Athletics

Men's lacrosse to honor eight seniors before ECAC title tilt

University Park, Pa. -- Eight members of the Penn State Nittany Lion men's lacrosse team will be honored prior to the start of Saturday's ECAC Lacrosse League title game at Jeffrey Field. Action between No. 15 Penn State and No. 5 Georgetown begins at 1 p.m.

Elliott Jones (Potomac, Md.), the son of Charles and Shirley Jones, will be honored. Jones, a three-year regular at midfield, has been unable to compete this season following ACL surgery prior to the season. He has played in 29 games over the course of his career, scoring seven goals and dishing off three assists.

Scott Gehnrich (Garden City, N.Y.), the son of Peter and Jeannie Gehnrich, is a three-year letterman but has been injured and unable to play this spring as well. Gehnrich has been primarily used as a midfield defensive player during his Penn State career.

Kevin Hershner (Bel Air, Md.) will take to the home field for the final time on Saturday. The son of John and Betsy Hershner, Kevin moved to the midfield this season after playing on attack for the start of his Penn State career. Hershner has played in 17 games during his Penn State career with one goal scored and three ground balls.

Chris Gannett (Downingtown, Pa.), the son of Dave Gannett and Marianne Laidlaw, plays in his final home game Saturday. Gannett has one goal and eight ground balls this year. He has 16 points over the course of his career as a midfielder, scoring eight goals and dishing off eight assists. He also has 17 career ground balls.

John Eremus (Rosemont, Pa.), the son of Joe and Margo Eremus, has been a four-year starter for Penn State. This season, Eremus is third on the team with 22 points off 18 goals and four assists. Over the course of his career, he has played in 53 games, scoring 74 goals and dished off 14 assists for 88 points.

Tri-captain Nate Whitaker (Great Falls, Va.), the son of Norm and Mari Whitaker, plays his final game at Penn State Saturday as well. Whitaker will leave PSU as one of the school's top all-time scorers. This season, he has 29 points off a team-best 26 goals and three assists. He is currently seventh on Penn State's all-time scoring list with 138 points. His career goal total of 99 puts him fourth on Penn State's all-time goal list as well. Whitaker was a second team All-ECAC selection last year. He has played in 54 games over the course of four years.

Greg Gurenlian (Springfield, Pa.), also a tri-captain, is the son of George and Pam Gurenlian. An outstanding midfielder, Gurenlian has 16 points this year off eight goals and eight assists. He has 15 goals and 19 assists for 34 points over his four years as a letterman. Playing in 53 games to date, Gurenlian is already Penn State's all-time leader in face-offs won. He has won 497 of 852 attempts during his Penn State career. His .583 winning percentage is third all-time as well.

Tri-captain Keith Benjamin (Short Hills, N.J.), the son of Bob and Robin Benjamin, has been the leader of Penn State's defense all season long. Benjamin is a four-year letterman and three-year starter for the Nittany Lions. He came to Penn State as a midfielder and was converted to a long-stick middie after that. He is now a regular at close defense and has four ground balls this year. Benjamin has 54 for his career.

Head coach Glenn Thiel's squad is 8-4 overall and 5-1 in the ECAC. Ranked No. 15 nationally with a shot at an NCAA bid on the line, Penn State faces its stiffest home test of the year when No. 5 Georgetown invades Jeffrey Field for Saturday's game. The Hoyas are 10-2 overall and also 5-1 in league play, meaning Saturday's contest will decide the ECAC Lacrosse League championship.

Last Updated March 19, 2009

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