With 44 goals on the season in two contests, it has been a dominant showing of offensive firepower for the Nittany Lions, who moved up to No. 4 in the USILA Coaches Poll this past week.
Yet after putting a program-record 27 goals past Robert Morris Saturday at Holuba Hall, head coach Jeff Tambroni is already moving his team on to this weekend's road test at Stony Brook. Regardless, he has been impressed with his team's performance through two games.
"First, I think our defense has done a nice job of being very efficient, they're playing with great confidence," Tambroni said.
"We're getting a lot of possessions because of that. With Gerard (Arceri)'s success at the faceoff X, we're really maximizing a lot of his success by tilting the field on the offensive end. Our team's willingness to collaborate selflessly is what makes us most proud at this point."
The numbers have been staggering so far for the Penn State attack. With 17 points, junior Grant Ament (Doylestown, Pa.) leads the nation so far in scoring, and was named to the USILA Team of the Week, while fellow attacker TJ Malone (West Chester, Pa.) earned Big Ten Freshman of the Week honors for the second consecutive time.
Ament and Mac O'Keefe (Syosset, NY.) have each already hit the double-digit mark for points in only two games, with O'Keefe at No. 7 so far nationally in scoring with 10 points.
"It's a testament to our preparation during the week," O'Keefe said after Saturday's win. "We're just doing the simple things right, and it has really shown through each of the first two games."
Malone and Ament both emphasized this week how Penn State's depth of scoring has been a nice sight to see in the early part of the 2019 season.
"You hope we can get a lot of those guys on the field," Ament said. "It has been a lot of fun seeing those guys step up on the field to start the season."
"I think we had something like nine different people score in the last two games," Malone said. "That's just how our offense is. Grant does a great job at distributing the ball with his vision. His dodges help get other guys open and allow them to produce as well."
As Tambroni mentioned, the defensive end has looked formidable as well for the Nittany Lions, only allowing 17 goals in two games. Their play has afforded the ability to play complementary lacrosse and turn defensive turnovers into offensive opportunities.
With a No. 4 ranking in a major national poll, 44 goals through two games, and a goal differential of +27 so far, it would be hard to find a better start to the 2019 season. But Tambroni wants the team to simply continue their good habits, and manage expectations if they start to rise.
"We try to have a conversation every Monday and leave it as is," Tambroni said. "I think it can be important to address it. You have goals every week, and those goals will be reflected each weekend based on your performance.
"Based on that, you have a chance to move up (in the polls). I just want our guys to realize that we should be realistic about our goals and continue to keep a humble and grounded approach."
