UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - The Penn State men's lacrosse team embarks on their second NCAA tournament national semifinal matchup in program history as they take on number one seeded Duke on Saturday, May 27 at noon in Philadelphia, Pa.
HOW TO FOLLOW
Date: Saturday, May 27
Place: Lincoln Financial Field | Philadelphia, Pa.
Time: NOON
Watch: ESPN2
Live Statistics: Saturday
Game Notes: Penn State
Tickets: Saturday
SERIES HISTORY
- Duke currently leads the series 9-0 with the last matchup coming on March 20, 2010 when the Nittany Lions fell to the Blue Devils 20-11.
SCOUTING DUKE
- Duke enters the match with a 15-2 overall record as they recently defeated Michigan in the semifinal round of the NCAA tournament 15-8 on Friday, May 20.
- Leading the way on the offensive front for the Blue Devils is Brennan O'Neill who leads the team in points with 91 off 51 goals and 40 assists.
- In net stands William Helm who has played and started in 17 games this season. He currently tallies a save percentage of .524 and a GAA of 10.58.
HOW WE GOT HERE
- Penn State is coming off a massive 13-12 comeback victory over Princeton in the quarterfinal round of the NCAA tournament.
- With 9:20 remaining in the second quarter, Penn State trailed 7-1 to the Tigers before going on an 11-2 scoring run to regain the lead to 12-9 in the beginning of the fourth quarter.
- The Nittany Lion defense held the Tigers to just three more goals while Penn State added one more to seal the victory.
- Sophomore Ethan Long led the way with a single-game high five goals while TJ Malone was the lead point getter with six off two goals and four assists.
- Sophomore goalie Jack Fracyon tied a program record in single-game saves in an NCAA tournament game with 16 which aided strongly in the Nittany Lions victory.
- In the quarterfinals, the Nittany Lions defeated Army West Point 10-9 after a game-winning goal by Kevin Winkoff to halt a comeback by Army.
- Graduate student TJ Malone was the main offensive presence on the field scoring four goals while Jake Morin tallied three assists.
FRACYON ON FIRE
- Sophomore goalie Jack Fracyon allowed a program record low nine goals in an NCAA Tournament game giving up just nine goals in the quarterfinal round.
- The reigning Big Ten Specialist of the Year has kept the Nittany Lions in the tournament as both games played so far have been decided by one goal.
- Fracyon sits tied for fifth in program history in most saves in a single season with 210 while he has recorded 11 wins and save percentage of .572.
LAST BIG TEN TEAM REMAINING
- Penn State sits as the lone Big Ten team left in the NCAA tournament following Johns Hopkins loss to Notre Dame in the quarterfinal round.
- The Nittany Lions were slotted to finish fifth in the conference overall in the Big Ten preseason poll.
- Penn State also captured the Big Ten regular season title for the second time in program history after their win against Rutgers on April 21.
UP NEXT
- With a win, Penn State advances to the NCAA Tournament championship game which will be played in Philadelphia, Pa. on May 29 versus the winner of the second semifinal game between Virginia and Notre Dame.