Jan. 30, 2017
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - For the second year in a row, Penn State men's lacrosse was picked to finish third in the Big Ten by the conference's coaches, as announced by the conference office Monday afternoon.
In addition to the preseason coaches poll, Penn State senior attackman Nick Aponte, sophomore attackman Grant Ament and sophomore defenseman Chris Sabia were all named preseason honorees.
Aponte, a 2016 Tewaarton nominee, became Penn State's first ever First-Team All-Big Ten selection, earning a unanimous vote to the 10-man team last season. Last year he posted a team-high 30 goals while adding 19 assists for a total of 49 points.
The West Islip, New York, native started all 15 games at attack, scoring at least one goal in all but three games. He posted nine multi-goal outings and dished out at least two assists in five games. He enters the 2017 season on a 32-game point-scoring streak, having amassed 46 goals and 34 assists for 80 points during the stretch. Aponte also scored four goals in each of his final four games of the 2016 season.
Ament was a Big Ten honorable mention in 2016 after a season as one of just two freshmen to start all 15 games for Penn State. Ament led PSU in points last season with 54 points, while also serving as the team's top playmaker with 34 assists over the course of the season. The 34 assists stand as the 10th most in a single season in Penn State history and the most for a Nittany Lion since John Hollerbach notched 38 in 1989.
The Doylestown, Pa., native logged 10 games with multiple assists last season and scored goals in all but three games. In addition to his Big Ten honorable mention, Ament earned four Big Ten Freshman of the Week honors last season.
Sabia, the other freshman to start in all 15 games for Penn State last season, finished second on the team in ground balls (26) and caused turnovers (12). The then-freshman logged at least one ground ball in every game last season.
For up to date coverage of Penn State Men's Lacrosse, follow the team on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
2017 BIG TEN MEN'S LACROSSE PRESEASON POLL
1) MARYLAND
2) Johns Hopkins
3) Penn State
T4) Ohio State
T4) Rutgers
6) Michigan
Unanimous selection in ALL CAPS
JOHNS HOPKINS
Nick Fields, Sr., D; Shack Stanwick, Jr., A; Joel Tinney, Jr., M
MARYLAND
Colin Heacock, Sr., A; Dan Morris, Jr., G; Tim Muller, Sr., D
MICHIGAN
Nick DeCaprio, So., LSM; Ian King, Sr., A; Mikie Schlosser, Sr., M
OHIO STATE
Eric Fannell, Sr., A; Johnny Pearson, Sr., M; Jake Withers, Sr., M
PENN STATE
Grant Ament, So., A; Nick Aponte, Sr., A; Chris Sabia, So., D
RUTGERS
Jules Heningburg, Jr., A; Christian Trasolini, Sr., M; Michael Rexrode, Jr., D