US LACROSSE MAGAZINE RELEASE
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – Penn State's Grant Ament was announced as the NCAA Division I Preseason Player of the Year by US Lacrosse Magazine on Wednesday. The redshirt senior attackman returns for his final season with the Nittany Lions after being a finalist for the Tewaaraton Award last year as a junior.
Ament was a first team All-American last season and was named the Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year after leading Penn State to the best scoring offense in the nation. He set NCAA, Big Ten, and program records for assists in a season with 96 and assists/game at 5.65, and a Big Ten and program record for points in a season with 129. He continued to set records in the postseason, breaking the NCAA Tournament mark for points (25) on seven goals and 18 assists. The 18 assists tied the NCAA Tournament record.
Ament enters his final season with prolific numbers while leading Penn State to its most successful era in program history. He has totaled 240 points on 80 goals and 160 assists. He is already the school's all-time leader in assists and needs just 13 points to become the all-time leader in that category, as well.
Penn State is 36-13 overall and 10-5 in the Big Ten in the three seasons that Ament has suited up. The Lions went 16-2 overall and a perfect 5-0 while winning their first Big Ten regular season title in 2019. They followed that with their first Big Ten Tournament title before advancing to the NCAA Semifinals for the first time.
The Lions were picked first in the Nike/US Lacrosse Magazine Preseason Poll. The poll will be available in print in the January edition of the magazine. That edition will feature Ament on the cover and will include a story on the Penn State star.
Penn State opens the 2020 season with a home game against Lafayette on Saturday Feb. 1, at noon.
