March 11, 2016
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UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Fresh off of a midweek victory, Penn State men's lacrosse (4-2) returns home to host No. 8/7 Harvard (4-1) at the Penn State Lacrosse Field. Opening faceoff is set for 10 a.m. on ESPNU with Mark Dixon and Matt Ward on the call.
SETTING THE SCENE
- The Nittany Lions improved to 4-2 on the year after capturing a 16-7 win on the road at Furman Tuesday afternoon. Six Nittany Lions logged at least two goals in the win, led by multi-goal outings from TJ Sanders, Nick Aponte, Mike Sutton, Matt Florence, Kevin Hill and Ryan Keenan.
- After a close first half with the Paladins, the Nittany Lions found their offensive rhythm in the third quarter, scoring nine goals to build the lead as high as 10. Penn State never looked back on the way to its first 4-2 start to the season after under head coach Jeff Tambroni.
- Penn State and Harvard have met just twice in program history with the first meeting between the two teams dating back to 1937. The Nittany Lions and the Crimson renewed the series last year with Harvard coming away with a 12-9 win at home in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
- The matchup also marks Penn State's second outing against a ranked opponent this season. The Nittany Lions are 1-0 on the year against ranked teams, having topped No. 18 Cornell on the road earlier this season.
- A total of 11 Nittany Lions have registered at least three goals this season, led by 15 from senior TJ Sanders. Redshirt junior Matt Florence is second with 10 while freshman Grant Ament has eight on the season. Junior Nick Aponte has seven goals and is one of two Nittany Lions with at least 10 assists (10), along with Ament who has 12 on the year.
A CLOSER LOOK AT THE CRIMSON
SCOUTING HARVARD
Harvard enters the weekend ranked No. 8/7 in the polls with a 4-1 record after surrendering their first loss of the season at Bryant, 12-9 earlier this week. The Crimson is led by Devin Dwyer, who is leading the team with 16 goals and 12 assists for 28 points on the year. Dwyer's ranked within the top 10 in both goals per game and assists per game, riding a 38-game point scoring streak.
| Last Two vs. Harvard |
| 3/7/2015 | L, 12-9 | A |
| 4/6/1937 | L, 11-1 | H |
SERIES HISTORY vs. HARVARD
Penn State and Harvard have met just twice in program history with the first meeting between the two teams dating back to 1937. The Nittany Lions and the Crimson renewed the series last year with Harvard coming away with a 12-9 road at home in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
AGAINST NO. 8
The Nittany Lions are 1-13 all-time when playing teams ranked No. 8 at the time of meeting. Penn State's last matchup against a No. 8 team dates back to 2011 when PSU fell to eighth-ranked Hofstra on the road, 9-4 April 30.
LAST TIME OUT: vs. HARVARD
CAMBRIDGE, Mass (March 7, 2015) - Connor Darcey recorded the most saves for a Nittany Lion since 2012, but Penn State fell to No. 13/16 Harvard, 12-9.
Dan Craig, Mike Sutton and Drake Kreinz each scored a pair for the Nittany Lions . Pat Manley, Matt Florence and Ryan Guittare added tallies, while TJ Sanders dished out two helpers and Nick Aponte recorded one assist. In the cage for Penn State, Darcey made 18 saves, the most for a Nittany Lion since 2012. Harvard out-shot Penn State, 46-31. Sutton's nine shots were a career high, and Craig's seven shots were a season best.
The Crimson narrowly edged the Nittany Lions in the ground ball battle, 27-26. Kreinz scooped up a team-best six ground balls. Harvard also beat Penn State by one at the face-off `X', 12-11. On the man-up, the Crimson went 1-for-4, while the Nittany Lions were 0-for-4.
PENN STATE DOWNS FURMAN, 16-7
Penn State snapped a two-game losing streak with a commanding 16-7 victory at Furman on Tuesday. After a competitive first half, the Nittany Lions found their offensive rhythm in the third quarter, scoring nine goals, and never looked back en route to the victory.
Six Nittany Lions logged at least two goals led by multi-goal outings from TJ Sanders, Nick Aponte, Mike Sutton, Matt Florence, Kevin Hill and Ryan Keenan. Grant Ament, Dan Craig, Robby Black and Brian Prestreau all posted one goal apiece. Aponte, Ament and Tanner Peck added two assists each to tie for first on the team.
Penn State won the ground ball battle (24-21), the face-off battle (14-11), and turned the ball over less than Furman (Penn State committed 12 turnovers to Furman's 15). Sophomore goalkeeper Will Schreiner matched his career high with nine saves in just over 49 minutes of action.
SHARING THE LOVE
Having notched at least five assists in all but one game this season, Penn State is averaging 7.50 assists per game, which ranks 14th nationally and third in the Big Ten conference.
Nick Aponte is leading the team with at least one assist in all six games this season for a total of 10 on the year. Grant Ament also dished out at least two assists in the first three consecutive outings this year. With a team-high 12 assists, Ament's 2.00 per game ranks 16th nationally and third in the Big Ten. Ament's also averaging less than one turnover per game with a 12-5 assist to turnover ratio.
SECOND HALF SURGE
Penn State is outscoring its opponents 24-19 in the third quarter and 21-17 in the fourth frame. The NIttany Lions have also used 9-goal performances in the third or fourth quarter twice this season to clinch a victory. The NIttany Lions scored nine goals in the fourth quarter against Hobart to come from behind for the win and nine goals in the third quarter at Furman for a comfortable second half cushion.
GOALS GALORE
Penn State is outscoring its opponents 77-63 on the year, with a scoring offense that's ranked 12th nationally and second in the Big Ten conference, averaging 12.83 goals per game.
Penn State has scored at least 10 goals in three of six games this season, winning all three outings. The Nittany Lions are also 3-0 on the year when limiting their opponent to less than 10 goals per game.
Penn State scored 37 goals in just the first two games of the season, marking the most amount of goals in the first two games of the season in program history. The 37 goals were the most since Penn State scored 36 in the first two games of the 1987 season and the first 30-plus scoring through two games since the NIttany Lions had 33 goals in 2013.
FORCE OF THE FROSH
Through three games, the Nittany Lion newcomers have continued to make their mark, contributing 12 goals and 13 assists in three outings for nearly 30 percent ot the team's total goal-scoring on the year.
In the road-win at Cornell, Grant Ament logged his third straight multi-assist outing, leading the team with two helpers. Kevin Fox also tallied one goal during the Nittany Lions' 5-0 third-quarter surge.
Against Hobart, Ament recorded his first collegiate hat trick with three goals against Hobart, while also tallying a pair of assists for a team-high five points. Chris Sabia also led the team with three caused turnovers.
All 16 Nittany Lion freshmen saw action in Penn State's 2016 season-opening victory against Robert Morris. Making the most of their debuts, a total of six newcomers combined for seven goals and six assists. Defensively, Sabia made his first collegiate start at defense, tallying three ground balls. Trevor Scollins also saw action in goal, notching two saves in 10:50 seconds between the pipes.
"The freshmen made an immediate impact," Tambroni said following the win over Robert Morris. "For Grant Ament and Chris Sabia to come out here and play with the poise that they did, says a lot about their character and a lot about the guys around them too."
MAKING THEIR MARK
Through six games, the Nittany Lion newcomers have continued to make their mark, contributing 25 goals and 17 assists for nearly 35 percent of the team's total point scoring on the year.
At least one freshman has scored in all six games this season for the Nittany Lions. Kevin Hill logged his second multi-goal outing at Furman after scoring his first two collegiate goals against Villanova. Jimmy Nowoswiat and Robby Black also posted a pair of goals for their second on the year against the Wildcats.
In the road-win at Cornell, Grant Ament logged his third multi-assist outing, leading the team with two helpers. Ament has scored at least one goal in each of the last three straight games.
Against Hobart, Ament recorded his first collegiate hat trick with three goals against Hobart, while also tallying a pair of assists for a team-high five points. Chris Sabia also led the team with three caused turnovers.
All 16 Nittany Lion rookies saw action in Penn State's 2016 season-opening victory against Robert Morris. Making the most of their debuts, a total of six newcomers combined for seven goals and six assists. Defensively, Sabia made his first collegiate start at defense, tallying three ground balls. Trevor Scollins also saw action in goal, notching two saves in 10:50 seconds between the pipes.
OFFENSIVE PRODUCTION AT ATTACK
Penn State's starting attack consisting of veterans TJ Sanders and Nick Aponte and freshman Grant Ament has combined for 30 goals, 27 assists and 57 of the team's 122 total points on the year. In the last three games, the trio has posted 14 goals and nine assists for 23 of the team's 47 point scoring during the stretch with Sanders and Aponte putting away at least two goals in each of the last two games.
POLL POSITIONING
Since entering both the USILA Coaches Poll and the Inside Lacrosse Media Polls, the Nittany Lions made significant movement in the poll. This week, Penn State dropped out of the top 20 but is still receiving votes in both polls.
The Nittany Lions opened the season receiving votes in both polls and earned a No. 20/19 ranking three weeks ago, before moving up to No. 15/12 two weeks ago. PSU was slotted 20/18 last week. Penn State was ranked within the Top 20 of both polls for the first three weeks of the 2015 season, spending the first two weeks at No. 14/17.
DUO NAMED TO TEWAARATON WATCH LIST
Penn State's Nick Aponte and TJ Sanders have been named to the 2016 Tewaaraton Award watch list. The Nittany Lion duo is among the top players across all three divisions of NCAA Lacrosse to be recognized as early contenders for the prestigious award, presented by Under Armour. The Tewaaraton Award, annually honors the top male and female college lacrosse player in the United States. On April 28, the field will be narrowed to 25 men's and 25 women's nominees.
UP NEXT
Penn State remains home next week, welcoming Massachusetts to University Park for a non-conference matchup Saturday March 19 at noon. The Nittany Lions and the Minutemen have squared off at least once every year for the last 15 seasons.
| SEASON NOTES |
PSU PICKED FOURTH IN B1G COACHES POLL
Penn State has been voted fourth in the 2016 Big Ten Preseason Coaches' Poll with Nittany Lions redshirt juniors Matt Florence, Drake Kreinz and senior TJ Sanders named Penn State's Players to Watch. Johns Hopkins claimed the top spot in the 2016 poll with a unanimous selection from the league's head coaches. Maryland and Ohio State rounded out the top three at spots two and three, respectively. Michigan and Rutgers were selected fifth and sixth.
BIG TEN PRESEASON PLAYERS TO WATCH
Redshirt seniors Matt Florence and Drake Kreinz and senior TJ Sanders earned Penn State Big Ten Preseason Player to Watch honors. The preseason nod is the second straight for Kreinz and Sanders, who both earned 2015 Player to Watch honors prior to the inaugural season of Big Ten lacrosse. Florence earns his first career Big Ten preseason honor, having capped off the season with Big Ten All-Tournament team honors. A 2015 Academic All-Big Ten selection, Kreinz served once again as Penn State's top faceoff specialist in 2015, playing in 13 of 14 games. A USILA All-America honorable mention, Sanders returns as one of the Nittany Lions' top offensive contributors in 2016, having earned both All-Big Ten honorable mention distinction and Academic All-Big Ten awards last year.
TRIO TO LEAD AS 2016 CAPTAINS
A trio of midfielders will lead the team during its 2016 campaign. Seniors Tommy O'Neill and James Burke and redshirt junior Drake Kreinz have been voted as captains. The process for choosing captains has remained unchanged for years and Jeff Tambroni is confident in the system he has in place.
"There are a number of different factors going into the captains process," Tambroni said. "One is a consensus vote from last year's team, we want to get exiting seniors, graduating seniors opinions on who they believe will lead this team most effectively."
After the team vote, Tambroni and fellow assistant coaches evaluate upperclassmen during the fall semester before making a final decision. Penn State men's lacrosse has experimented with the number of captains the team has every year. In 2014 three seniors led the team but in 2015 the task fell solely on senior Kyle Zittel.
TAMBRONI SIGNS 11 TO NLI
Jeff Tambroni has announced the signing of 11 newcomers to National Letters of Intent during the early signing period. From U.S. Lacrosse All-Americans and MVPs to state champions and honor roll athletes, this year's class features a talented group poised to join the Nittany Lions in 2016.
Gerard Arceri (Saint James, N.Y.), Nick Cardile (West Grove, Pa.), TJ Connellan (Cazenovia, N.Y.), Colby Kneese (Dallas, Texas), Nick McEvoy (Bethesda, Md.), Mac O'Keefe (Syosset, N.Y.), Kane Randolph (Annapolis, Md.), Jack Rusboldt (Richmond, Va.), Mitch Schaefer (Canandaigua, N.Y.), Conor Smith (West Islip, N.Y.) and Barrett Sutley (Stevenson, Md.) are all set to arrive in Happy Valley.
Three of the signees are ranked within Inside Lacrosse's list of top 25 recruits with Arceri ranked No. 11, O'Keefe tabbed No. 23 and McEvoy slotted No. 25.