UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – Aleric Fyock and the Penn State defense shut down one of the top teams in the country as the Nittany Lions upset No. 5 Yale 10-6 Saturday at Panzer Stadium. Jeb Brenfleck led the offensive effort with three goals and an assist to help the Lions improve to 2-3 on the season, while the Bulldogs dropped to 1-1.
After the teams battled to a 5-5 tie through two quarters, Penn State took control with three goals in the first six minutes of the second half. Mark Sickler started the run off an assist from Will Peden. Brenfleck followed with a goal and then assisted on the third goal of the run, which was scored by Jack Kelly.
Those were the only three goals of the quarter as Penn State held Yale scoreless thanks to four saves by Fyock. He made nine saves in the second half while holding the Bulldogs to just one goal.
Yale's one goal in the second half cut Penn State's lead to 8-6 with 4:50 to play. The Lions responded with goals by Sickler and Mac Costin to get the four-goal win.
Between Yale's goal with 8:46 to play in the second quarter and its next score with 4:50 to play in the fourth quarter, Penn State held the Bulldogs scoreless for 33:56 of play. Fyock made 12 saves during that stretch.
Fyock's big game came after a tough start. Yale scored on its first shot just 33 seconds into the game and then took a 2-0 lead just 2:09 into the game on its third shot. From there, Fyock stopped 20 of the next 24 shots he faced.
Penn State countered Yale's two quick goals with a 5-0 run to take a 5-2 lead after one quarter. Brenfleck had two goals during the run, while Kelly, Jack Traynor and Costin each scored once.
Traynor's goal came on an impressive defensive effort. On the ride, he deflected a pass attempt intended for the Yale goalie that misdirected the ball past the keeper.
Including Brenfleck's four, Penn State received nine points from freshmen in the contest. Ethan Long tallied three assists, while Will Peden chipped in with two. Peden entered the game as one of just two freshmen in the country to rank in the top 20 in assists/game.
Costin, Kelly and Sickler each scored two goals for Penn State. Traynor scored once and added an assist. He is averaging 4.6 points through five games.
Senior Brayden Peck played a pivotal role in Penn State's dominant defensive effort, leading the team with three caused turnovers. Pup Buono, Traynor, and Jack Posey each caused two turnovers, while Sam Sweeney, Sickler and Kevin Parnham caused one apiece.
Parnham paced the Lions in ground balls with four, while Sweeney was right behind him with three. Grant Haus, Costin, Kelly, Traynor, and Sutton Boland picked up one ground ball apiece.
Will Cabrera led Yale with three goals. Leo Johnson, Kyle Zawadzki and Matt Brandau each had one goal and one assist.
The win was the 12th for Penn State against a team ranked in the top five. Eight of those wins have come during Jeff Tambroni's 12 seasons as a head coach. The latest ended a five-game losing streak in the series with Yale, giving the Lions their first win over the Bulldogs since 1997.
Penn State heads to Charlotte for its next game where it will play No. 11 Penn as part of the Crown Classic on Saturday at 4 p.m. The Quakers may be ranked higher after this weekend thanks to a 14-13 overtime win over No. 7 Duke.