Penn State men’s lacrosse (2-1) defeated Stony Brook (0-2) 17-12 on Saturday in a home game at Panzer Stadium.

The Nittany Lions relied on TJ Malone, who led the way with four goals and two assists, as well as midfield dominance in order to push past the Seawolves. As a team, Penn State gained a needed win to restore momentum heading into a tough schedule.

How It Happened

Penn State started the game cold after losing the opening faceoff, which resulted in a Stony Brook goal from Will Button that wrapped behind the net. Not long after, the Nittany Lions found themselves trailing by three goals after the Seawolves continued to dominate possession, forcing a Penn State timeout within the opening four minutes.

The Nittany Lions returned fired up, after Sam Sweeney picked off a pass and carried it downfield. The Penn State offense cycled the ball several times and got off two good shots, but both missed narrowly. 

With 10:58 to play in the first quarter, Chris Jordan found the back of the net for the Nittany Lions after sneaking it inside the near post.

The game opened up for the Nittany Lions as sophomore Ethan Long scored an underhand shot off an assist from TJ Malone, who then scored his first goal of the day 41 seconds later and tie the game at 3-3. Penn State maintained momentum through the end of the quarter, leading Stony Brook 6-4 with Malone tallying another and both Mac Costin and Jack Traynor breaking onto the scoresheet.

5:28 | 1st: TJ Malone for the lead! 4-3 Penn State pic.twitter.com/ka6cPTDo1L

— Penn State Men’s Lacrosse (@PennStateMLAX) February 18, 2023

The second quarter told a similar story as Penn State started off slow and finished strong. The Nittany Lions continued to dominate midfield and strung together a few faceoff wins, creating opportunities for the offense to capitalize on. 

Kevin Winkoff capitalized on a pass from Traynor to give the Nittany Lions a two goal advantage. The gap was soon widened to four after Long and Traynor both recorded their second goals of the day. From here, the two teams traded penalties and two goals apiece to end the half 11-7.

Within the first two minutes of the second half, Winkoff rifled one into the net off a feed from Malone. The Seawolves looked to provide an answer after a quick goal from Button, but a one-on-one opportunity was saved by Penn State’s Jack Fracyon, keeping the score at 12-8. 

With 11:10 left in the third quarter, Luke Mercer caught a high pass from Jake Morin to allow the Nittany Lions to regain a five goal lead. Just over a minute later, Jordan was able to double up and extend the lead to 14-8 after easily beating two defenders with an unassisted goal. 

The Nittany Lions went a man down after Alex Ross leveled a Stony Brook attackman in front of the home crease, resulting in a goal from Noah Armitage just before both teams were even. Morin ended the scoring for the quarter after a pass from Mercer to give the Nittany Lions a six-goal advantage at a 15-9 clip.

Stony Brook opened the fourth quarter with a quick Button goal, but that was answered by Malone, who finished a cross field pass from Costin to set the score to 16-10.  

The Seawolves notched another goal from Jonathan Huber that was then answered by a goal from Morin. The scoring finished after the Seawolves gained a goal from Dylan Pallonetti following a Penn State turnover putting the score at 17-12. The Nittany Lions were able to control the remainder of the game, despite pressure from the Seawolves’ offense –– ending the game at 17-12.

Takeaways:

• Penn State controlled possession when it mattered and outshot its opponent 24-16 in the first half. The Nittany Lion offense continued to perform and showed up yet again in this game to overpower an unmatched defense.
• Penn State’s faceoff game must improve heading into the next several games. The Nittany Lions finished the game 15-33 in terms of faceoff wins and struggled to gain possession directly off the faceoff. If Penn State’s transition play improves, the team will undoubtedly outscore opponents.

What’s Next?

Penn State heads back on the road to face Yale on Saturday, February 25. The game will begin at noon in New Haven, Connecticut.