UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – The opening game of the Penn State men's lacrosse game is more important than ever this season as the Lions will play a schedule consisting of only Big Ten opponents. On top of that, this year starts with a rivalry game. Penn State will travel to Rutgers on Saturday to compete for the Friendship Cup.
The Friendship Cup game is a symbol of the friendship of four friends from Sewanhaka High School on Long Island, who under the leadership of legendary lacrosse coach Bill Ritch learned what it took to play Division I lacrosse. The four went off to college splitting two ways; one pair attending Penn State, and the other heading off to Rutgers.
The four men dedicated the annual game between their alma maters to three things they hold dear: the idea of lifelong friendship, their old high school, and the close ties that have long existed between the Penn State and Rutgers athletic teams. The founders from Penn State are John Meisel and Vin Tedesco. Rutgers' founding members of the game are John Valestra and Ronald Yurcak.
"The Friendship Cup is symbolic of the camaraderie and deep-rooted competition of the annual Rutgers-Penn State lacrosse game," Penn State head coach Jeff Tambroni said. "Our team is excited to compete in a game that that values and honors the legacy of the student-athletes and coaches who came before us."
Penn State is 13-6 in the Friendship Cup. The trophy remained stayed in State College for the first six years beginning in 1998. The trophy has gone back-and-forth in recent years, with the teams alternating wins since 2015. The Lions won the most recent rivalry game 14-13 at home in 2019 and then went on to beat the Scarlet Knights in the Big Ten Tournament the following week.
The teams will play two games this year, but it was determined in advance that the first meeting will be the competition for the Friendship Cup.
Both teams are currently in the USILA national rankings. Penn State sits at No. 6, while Rutgers comes in at No. 16.
