May 3, 2017
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COLUMBUS, OHIO - The ninth-ranked Penn State men's lacrosse team (12-2, 3-2 Big Ten) compete for a spot in the Big Ten tournament finals on Thursday evening, taking on top-seeded Maryland (10-3, 4-1 Big Ten) at 5 p.m. at Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium in Columbus, Ohio. The winner of Penn State-Maryland will face the winner of Ohio State-Johns Hopkins on Saturday, May 6, at 7:30 p.m. Both games are set to broadcast live on the Big Ten Network, with Joe Beninati and Mark Dixon on the call.
FOLLOW ALONG
In addition to watching in person or on the Big Ten Network, fans can follow all the action with the Big Ten Network's live stream, live stats and additional live coverage on Twitter (@PennStateMLAX).
PENN STATE DOWNS MICHIGAN IN REGULAR SEASON FINALE
Penn State closed out the regular season with a 17-13 win over the Michigan Wolverines on April 30.
- Penn State's 17 goals were the most ever scored by a Penn State team in Big Ten conference play. The 17-goal output also tied for the fifth most in a game under head coach Jeff Tambroni's tenure.
- The Nittany Lions had three players in Nick Aponte (5g,4a), Mac O'Keefe (4g) and Dan Craig (3g,1a) score three or more goals. It was the first time the team saw three players record hat tricks in the same game since Penn State played Cleveland State, when Aponte, O'Keefe and Grant Ament achieved the feat.
- With the win, Penn State secured the Creator's Trophy, awarded between Penn State, Ohio State and Michigan. Penn State has claimed four of the six Creator's Trophy titles, dating back to 2012.
- Aponte's nine point outing tied the most by a Penn State player this season, matching Ament's outing against Cornell (6g,3a) - their nine-point games are tied for the fifth most points in a game this season.
- With the Michigan win, the 2017 team set a new record for goals in a Big Ten season with 61 and highest scoring average (12.20 gpg).
PSU TIES PROGRAM WIN RECORDS
With the Nittany Lions' win, the team eclipsed the 12-win mark for the 2017 season.
- With the victory over Michigan, Penn State matched the program record for wins in a season with 12, set by the 2013 team.
- The 2017 team is just the seventh to reach double-figure wins.
- The win also marked the most in a Big Ten season, with the team winning three Big Ten conference games.
APONTE, AMENT AND SABIA EARN ALL-B1G STATUS
The Big Ten conference announced its All-Big Ten selections on Tuesday, May, 2, with senior attackman Nick Aponte, sophomore attackman Grant Ament and sophomore defender Chris Sabia earning All-Big Ten recognition.
- Aponte earns the first team nod following 21 goals and 32 assists for 53 points on the season. With eight goals and 14 assists, the senior captain set a new Penn State record for points in a Big Ten season with 22 total. His 69 career assists rank eighth most ever by a Penn State player.
- Ament earns his First Team All-Big Ten honor for the first time after leading Penn State in points with 55 total (27g, 28a). The sophomore ranks 20th in the nation and second in the Big Ten in point production, averaging 3.93 points per game. Ament became Penn State's 24th 100-point scorer earlier this season, with his 109 career points ranking 21st all-time for the program.
- Sabia takes home Second Team All-Big Ten honors after a team-high 19 caused turnovers and 23 groundballs currently. Sabia's 1.36 caused turnovers per game are second best in the Big Ten conference and ranked 36th nationally. With 31 forced turnovers to date, he leads Penn State's active roster in career takeaways.
APONTE PUTS ON CLINIC IN ANN ARBOR
Senior attackman Nick Aponte had a career outing in the regular season finale against Michigan, scoring nine points on five goals and four assists.
- With the outburst, Aponte set the program record for both points and goals in a single Big Ten game.
- The performance also gave Aponte the most points in a Big Ten season, finishing conference play with 22 (8g, 14a)
- Following the nine-point performance, Aponte moved to 12th all-time on the career points leaderboard, with 136 to date. Aponte needs three more for sole possession of 11th place and eight mosre points to crack the top 10.
- Aponte earned Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week honors after the accomplishment.
O'KEEFE BREAKING RECORDS
Freshman attackman Mac O'Keefe logged the freshman scoring record on April 30, scoring four goals to eclipse the 44 goal mark set by TJ Sanders in 2013. With four more goals, O'Keefe would earn the program record for single-season goals.
- After scoring four goals against Michigan, O'Keefe holds the country's ninth longest goal-scoring streak, finding the back of the net in 14 consecutive games. His 46 goals over the span ranks seventh. Brown's Dylan Molloy holds the longest streak with 39 consecutive games in which he's tallied 121 goals.
- O'Keefe's 46 goals are the most in a single season in Jeff Tambroni's seven-season tenure at Penn State.
- With four goals against Cleveland State, O'Keefe passed Penn State's single-player high for goals from last season, as senior attackman Nick Aponte logged 30 in 2016.
ATTACK IN STRIKING DISTANCE OF SINGLE SEASON POINTS TOP-10
Following the regular season, each member of Penn State's attack in Grant Ament, Nick Aponte and Mac O'Keefe could plausibly crack the top 10 in single season points.
- Ament is the closest to joining the leaderboard, entering Thursday with 55 points to date - the ninth and tenth spots on Penn State's single season points leaderboard sit at 57 points.
- After his nine-point game last time out, Aponte is four points short of the 57 needed to make the top-10. In addition to the single-season points leaderboard, Aponte needs three assists to pass Ament's 2016 season for 10th place in single-season assists.
- O'Keefe is the longest shot to crack the top-10 for season points, needing six more to tie for the 10th most in program history.
OFFENSE AMONG NATION'S BEST
Entering the postseason the Nittany Lion offense continues to be one of the best in the nation statistically.
- Penn State leads the country statistically in shooting percentage as of May 1, firing the ball at a .364 clip. Grant Ament (.450, 13th) Mac O'Keefe (.397, 50th), and Mike Sutton (.373, 71st) all rank within the top 75 nationally in shooting percentage.
- Of the over 70 Division I programs, Penn State finds itself also ranked among the top 10 in the country in scoring offense (fifth, 14.21) goals per game), points per game (fourth, 22.57) and assists per game (seventh, 8.36). Penn State leads the Big Ten in all four categories.
- In addition to its national prominence, Penn State's goals per game, points per game and assists per game figures are all the best during the Jeff Tambroni era to date. Penn State's 199 goals are the most in a single season during the Tambroni era, as are the teams 117 assists.
- Penn State has four offensive players ranked nationally among the top 150 in either points per game, goals per game or assists per game. Ament (3.93 ppg, 1.93 gpg, 2.00 apg) is the lone player to rank among the top 75 in all three categories. O'Keefe (3.64 ppg, 3.29 gpg) ranks top 40 in both goals per game and points per game, while Nick Aponte (3.79 ppg, 2.29 apg) ranks among the top 25 in points per game and assists per game. Ryan Keenan ranks 119th nationally in assists per game, averaging 0.93 per contest.
LIONS DOMINANT AT THE FACEOFF "X"
Penn State's success on the offensive end has stemmed from stellar play at the faceoff "x", creating opportunities for the offense to thrive.
- Penn State ranks eighth in the country in faceoff win percentage (.595) and 14th in groundballs per game (31.14) following 13 games. Penn State ranks second in the Big Ten in both faceoff win percentage and groundballs per game.
- Freshman midfielder and faceoff man Gerard Arceri ranks sixth nationally in faceoff percentage (.625) and 11th in groundballs per game (7.00). He ranks second in the Big Ten in faceoff percentage while leading in groundballs.
APONTE, AMENT CLIMBING CAREER ASSISTS LEADERBOARD
Entering the postseason, Penn State attackmen Nick Aponte and Grant Ament both look to improve their positioning on the Penn State leaderboard for career assists.
- Following the Nittany Lions' most recent outing, Aponte has taken sole possession of eighth place on the career assists leaderboard with 69 total. Ament's 62 assists are three shy of claiming the 10th spot on the career assists leaderboard.
- Aponte, who enters the Maryland game with 69 career assists, is having the best season of his career statistically sharing the ball with a team-high 32 assists this season. His 19-assist output in 2016 was previously his most in a single season.
- Ament, who has 28 assists in 2017 to date, entered the season after dishing out the 10th most assists in a single season in program history during his freshman campaign, logging 34 last season.
APONTE NAMED TEWAARATON NOMINEE
Senior captain Nick Aponte was named one of 25 Tewaaraton Award Nominees on Friday, April 28.
- Aponte enters the postseason with 53 points on 21 goals and 32 assists. He has added 23 groundballs (third most on the team) and four caused turnovers.
- Aponte ranks 12th nationally in assists per game, averaging 2.29 per contest.
- The field of nominees will be trimmed down to five finalists on May 11, with the award being presented June 1 in Washington D.C.
SABIA MAKING MARK IN B1G PLAY
Sophomore defender Chris Sabia has come into form during conference play, with eight caused turnovers through four games.
- With 10 caused turnovers in conference play, Sabia leads conference-only caused turnovers.
- Sabia's 10 caused turnovers are the most by a Penn State player in a Big Ten season, with five being the most in a Big Ten season prior to Sabia's output.
- Over the course of the season, Sabia has averaged 1.36 caused turnovers per game, ranking 42nd nationally and third most in the Big Ten.
- Sabia's 31 career caused turnovers are the most of any active player on the Nittany Lions' roster.
100-POINT CLUB
Sophomore attackman Grant Ament scored a pair of goals and added three assists to hit the 100-career point milestone against Johns Hopkins on April 15.
- With his five-point performance, Ament became the 24th Penn State player to score 100 career points. His 109 career points rank 21st all-time.
- Ament became the second active Penn State player to reach 100 career points this season, when Nick Aponte during the Nittany Lions' game against Furman. The senior ranks 12th most points in program history with 136 (67g, 69a).
- With Ament reaching the 100-point mark, Penn State is one of 17 programs nationally with a pair of 100-point scorers.
- Prior to Ament and Aponte, TJ Sanders (2013-16) was the last player to be a 100-point scorer. Senior midfielder Mike Sutton is the next closest active player to the 100-point mark, entering the game against Rutgers with 87 (75g, 12a).
NITTANY LIONS SET HISTORICAL STREAK
Penn State began the season on a historical win streak, going 10-0 through the opening 10 games of the season.
- Following Penn State's win over Ohio State, the Nittany Lions continued the best start in program history at 10-0. Prior to the 2017 season the best record to begin a season at Penn State was 7-0, achieved by the 1992 team.
- With the win over OSU, Penn State remained one of two undefeated squads nationally at 10-0. Hofstra (9-0) is the only other undefeated program nationally. Penn State's 10-game win streak was the best in the country.
- With Penn State's victory over Ohio State, the Nittany Lions matched the longest single-season win streak with 10-straight. The win also saw Penn State earn its seventh ever season with double-figure wins.
- With the win against Cleveland State, Penn State went undefeated in the non-conference slate for the first time in program history at a perfect 9-0 mark. Penn State first became a conference member in 2000 when the team joined the ECAC before transitioning to the CAA and eventually the Big Ten.
ATTACK LINE AMONG LEADERS IN 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 one of the most potent units in Division I statistically.
- The trio all rank in the top-35 nationally in points per game. Ament comes in at No. 20, while O'Keefe and Aponte rank No. 24 and No. 31 in the country, respectively. The three players ranked second, third and fourth in Big Ten.
- The trio of Ament, Aponte and O'Keefe have accounted for 47.7% of Penn State's goals, 55.6% of Penn State's assists and 50.3% of the team's total points.
- The Penn State attack line is the only starting attack line in the country to have all three of it's players earn it's conference's offensive player of the week honor over the course of the 2017 season.
- As a unit, Penn State's starting attack line has produced the fourth most points among starting attack lines nationally. The Nittany Lion trio ranks fourth in total goals and fourth in total assists.
B1G IN A LEAGUE OF THEIR OWN
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 the league's non-conference play, as a conference Big Ten teams went a combined 45-8, with its .849 win percentage the top among all Division I programs.
APONTE, AMENT AND SUTTON STREAKING
At this point in the 2017 season, senior attackman Nick Aponte holds one of the longest statistical streaks in the country.
- After a nine-point performance against Michigan, Aponte has recorded at least one point in each of his last 46 contests, dating back to April 5, 2014.
- Aponte's streak is good for eighth in the country. Denver senior Connor Cannizarro lead the country with 54 consecutive games registering at least one point, dating back to Apr. 19, 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 performance against Penn. The Doylestown, Pennsylvania, native is on a 29-game streak entering the game against Maryland, good for 19th nationally.
- With a one-goal performance against Michigan, senior Mike Sutton extended his streak to 24 consecutive games.
- Of the 27 players in Division I to have tallied a point in 20 consecutive games, only five schools (Penn State, Denver, Duke, Harvard and Air Force) have multiple players on the list. Penn State and Maryland are the only schools to have three players with a 20-plus game point streak.
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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