After winning just one of its last five games, Penn State men’s lacrosse is scrambling for answers to turn its season around.

The biggest obstacle to the team’s success, outside a large number of turnovers, is the team’s overall lack of consistency. In Penn State’s March 20 game against Michigan, the Nittany Lions came out strong before crumbling in the middle of the game. Even though they came back in the final period, Michigan still walked off the field with a win. 

After losing key game-makers like Grant Ament and adding a large freshman class, Penn State’s rough patch was to be expected. Nonetheless, it’s concerning, especially for a team previously thought to be one of the nation’s best.

For goaltender Colby Kneese, the inconsistency has been, in part, the result of a lack of “spark” from veterans.

“In the past couple weeks, our practices have not been to where we’ve wanted them to be, and I mean, that’s on us fifth-years, especially, to really hype up that intensity. Because we know what a practice should look like, we’ve been here for five years and we’ll fully take that on us,” Kneese said. “We need a spark of fire under these guys and let them know that this is how we’re supposed to do things around here.”

Both Kneese and head coach Jeff Tambroni agreed that Nittany Lion practices are a major area for improvement. In the week leading up to the Nittany Lions’ sole win over Ohio State, the team’s practices were a bright spot.

“Monday we were really focused, energetic, and motivated,” Tambroni said. “And then Tuesday, we came back to practice and had the same level of focus, of motivation, of energy…Saturday, there was no surprise to the way those guys responded and competed and played.”

After the team’s loss to Johns Hopkins, Tambroni admitted the team wasn’t as consistent with its preparations.

“There were some good moments…and they showed themselves throughout the course of the game,” Tambroni said. “But for the most part, we have to sustain – and I have to do it, it’s on me really, as a head coach – to make sure there is a greater focus.”

Furthermore, Kneese attributes the lack of energy to the omission of preseason games. Playing against traditionally weaker teams would give the Nittany Lions not only a confidence booster but a chance to build team chemistry in a game setting. With a large freshman class and the absence of former essential teammates, finding chemistry on the field has been a challenge.

“I’d say we started off flat in practices, especially in the preseason,” Kneese said. “So, picking up that intensity, even though it is late, we’re still just trying to pick that up and get [freshmen] more adjusted, because it is tough just going right into the fire, playing Big Ten Tournament teams, without having those first three, four games that we usually have before we face a nationally ranked team.”

Despite challenges on the field, the team has had no difficulties bonding with its newest members. A silver lining of the pandemic is Penn State’s own “bubble,” which encouraged team bonding. Taking freshmen out to eat for breakfast and making them dinner was just one way the team was able to grow closer.

“Since we weren’t able to see anyone else, we were able to bond as a team, which I think helped in the beginning,” Kneese said.

A dry spell is never fun. But with five games left in the regular season, Penn State knows it still has time to right the ship.

“I think consistency is a big piece for all of us,” Tambroni said. “Just being able to be better focused, more agile when certain things happen. During the course of the week leading up to the game, during practice when things happen, during the course of the game – we just have to be a little bit more resilient, a little bit more agile when those things happen.”