Feb. 28, 2017
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - For the fourth consecutive week, Penn State men's lacrosse freshman attackman Mac O'Keefe has been tabbed the Big Ten Freshman of the Week, as announced by the league's office on Tuesday afternoon.
O'Keefe, the sole recipient of the award so far this season, logs his fifth Big Ten weekly honor, after also being named the league's Offensive Player of the Week on Feb. 8.
The rookie out of Syosset, New York, earned the accolade following an eight-goal performance at Villanova. With his eight-goal outing, O'Keefe broke the freshman record for goals in a game (previously set by himself against Robert Morris with seven) and was the first player to score eight or more goals in a single game since 1983, when Rich Russo logged a program-record 10 against Montclair State.
O'Keefe has turned heads nationally this season, leading NCAA Division I programs in total goals (24) and goals per game (6.00) through the first month of play. An electric scorer, the freshman also ranks fourth in points per game in Division I with 6.75, good for a conference best. Penn State leads the Big Ten in scoring offense with 18.25 goals per game and trails only Brown (21.00 goals per game) nationally.
O'Keefe and the rest of the No. 5 Nittany Lions are set for one of three top-10 showdowns this week, taking on No. 8 Penn on Saturday at the Penn State lacrosse field at noon. With a win, Penn State would start the season 5-0 for the first time since 1992, when the team opened the season at 7-0.
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