May 4, 2017
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COLUMBUS, Ohio - The ninth-ranked Penn State men's lacrosse team (12-3, 3-2 Big Ten) faced a tough, two-goal setback in the semifinal round of the Big Ten tournament, falling 8-6 to the top-ranked Maryland Terrapins (11-3, 4-1 Big Ten) at Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium Thursday evening.
Despite outshooting the Terrapins, Penn State scored six goals on 35 total shots.
On the offensive end, freshman attackman Mac O'Keefe and sophomore midfielder Kevin Hill paced the Nittany Lions with two goals apiece. O'Keefe now sits two goals shy of the program record in single-season goals, while Hill logged his fifth multi-goal game of the season.
Senior attackman Nick Aponte and classmate Dan Craig each tallied a goal as well. Aponte, senior midfielder Matt Florence and sophomore attackman Grant Ament each logged assists during the 60 minutes as well.
Craig's goal was his second man-up score of the season, while one of Hill's goals came during an extra man opportunity as well. Hill leads Penn State with seven extra-man goals.
Senior midfielder Billy Lombardi anchored the faceoff 'x' for Penn State, going 9-of-18 at the dot.
The Nittany Lions defense led to 11 miscues from the Terrapins. Rookie goalie Colby Kneese made five saves in the loss.
A likely NCAA tournament at-large bid recipient, the Nittany Lions will find out their postseason fate on Sunday, May 7, at 9 p.m. on the NCAA men's lacrosse tournament selection show, airing on ESNPU. The show will be hosted by Anish Shroff, Quint Kessenich and Paul Carcaterra.
The Turning Point
With 10:11 to go in the third, Craig scored his lone goal of the game to make it a one-goal game. Under two minutes later, Maryland's Connor Kelly scored his third goal of the game. Kelly went on to score the next two while Penn State's offense was held scoreless until the 3:29 mark in the fourth quarter.
Difference Makers
Penn State
- Billy Lombardi - Lombardi quelled the faceoff woes Penn State saw in its first matchup with the Terrapins, going 9-of-18 from the faceoff 'x'.
- Man-Up Unit - The Nittany Lions capitalized on their extra-man opportunities, going 50% (two-for-four) during man-up situations.
Maryland
- Connor Kelly - Kelly shouldered the load for Maryland, scoring five of the Terrapins' eight goals.
- Dan Morris - Morris was impressive in the cage for Maryland, making 16 stops in net.
By Quarters
First Quarter
Maryland opened the first with a pair of scores, courtesy of Colin Heacock and Tim Rontanz. O'Keefe broke the streak, firing off a laser to put Penn State on the board. The Terrapins scored their third unassisted goal with 4:33 on the clock, leading to a media timeout. The two sides met a stalemate, with the Nittany Lions down two after the first 15 minutes.
Penn State 1, Maryland 3
Second Quarter
The two defenses held the opposing team at bay for over half of the quarter before the Terrapins added a goal with 7:33 left on the clock. The two sides went back and forth, with Penn State earning a man-up opportunity with 2:57 left in the half. Penn State couldn't convert on the opportunity, turning the ball over. Sabia forced a turnover before the quarter closed, with Penn State trailing by three.
Penn State 1, Maryland 4
Third Quarter
Maryland scored in the first 20 seconds of play to extend its lead to four. Hill snapped the Terrapins' scoring streak, scooping up the rebound off a shot from Aponte and burying the ball. The score spurted a 3-0 run, with O'Keefe scoring his second goal of the day on a pass from Aponte. A delayed slashing call against Maryland gave Penn-State a man-up opportunity. Lombardi won the ensuing faceoff before Craig extended his scoring streak to four games after a nifty feed from Ament. Maryland scored twice over the last nine minutes to close out the third.
Penn State 4, Maryland 7
Fourth Quarter
Maryland's Connor Kelly notched his fifth goal of the game just under five minutes into the fourth. Seven minutes passed before Aponte struck for the Nittany Lions. Two minutes later, Hill stepped down and fired off a heater off a pass from Florence to pull within two. The Nittany Lions nearly scored again, but the shot went wide, giving Maryland the possession, and in turn, a two-goal victory.
Penn State 6, Maryland 8
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