April 14, 2008
STATE COLLEGE, Pa. -
TODAY'S GAME: The Penn State Nittany Lion men's lacrosse team (4-6, 1-4 ECAC) will host two games in the upcoming week. The Nittany Lions will welcome No. 11 Bucknell (9-2) on Tuesday night for a 7:30 p.m. game at Jeffrey Field and the host ECAC rival Rutgers (4-6, 2-2 ECAC) on Sunday at 1 p.m.
Penn State is coming off a tough 11-7 loss to St. John's on Saturday in Jamaica, N.Y. The Nittany Lions could not break through the Red Storm defense in the second half, scoring only two goals over the last 30 minutes of play. Max VanArsdale led Penn State with two goals in the game, but Penn State was out-shot 41-31 in the contest and SJU converted on four of five man-up opportunities.
Rob Forster continues to lead Penn State's offense with team highs in goals (11) and assists (10) for 21 points. VanArsdale checks in with 11 goals and three assists for 14 points while Andrew Mackrides has nine and four for 13. Mackrides also has 32 ground balls, second only to Goalie Drew Adams' 35. Adams has a 7.66 GAA with 111 saves and a .600 save percentage. Defender Tommy Zichelli has 24 ground balls in ten games as well. Charley Henneghan has seven goals this year and leads Penn State's ECAC-leading face-off unit with a .615 percentage (24-39).
Bucknell, ranked No. 11 in the 4/7 Coaches Poll, is coming off an 11-5 Patriot League win over Lehigh that clinched a spot in the Patriot League post-season tournament. The Bison, 9-2 overall, are being led by Austin Winter's 37 points. Winter has 12 goals and 25 assists. Tim Brandau leads BU with 22 goals and has five assists for 27 points. Joe Mele checks in with 24 points off 20 goals and four assists. Keeper Nick Sciubba has a 6.83 goal against average with 96 saves and a .589 save percentage.
Rutgers comes in off a 17-9 loss to Syracuse last weekend. The Scarlet Knights, 4-6 overall and 2-2 in the league, are being led by Kory Kelly, who has 19 goals and two assists for 21 points. Justin Pennington checks in with 24 off 17 and seven while Gerhard Buehning has 20 off 13 and seven. RU keeper William Olin has a 9.12 GAA with 102 saves and a .543 save percentage.
Penn State will trek to St. Joseph's for a non-conference game on Saturday night at 7:30 p.m. in its next outing.
PENN STATE VS. BUCKNELL: THE SERIES Penn State leads the all-time series with Bucknell 32-9. Bucknell, however, has won the last two meetings. The Bison won 7-5 in Lewisburg last year and won 11-10 in State College in 2006. Penn State's last victory over Bucknell was an 11-10 win in Lewisburg in 2005.
PENN STATE VS. RUTGERS: THE SERIES Rutgers leads the all-time series with Penn State 40-18. The Scarlet Knights won last year's game in Piscataway, 8-7 in double-OT. Penn State won in State College in 2006, 8-7 in single-OT.
HENNEGHAN CONTINUES STRONG PLAY Sophomore Charley Henneghan continues his strong play this year, coming back strong after missing three games with an injury. Henneghan had another goal in Penn State's game at St. John's on 4/12. He now has seven goals on the year, which is fifth on the team. Henneghan also sees time anchoring Penn State's face-off squad, posting a .615 face-off percentage (24-39). He has 12 ground balls and leads Penn State with three man-up goals.
RHODES SOLID IN CLOSE LOSS TO UMASS Freshman Colby Rhodes had a goal and two assists in Penn State's tough 7-5 loss to Massachusetts on March 29. The talented Nittany Lion freshman has emerged as a solid force on Penn State's attack.
FORSTER AND ROSS LEAD PSU OVER FAIRFIELD Junior Rob Forster had two goals and two assists and defender Earl Ross had a team-high six ground balls to lead Penn State to a 7-2 road win over Fairfield on March 21 in ECAC Lacrosse League action. Ross' ground ball total was a season high for the sophomore defender.
ADAMS STELLAR GOALIE PLAY LEADS LIONS OVER VISITING VERMONT - NAMED ECAC DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK Two-time ECAC Lacrosse League Goalie of the Year Drew Adams had a superb outing in Penn State's 7-4 win over visiting Vermont on 3/15. Adams shut the Catamounts out during the first half on his way to collecting 16 saves against 38 shots (20 of which were on goal). He was named ECAC Lacrosse League Defensive Player of the Week for his performance.
McALEENAN SPARKS LIONS TO WIN OVER `NOVA Junior Ryan McAleenan scored all of his game-high three goals in the first half of Penn State's 12-3 victory over Villanova on 3/11. The early hat trick helped Penn State bolt out to a 6-1 halftime lead.
LION DEFENSE SHINES AGAINST WILDCATS The Penn State Nittany Lion defense, led by Tommy Zichelli, Kevin Etter and John Stuckey, was solid in the Nittany Lions' 12-3 win over Villanova on 3/11. The Nittany Lions limited VU to 20 shots, only 14 of which were on goal. Goalie Drew Adams gave up only two goals in over 54:00 of play in another outstanding outing for the Tewaaraton Trophy candidate.
FORSTER LEADS PSU IN CLOSE LOSS AT #15 LOYOLA Junior Rob Forster grabbed half of Penn State's total points in a close 7-4 loss at No. 15 Loyola on 3/1. Forster had one goal and Penn State's only two assists in the contest for three of the PSU's six points.
ADAMS ON TEWAARATON TROPHY LIST Penn State Nittany Lion lacrosse player Drew Adams (Springfield, Pa.) has been named to the 2008 Tewaaraton Trophy Watch List, as announced by the Tewaaraton Award Foundation. Adams, a junior goalie for Penn State, is in his third season as a starter for the Nittany Lions. Already a two-time first team All-ECAC Lacrosse League pick, Adams has won the last two ECAC Lacrosse League Goalie of the Year awards. He was also the ECAC Lacrosse League Rookie of the Year in 2006. The native of Springfield, Pa., started all 26 games during his first two seasons at Penn State and collected 317 saves. He allowed only 209 goals in over 1500 minutes played for a superb 8.01 goals against average.
DONLEY NETS TWO AT NOTRE DAME Freshman Will Donley scored two goals in Penn State's 15-9 loss at No. 8 Notre Dame on Feb. 24, leading Penn State with two points along with Brian Shea, who had a goal and an assist.
VanARSDALE AND LOY NOTCH HAT TRICKS Junior Max VanArsdale and sophomore Matt Loy scored three goals each to lead Penn State in goals during PSU's 18-2 season opening win over Robert Morris on 2/16. VanArsdale added an assist for four total points in the contest. Loy took only four shots in the game, finding the net on three of them.
FORSTER'S FIVE POINTS LEAD NITTANY LIONS OVER ROBERT MORRIS Junior Rob Forster had two goals and a game-high three assists to lead Penn State to an 18-2 win over visiting Robert Morris on 2/16. Forster was one of four Nittany Lions with more than one goal and one of three with more than one assist.
16-POINT MARGIN OF VICTORY MOST SINCE `95 Penn State's 16-point margin of victory over Robert Morris on 2/16 (an 18-2 win) was the largest Penn State margin of victory since the Nittany Lions downed Stony Brook by 16, 20-4, on April 8, 1995.
FIRST SEASON OPENING WIN SINCE `05 Penn State snapped a short two year losing skid in season opening games by downing Robert Morris 18-2 on 2/16. The Nittany Lions had last won a season opener in 2005, when Penn State beat No. 14 Ohio State 9-7 on Feb. 19, 2005. 2005 was also Penn State's last trip to the NCAA tournament.
ZICHELLI AND ADAMS NAMED TO 2008 PRE-SEASON ALL-ECAC LACROSSE TEAM Two members of Penn State's men's lacrosse team have been selected to the 2008 Preseason All-ECAC Team as chosen by the conference's eight head coaches. Senior Tommy Zichelli ( Severna Park, Md.) and junior Drew Adams (Springfield, Pa.) represent Penn State on the squad. Zichelli, a defender, has played in 38 games during his Penn State career. He heads into his senior season as one of Penn State's captains and is coming off a solid 2007 that saw him collect 25 ground balls. He has six points off four goals and two assists with 64 ground balls during his Nittany Lion career. Adams, the lone goalie on the preseason squad, is a two-time All-ECAC Lacrosse League first team pick and league Goalie of the Year. In 2006, he was also voted ECAC Lacrosse League Rookie of the Year and was an honorable mention All-American. Adams has started all 26 games of his prior two seasons and has an 8.01 goals against average with 317 saves and a .603 save percentage.
ADAMS EARNS PRE-SEASON HONORS FROM INSIDE LACROSSE MAGAZINE Penn State Nittany Lion men's lacrosse goalie Drew Adams (Springfield, Pa.) has been named to the Inside Lacrosse Magazine Pre-Season All-ECAC Team, helping Penn State to earn the No. 2 spot in the magazine's pre-season team poll. Adams, the two-time ECAC Goalie of the Year, has started all 26 games of his collegiate career. He has a superb 8.01 goals against average in over 1500 minutes played. Adams has 317 saves and only 209 goals against and sports a .603 save percentage. As a freshman, he was ECAC Rookie of the Year as well and is a two-time first team All-ECAC pick. In addition, the Nittany Lions were picked to finish second by Inside Lacrosse in the pre-season team poll. National power Georgetown was predicted to win the team crown, followed by Penn State, UMass, Loyola, Rutgers, Fairfield, St. John's and Hobart.
MACKRIDES AND ZICHELLI NAMED CAPTAINS Penn State Nittany Lion lacrosse coach Glenn Thiel has announced that seniors Andrew Mackrides (Newtown Square, Pa.) and Tommy Zichelli (Severna Park, Md.) have been named team captains for the 2008 season. The seniors are two of only four seniors on a very young Penn State roster. Mackrides is a 5-8 middie who is coming off a solid 2007 that saw him play in all 13 games for Penn State, scoring two goals. He has played in 40 games during his first three seasons at Penn State and has nine goals and one assist for ten points. Zichelli is a 6-3 defender who also played in all 13 games for the Nittany Lions in 2007. He had 25 ground balls, which was fourth on the team. Zichelli has played in 38 games over three years, has four goals and two assists for six points as well as 64 ground balls.