Penn State is unlikely lacrosse power
To the casual observer, Penn State has been an overnight sensation in men’s lacrosse. Though the Nittany Lions will make their first championship weekend appearance Saturday in Philadelphia, they look for all the world like the odds-on favorite to claim the title.
Penn State (16-1), the No. 1 overall seed, is riding a 13-game streak and features the nation’s top-rated offense totaling 18 goals per game. While the other three semifinalists all needed overtime to survive the quarterfinal round last weekend, the Nittany Lions fittingly won their tilt with Loyola (Maryland) by a footballesque 21-14 margin.
“We’re extremely excited to be among such an elite group of lacrosse programs,” Nittany Lions coach Jeff Tambroni said. “Just having been part of this weekend before as a kid and as a coach, we’re just really happy to be in this environment.”
Should Penn State live up to its seed and bring home the championship, it will be the fifth program to join the firsttime champs club this decade. But the Nittany Lions will have to earn it. Awaiting them in Saturday’s second semifinal contest is defending champion Yale (14-3). The fifth-seeded Bulldogs also happen to be the team responsible for Penn State’s lone loss this season. A pair of Atlantic Coast Conference rivals square off before the showdown as No. 2 Duke (13-4), the 2018 runner-up, meets No. 3 Virginia (15-3). Face-off at Lincoln Financial Field is slated for noon ET.
In reality, Penn State’s arrival on the big stage is the culmination of a much more gradual building effort. It began with the 2011 hire of Tambroni, who won
109 games in a 10-year stint at Cornell that also included three Final Four appearances. The Nittany Lions program had enjoyed some modest success prior to Tambroni’s arrival. The first eight seasons under his direction included a couple of 12-win campaigns, and the formation of the Big Ten in lacrosse helped elevate the sport’s visibility.
It took until this year for PSU to earn its first NCAA tournament victory. The 2019 campaign included a few more steps as well, including a road win at perennial power Maryland and the program’s first Big Ten tournament title.
“It has been a process,” Tambroni said. “I think that’s what makes it so rewarding. Everyone’s had to do their part and embrace their role, big or small, to put us in this position.”
It’s been the attack unit in particular
that has given the Nittany Lions their identity this season, a group that seems custom built for Year 1 of the shot-clock era with its ability to generate quality chances at will. The catalyst is Grant Ament, a Tewaaraton Award finalist who has 27 goals and an almost unfathomable 91 assists for the season. His top finisher is Mac O’Keefe with 75 goals, including nine last week against Loyola.
Yale’s road back to championship weekend wasn’t always smooth, but the Bulldogs can put up high goal totals. They’re second in the nation at 15.65 per game, led by Jackson Morrill (43 goals, 45 assists). But Yale’s best chance to keep the Nittany Lions’ potent attack in check probably lies with face-off specialist TD Ierlan, who leads Division I with a .761 winning percentage. He won 25 of 31 draws to help Yale to the 14-13 triumph against Penn State on Feb. 20.
“It’s just trying to get my guys to play day-to-day, which is what we’ve always done,” Yale coach Andy Shay said of his team’s bid to repeat. “It’s been kind of oppressive if I’m being honest. It’s interesting how you go 130 years without winning one, then you do and everyone expects you to do it again. It’s a different team. Every year you lose 10 or 11 guys and get 10 or 11 new guys and your chemistry is dramatically different. I feel like we had to learn that. Over the course of the season they’ve been really good about it, but it hasn’t been easy.”
Saturday’s other semifinal is also a rematch. Duke took its regular-season encounter with Virginia 12-7, though the Cavaliers claimed the ACC tournament crown. The Blue Devils have the No. 1 defense among the quartet, surrendering just 9.41 goals per game. All-Americans JT Giles-Harris and Cade Van Raaphorst anchor the long-pole unit. UVa has a variety of weapons and likes to create chaos by contesting every clear attempt, which should provide an interesting stylistic contrast with Duke’s more controlled approach.
“You just have to be poised and patient,” Duke coach John Danowski said on trying to beat Virginia’s pressure. “Virginia is so explosive and so unselfish, and one of their guys can have fourand-one by halftime.”
The Cavaliers, in their first Final Four since winning the 2011 title, have made a habit of rallying from fourth-quarter deficits like last week’s comeback from five down to beat Maryland in overtime.
“We had a Navy SEAL come talk to us last month,” coach Lars Tiffany said. “He said, ‘Man, you guys really like fighting uphill. You know, it’s all right to take the higher ground sometimes.’ ”