating its 100th season with dozens of alumni returning for the game. Members of past teams will be honored at during halftime.
--NITTANY LIONS--