Feb. 16, 2011
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -
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TODAY'S GAME
Penn State (0-0, 0-0 CAA) opens its 2011 season by welcoming Binghamton (0-0) to Bigler Field for a 1:30 p.m showdown.
UP NEXT
Penn State will welcome Notre Dame for a 1:00 p.m. game next Sunday, February 27. The game will also be played at Bigler Field weather permitting.
LAST TIME OUT
The Nittany Lions faced off with the Hobart Statesmen in a scrimmage on Saturday, Feb. 12.
HEAD COACH JEFF TAMBRONI
Veteran head coach Jeff Tambroni is in his first year as head coach of the Nittany Lion men's lacrosse team after ten outstanding seasons as head coach at Cornell University. Entering the season, Tambroni ranked fifth among active Division I coaches in winning percentage. In his last year with the Big Red, he picked up his eighth-straight Ivy League title and led the Big Red to a second-straight national semifinal appearance. Tambroni led Cornell to three NCAA semifinal appearances in the past four seasons (2007, 2009 and 2010), including the NCAA Final in 2009. He currently sports a 109-40 overall record as he enters his 11th season as a head coach. He is 0-0 at Penn State and in his first year.
GAME NOTES
TODAY'S GAME
The Penn State Nittany Lions (0-0, 0-0 CAA) will host the Binghamton Bearcats in the 2011 season opener for each team. This is the first ever meeting between the Nittany Lions and the Bearcats. Penn State is coming off two scrimmages in Holuba Hall, taking on national power Johns Hopkins as well Hobart
Penn State is coming off a 2-11 season, which they hope to turn around under the guidance of new head coach Jeff Tambroni, who comes to Penn State after ten outstanding seasons as head coach at Cornell University. The Nittany Lions will be lead by a balanced offensive scoring attack, featuring junior Matthew Mackrides and sophomores Billy Gribbin and Kyle VanThof. Anchoring the middie line will be sophomore Nick Dolik, and seniors Billy Lloyd and Colton Vosburgh. The Nittany Lion defense will lean on senior Matt Bernier, junior Billy Davis and junior Ryan McGarvey. Freshman Austin Kaut has the inside track at being Lions' starting goalie this year
Binghamton is coming off a 4-10 season. The Bearcats return their leading scorer from last year, sophomore Matt Springer, who led BU with 42 points off 29 goals and 13 assists. Senior Frank Donlon also returns after a 23 point (19 goals, four assists) season. Junior goalie Jordan Marra started three games last season, playing in seven, and posted a 10.35 gaa average. Binghamton grabbed wins over Colgate, Marist, Siena and Hartford.
The Nittany Lions will welcome the Fighting Irish of Notre Dame next Sunday, Feb. 27, for a non-conference game. Face-off will take place at 1p.m.
PARKING ALERT FOR BINGHAMTON GAME
Be aware that this coming weekend is THON weekend at Penn State and the event takes place across from Bigler Field at the Bryce Jordan Center. It will be continuing on Saturday, so any fans attending the men's lacrosse game should be prepared to utilize the parking decks located around campus as parking will be limited and hard to find around Bigler.
SCRIMMAGES GIVE GLIMPSES INTO 2011 SEASON
The Penn State Nittany Lions lacrosse team took park in two scrimmages in preparation for the 2011 season. The Nittany Lions hosted Johns Hopkins on Feb. 5 in Holuba Hall, where freshman goalie Austin Kaut put up an impressive defensive display. The next weekend, the Lions hosted Head Coach Tambroni's alma mater Hobart for a scrimmage on Saturday afternoon.and dominated play on both ends of the field.
LIONS PRE-SEASON No. 6 IN CAA
The Nittany Lions were picked No. 6 in CAA in the Preseason Coaches Poll and begin their season February 19 against Binghamton University. The team opens up CAA play March 19 at Massachusetts.
MACKRIDES, HENNEGHAN NAMED TO CAA PRESEASON ALL-CONFERENCE TEAM
Junior attackman Matt Mackrides and sophomore midfielder Danny Henneghan were named to the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) Preseason All-Conference team.
Mackrides, a standout attackman from Newtown Square, Pa., was second in the CAA with 2.77 goals per game a season ago. He was fourth in the CAA with 3.38 points per game. Mackrides leads all returning Penn State players with 36 goals and 44 points.
Henneghan, from Beverly Hills, Mich., was named to the CAA Preseason All-Conference Team as a face-off specialist. He figures to fill the void left by the graduation of his brother, Charley, who was named to the All-CAA First Team as a face-off specialist a year ago.