UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- The No. 14/17 Nittany Lions kick off the inaugural season of Big Ten Lacrosse on Sat., Feb. 7 at noon against Vermont in Holuba Hall.
ADMISSION AND PARKING INFORMATIONAdmission and parking for all men's lacrosse contests is free of charge at the Orange-C lot beside the former Greenberg Ice Pavilion, Jordan East beside the Bryce Jordan Center and Penn State Lacrosse Field, or Stadium West next to Beaver Stadium. Inform the parking attendant that you are attending the lacrosse game to park for free. The Eisenhower and East Deck parking garages are also available for $1 per hour. See the attached map for more detailed instructions.
PENN STATE IN SEASON OPENERSOverall (Since 1978)................. 19-17Home (Since 1978)...................... 9-5Road (Since 1978).................... 10-11Neutral (Since 1978)..................... 0-1Under Tambroni............................ 3-1
SCOUTING THE CATAMOUNTSVermont brings back eight of its top-10 scorers from last season, which saw the team post a 5-8 overall record. America East Rookie of the Year Ian Mackay returns after putting up a team-leading 42 points. Junior Nick Bartlett and senior captain Andrew Buckanavage will team up with MacKay up front, both of whom recorded 20-or-more points last year. Justin Rosenberg will protect the cage for his third season, looking to build on his .513 save percentage in 2014, the second highest among conference goalies. At the helm of Vermont's program is Ryan Curtis, in his ninth season. The Nittany Lions and the Catamounts are meeting for the fourth time in program history. Penn State leads the head-to-head, 3-0. In the teams' last meeting on March 15, 2009, the Nittany Lions topped Vermont, 7-5.
ROAD WARRIORSFor the inaugural season of Big Ten Lacrosse, the Nittany Lions will be faced with a huge test. Just four of Penn State's games will be played in Happy Valley, the fewest of any Big Ten team. Penn State also plays a pair of neutral site games against Marist (at Babson College) and Denver (at Hofstra).
PSU VOTED THIRD IN BIG TEN POLLPenn State has been picked to finish third in the inaugural season of Big Ten Lacrosse by the conference's coaches, as announced in the preseason poll. Additionally, 2014 Academic All-Big Ten honorees JP Burnside (Garden City, N.Y.), Drake Kreinz (Delafield, Wisconsin) and TJ Sanders (Orillia, Ontario) were named Penn State's Players to Watch. Sitting atop the preseason list was No. 5 Johns Hopkins, which made its record 42nd NCAA Tournament appearance last season. Earning berths to the second-most NCAA postseasons at 37, No. 8 Maryland came in second. Ohio State, Rutgers and Michigan rounded out the poll.
RICHARDS DRAFTED IN MLLSenior Michael Richards (Skaneateles, N.Y.) was tabbed 45th overall in the 2015 Major League Lacrosse (MLL) Collegiate Draft by the Denver Outlaws on Friday night in Baltimore. Richards joins Shane Sturgis (New York Lizards) and Tom LaCrosse (Ohio Machine), both of whom exhausted eligibility in 2014 and were picked in the 2015 Supplemental Draft, as selections by one of MLL's eight teams in the U.S.A. and Canada. Richards appeared in all of the Nittany Lions' contests last season, making 10 starts in the midfield. The 2014 Academic All-Big Ten honoree recorded six points, collected 20 ground balls and caused four turnovers.
LIONS TABBED IN PRESEASON POLLSThe Nittany Lions earned a No. 14 ranking in the 2015 United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association (USILA) Division I Preseason Coaches Poll after being picked 15th in the Nike/Lacrosse Magazine Preseason Top-20. The inaugural season of Big Ten lacrosse features six regular season opponents listed in the top-20. Both of Penn State's preseason scrimmages were against top-20 teams, No. 20 Army and No. 18 Lehigh. In the Nike/Lacrosse Magazine Preseason Top-20, the Nittany Lions hold the third-highest ranking among Big Ten teams. In total, four of the conference's six squads appear on the list. The Blue and White will face eight teams ranked in the Top-20: top-ranked Denver, No. 5 Johns Hopkins, No. 8 Maryland, No. 9 Loyola (Md.), No. 11 Penn, No. 12 Harvard, No. 14 Lehigh and No. 20 Ohio State.
ZITTEL NAMED TEAM CAPTAINSenior Kyle Zittel (Eden, N.Y.) was named the 2015 Penn State's men's lacrosse team captain. "Our staff is thrilled to announce that Kyle Zittel will lead our program into the inaugural Big Ten season as our captain," head coach Jeff Tambroni said. "He has assumed the lead role immediately after the season ended last spring and has, in doing so, earned the respect of his teammates and our staff. Kyle's effort, selflessness, integrity and character made him an obvious choice." A defensive midfielder, Zittel played in all 13 games for the Nittany Lions, picking up a career-best 11 ground balls and causing four turnovers. Zittel also excels in the classroom. The premedicine major has a cumulative 3.5 grade point average and earned a 4.0 grade point average during the fall 2013 semester.
11TH-RANKED CLASS JOINS PSUThe Penn State men's lacrosse team finalized its roster for the 2014-15 academic year as head coach Jeff Tambroni announced 11 newcomers. The recruiting class is ranked 11th by Inside Lacrosse. The 11-member class features a transfer from Virginia, Matt Florence (Greenwood Hills, Colo.) as well as three Under Armour All-Americans: Ryan Keenan (Smithtown, N.Y.), Tanner Peck (Lincoln University, Pa.) and Will Schreiner (Kemblesville, Pa.). Keenan, Peck and Schreiner are ranked 6th, 36th and 47th, respectively by Inside Lacrosse in their freshman rankings. Joining them on that list are Mike Aronow (Holbrook, N.Y.) at No. 66 and Tyler Butler (Doylestown, Pa.) at No. 96. Chris Isenberg (Glen Mills, Pa.), Hunter Pearl (Reisterstown, Md.), Tripp Traynor (Downingtown, Pa.), Josh Wellman (El Dorado Hills, Calif.) and Chris Young (Oakville, Ontario) complete Tambroni's incoming crew.
TAMBRONI IN HIS FIFTH SEASONGuiding the Nittany Lions through the inaugural season of Big Ten Lacrosse, Jeff Tambroni is in his fifth season as Penn State's head coach in 2015. With a 35-24 record, Tambroni has guided his Nittany Lion teams to winning seasons each of his four seasons at the helm.