April 15, 2017
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BALTIMORE, Md. - Despite an impressive fourth quarter performance, the No. 5 Penn State men's lacrosse team (10-2, 1-2 Big Ten) could not complete the comeback bid on Saturday afternoon, as Johns Hopkins (7-4, 2-1 Big Ten) defeated the Nittany Lions, 13-11, at Homewood Field.
Entering the fourth quarter with a five goal deficit, it looked as if Penn State may pull off the comeback, as the team strung together three goals in the first six minutes to cut the game to two. Following a Johns Hopkins score, senior midfielder Mike Sutton picked off the top corner with 5:27 left on the clock. A bounce-shot goal courtesy of senior midfielder Dan Craig pulled the game to one before a late goal from the Blue Jays' Joel Tinney iced the game.
Sophomore attackman Grant Ament led the way for the Nittany Lions behind a five-point performance on two goals and three assists. With his first assist of the day, Ament hit the 100-career point mark, becoming just the second active player on Penn State's roster to do so, joining senior Nick Aponte who accomplished the feat earlier this season (124 career points).
Ament was one of seven Nittany Lions with a multi-point performance. Aponte finished second in points, logging four assists during the game. The four assists pushed Aponte to sole possession of 10th on Penn State's career assists leaderboard, surpassing Shane Sturgis with 62 helpers so far.
Sutton, Craig and classmate Matt Florence each scored a pair of goals in the game, while freshman attackman Mac O'Keefe and junior midfielder Ryan Keenan posted a goal and an assist each. Sophomore midfielder Nick Spillane added a goal.
Despite the loss, rookie goalkeeper Colby Kneese had a strong performance, logging 15 saves and a groundball in the two-goal setback.
Penn State returns to the field after an eight-day break, hosting Rutgers on Sunday, April 23, at 7 p.m., with the game set for national broadcast on the Big Ten Network. Fans are encouraged to arrive early as Penn State Intercollegiate Athletics recognizes the 10 seniors in a pregame ceremony.
The Turning Point
Penn State pulled within three in the second quarter on a goal from Keenan with 1:40 left to go. The Blue Jays capitalized on a pair of broken plays, as Cody Radziewicz and Shack Stanwick scored during the final 38 seconds to give Johns Hopkins a five-goal lead heading into the locker room at half.
Difference Makers
Penn State
- Colby Kneese - Kneese kept Penn State in the game, logging an impressive 15 saves in the cage. The output tied Penn State's single-game high in a Big Ten game, set by Will Schreiner against Ohio State last season.
- Grant Ament - Ament logged his 100th career point during his five-point performance, leading the Nittany Lions offense.
- Nick Aponte - Aponte stepped up as a distributor, logging four assists while climbing to 10th all-time on Penn State's career assists leaderboard.
Johns Hopkins
- Shack Stanwick - The Blue Jays' standout attackman matched Ament's output for a game-high five points, his coming on a hat trick and a pair of assists.
- Hunter Moreland - Moreland excelled against the Nittany Lions' faceoff unit, going 19-of-28 while taking every draw for Hopkins.
By Quarters
First Quarter
Johns Hopkins was the first to score, wasting little time as the Blue Jays found the back of the net just 37 seconds into the game. The Nittany Lions responded, with Ament firing a no-look shot off a feed from Aponte to knot the game. Hopkins' John Crawley answered back, scoring at the 11:24 mark. Nearly five minutes later Florence logged the equalizer, picking off the corner while standing in the middle of the zone. O'Keefe logged the assist on Florence's goal before a pair of JHU goals. Both defenses stifled the opponent for the final 2:35 of the first.
Penn State 2, Johns Hopkins 4
Second Quarter
Hopkins opened the second with a goal just 22 seconds in. Craig caught a pass from Keenan for Penn State's first score of the quarter, picking off the top corner. The Blue Jays scored three in a row before a crafty pass from Ament found O'Keefe for his first score of the day. With 1:40 on the clock, Keenan ripped a shot that skimmed the ground and beat the keeper. Johns Hopkins put away a pair of goals over the final 38 seconds to close out the first half.
Penn State 5, Johns Hopkins 10
Third Quarter
Both defenses stood tall in the third quarter, allowing just one goal apiece. Hopkins struck first, as Patrick Fraser scored just over a minute into the frame. With just under eight minutes to go Aponte passed from behind the net to Spillane. The sophomore midfielder made a quick flick of the wrist, dumping the ball into the right side. The two sides then were stuck at a stalemate until the end of the quarter.
Penn State 6, Johns Hopkins 11
Fourth Quarter
The Nittany Lions kicked off the fourth with a bang, as freshman faceoff man Gerard Arceri won the draw. He quickly kicked the ball to Aponte, who then dumped it to Ament for the first score of the fourth. Penn State scored twice more with Sutton and Florence finding the back of the net on helpers from Ament and Aponte. Hopkins broke up the run with a man-up goal before Sutton picked off the corner. Craig scored high on a bounce shot to cut the lead to one. Penn State lost the ensuing faceoff and was called for a penalty, which eventually led to a score from Joel Tinney to finish the game.
Penn State 11, Johns Hopkins 13
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