March 10, 2017
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UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - No. 3 Penn State men's lacrosse (6-0) will take on another unbeaten squad in Harvard (4-0) on Saturday at noon in the Harvard Stadium Bubble. Due to the venue's limitations, no fans will be admitted to watch the game in person.
FOLLOW ALONG
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NITTANY LIONS REMAIN PERFECT WITH FURMAN WIN
Penn State grinded it out in its last game, pulling out a 12-10 win against the Furman Paladins to remain a perfect 6-0 on the season.
- Following the win, Penn State is one of just eight teams nationally that is still undefeated.
- Penn State was led by senior attackman Nick Aponte, who matched his season-best five points with a goal and a career high-tying four assists against Furman.
- Dan Craig, Nick Spillane and Kevin Hill all recorded multi-goal games in the win. It marked Craig's first multi-goal game of the 2017 season.
- Penn State led by six, 11-5, before a 5-0 run from Furman threatened the Nittany Lions. Junior midfielder Ryan Keenan sealed the game with 44 seconds remaining for a 12-10 win.
SPILLANE, ARCERI NET B1G HONORS
The Big Ten announced its weekly award winners on March 7, with sophomore midfielder Nick Spillane earning the league's Offensive Player of the Week award, while freshman faceoff man Gerard Arceri logged his second career nod for Specialist of the Week.
- Spillane earned his first Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week honor following a career day, scoring five goals to lead Penn State past then-No. 8 Penn. He added a pair of groundballs in the victory as well.
- Arceri logged his second Specialist of the Week honor of the season after going 24-of-31 from the faceoff `x' against Penn and collecting 15 groundballs in the process. The 24 faceoff wins and 15 groundballs both marked career highs for the freshman, and he added a goal in transition in the 14-13 win.
HISTORY ON THE LINE
Penn State has an opportunity to match the best start in program history on Saturday against Harvard.
- The Nittany Lions can match its best start in program history on Saturday with a win, moving to 7-0.
- The 1992 team is the only other team in program history to go 7-0.
OFFENSE AMONG NATION'S BEST
Through the first six games they have played the Nittany Lion offense continues to be one of the best in the nation statistically.
- Penn State is the nation's best shooting team in the country statistically as of March 5, firing the ball at a .407 clip.
- Of the over 70 Division I programs, Penn State finds itself also leading the country in points/game (27.17). The team's scoring offense ranks second nationally behind only Brown, averaging 17.40 goals/game. The team also ranks second nationally in assists per game (10.60), behind only Loyola Maryland.
ATTACK LINE LEADS D1
Penn State's attack unit has been especially impressive so far, with the three attackmen starters of Grant Ament, Nick Aponte and Mac O'Keefe being the most potent unit in Division I statistically.
- Ament and O'Keefe both rank among the top 10 in points and goals scored nationally. O'Keefe leads the country in goals scored (26), while he and Ament's 5.60 points per game lead the Big Ten and rank 10th nationally.
- Ament and senior Aponte both rank among the top 10 nationally in total assists. Ament's 17 assists are third in the country, while Aponte's 14 tie for 10th nationally. Ament and Aponte rank first and third respectively in assists per game within the Big Ten.
- As a unit, Penn State's starting attack line has produced more points than any starting attack line in the country. (CHART ON PAGE THREE OF GAME NOTES)
LIONS DOMINANT AT THE FACEOFF "X"
Penn State's early success on the offensive end has stemmed from stellar play at the faceoff "x", creating opportunities for the offense to thrive.
- Penn State ranks third in the country in faceoff win percentage (.689) and fourth in groundballs per game (35.50) following the fourth week of play. Both figures lead the Big Ten.
- Freshman midfielder and faceoff man Gerard Arceri ranks fifth nationally in faceoff percentage (.675) and second in groundballs per game (9.50). Both figures lead the Big Ten as well.
B1G OFF TO A HOT START
As a league, the Big Ten has been off to a hot start and looks to be one of the top conferences in the nation once again.
- Through March 10, as a conference teams went a combined 31-3, with its .911 win percentage the top among all Division I programs. (CHART ON PAGE THREE OF GAME NOTES).
O'KEEFE ON PACE TO SET NEW RECORDS
Freshman attackman Mac O'Keefe continues a hot stretch offensively, notching an astounding 26 goals through the first six games.
- With just four more goals over the duration of the season, O'Keefe would match Penn State's single-player high for goals from last season, as senior attackman Nick Aponte logged 30 in 2016.
- O'Keefe currently ranks second among freshman goal scorers during the Jeff Tambroni era, only behind former attackman TJ Sanders' rookie campaign, when he scored 44 in the 2013 season.
- O'Keefe's 26 goals also stand alone for 10th in a single season in Jeff Tambroni's seven-season tenure at Penn State. The 26-goal mark is 14 short of cracking the program's top-10 single season leaderboard. (CHART ON PAGE THREE/FOUR OF GAME NOTES)
APONTE, AMENT STREAKING
At this point in the 2017 season, senior attackman Nick Aponte holds one of the longest statistical streaks in the country.
- After logging a goals and four assists against Furman, Aponte has recorded at least one point in each of his last 38 contests, dating back to April 5, 2014.
- Aponte's streak is good for 10th in the country. Vermont junior Ian MacKay and Denver senior Connor Cannizarro lead the country with 46 consecutive games registering at least one point, dating back to Feb. 22, 2014.
- Sophomore attackman Grant Ament joined the exclusive group of players nationally with a scoring streak of 20 or more consecutive games following his three assist perfromance against Penn. The Doylestown, Pennsylvania, native is on a 21-game streak entering the game against Harvard. (CHART ON PAGE FOUR OF GAME NOTES)
SCOUTING THE CRIMSON
Saturday's game pits a pair of unbeaten teams against one another, as Penn State (6-0) takes on Harvard (4-0) inside the Harvard Stadium Bubble.
- Through four games, Harvard junior attackman Morgan Cheek has registered 6.75 points per game, sitting second in the country. The junior also second in goals per game (4.00) and sixth in the nation in assists per game (2.75).
- Harvard has three players have tallied hat tricks this season, Morgan Cheek (four times) and Ryan Graff and Joe Lang against UML.
- Tuesday's matchup marks just the fourth time the two sides have played one another, with Harvard holding a one-game edge. Penn State won last year's outing with a 8-7 win over the Crimson. Head coach Jeff Tambroni is 11-1 all-time against Harvard.
PENN STATE IN THE NATIONAL RANKINGS
Penn State rose again this week in the national polls, coming in at No. 3 across the board.
- With its No. 3 ranking in the USILA coaches poll, Penn State is ranked within the top five for the second consecutive week. Last week marked the first time since March 10, 2014, that the team had cracked the top five when the team climbed to fifth in the national rankings.
- Penn State has now been ranked in 11 consecutive USILA coaches polls, the last time being unranked being March 21, 2016.
TAMBRONI EARNS WIN 50 AT PENN STATE
Nittany Lions head coach Jeff Tambroni earned his 50th win of his Penn State career on Feb. 11 at Hobart.
- Entering the 2017 season, Tambroni ranked ninth in win percentage among active Division I coaches (.662) and 13th in overall wins (157).
- Tambroni will became the fifth active Division I coach with 50 or more wins at multiple DI institutions. (CHART ON PAGE FOUR OF GAME NOTES)
APONTE NAMED TO TEWAARATON WATCH LIST
After a strong start to the 2017 season, senior attackman Nick Aponte was one of 50 players nationally to be named to the Tewaaraton Award Watch List on February 28.
- Aponte was named to the Watch List for the second straight season. He ranks tied for third on Penn State in points this season after leading the Nittany Lions in goals (30) last season.
- Players not named to the initial lists have several opportunities to play their way into a spot as the season progresses. Watch list additions, if applicable, will be announced on March 16 and April 6.
- On April 27, the field will be narrowed to 25 men's and 25 women's nominees. Nominees can be players on the watch lists or players not on the watch lists, effectively allowing for a third round of additions.
HOGAN CLAIMS SUPER BOWL LI RING
Penn State men's lacrosse finds itself in the headlines in late January following a breakout performance from former Nittany Lion midfield standout and current New England Patriots wide receiver Chris Hogan.
- Hogan played four seasons as a midfielder for Penn State, in which he registered 57 goals and 14 assists for 71 career points.
- Hogan sustained an injury three games into his sophomore season (2008) in which he scored a pair of goals. Hogan was granted a medical redshirt, which he chose to use at Monmouth University after graduating from Penn State, where he played wide receiver and defensive back for the Hawks.
- Hogan's breakout performance came during the AFC Championship game in which he pulled in nine catches for 180 yards and a pair of touchdowns. His 180 receiving yards were a franchise postseason single game record. He recorded four catches for 57 yards in the Patriots 34-28 OT win over the Atlanta Falcons in Super Bowl LI.
- Hogan is the only member of Penn State men's lacrosse to ever play in the NFL or win a Super Bowl. Thirty-nine total Nittany Lions have now claimed 56 Super Bowl rings, with Hogan being the most recent player to do so.
ARCERI, O'KEEFE AND WRIGHT COMPETE WITH TEAM USA
Freshmen Gerard Arceri and Mac O'Keefe and sophomore Tommy Wright represented Team USA over the summer of 2016 as a part of the 27-man U19 roster.
- The Penn State trio earned the gold medals with the team, marking Team USA's eighth U19 world championship. O'Keefe scored a team-high two goals and added an assist. Arceri saw time, but Wright was sidelined with an injury for USA's 13-12 win over Canada.
- Penn State was also represented by associate head coach Peter Toner, who served as an assistant coach for the USA U19 team. Head coach Jeff Tambroni serves as an assistant for the USA national team, while assistant coach Chris Doctor served as an assistant for the Iroquois national team from 2013-14.
- Four players on Penn State's current roster have played for the USA U19 team. Redshirt senior Matt Florence played with the USA U19 team in 2012 en route to the team's seventh world championship with a 10-8 win vs. Canada.
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