No. 2 Penn State men’s lacrosse (6-2, 0-1 Big Ten) dropped a 13-9 decision to No. 9 Ohio State (9-1, 1-0 Big Ten) at Panzer Stadium on Sunday night.

An early 4-1 Nittany Lion lead was erased by the Buckeyes who strung together an 8-1 run that was too much for Penn State to overcome.

How It Happened

Penn State grabbed the opening draw and nearly ran out the shot clock before Ohio State took possession on a save from Caleb Fyock and cleared the ball to the offensive end.

Ohio State managed a long offensive possession and, after a push gave the Buckeyes the ball back, Jack Fracyon made another save and the Nittany Lions eventually cleared. The Nittany Lions put together two shots on goal and after a shot bounced off the iron, Liam Matthews beat Fyock and put Penn State up 1-0.

Penn State quickly got the ball back and Luke Walstrum grabbed a rebound and scored again, going up 2-0 over the Buckeyes. The Nittany Lions took the next draw, too, but an interception gave Ohio State possession.

Fracyon made another stop after a short Ohio State stint in the offensive zone and the Nittany Lions went the other way. Kyle Lehman couldn’t get past Fyock on an attempt in front of the crease and Ohio State cleared.

Ohio State answered with just under seven minutes left in the period as Ben Mayer beat Fracyon and put Ohio State on the board at 2-1. Ohio State won the draw after the goal but struggled to clear the midline but eventually set up a possession. The goalpost rejected another Ohio State shot and Matt Traynor stretched the lead back to two after beating Fyock in front of the crease.

Ohio State grabbed the next faceoff but Fracyon made another save and Penn State cleared quickly. Fyock stopped a shot from Matthews and Ohio State took possession with just under two minutes to play in the first quarter.

Fracyon and Fyock both registered saves as the first quarter came to a close with Penn State still leading 3-1.

The Nittany Lions won the opening faceoff of the second quarter and Walstrum wasted no time and scored his second goal of the night to push the lead to three at 4-1.

Ohio State entered the offensive zone after the goal and Dillon Magee snapped off a shot before Kevin Parnham was called for slashing and Ohio State went on the man advantage. Ohio State took advantage and Garrett Haas scored to push the game to 4-2.

Haas tried to go back-to-back but hit the top of the goal but the Buckeyes retained possession. A groundball pickup was knocked out of a Penn State stick and Haas was alone in front of the net and scored his second straight goal to make it 4-3.

Another faceoff went the way of the Buckeyes and Mayer scored his second of the night to tie the game at 4-4.

A failed clear from Penn State gave the ball back to Ohio State but a turnover gave the Nittany Lions their first offensive possession during Ohio State’s 3-0 run.

Lehman and Jack Aimone both recorded shots in quick succession but Fyock stood tall in net. Ohio State eventually cleared after a shot was sent wide and Alex Marinier gave Ohio State its first lead of the night at 5-4.

The Nittany Lions gained possession with just over five minutes to go in the half but Traynor sent a shot high and the Buckeyes successfully cleared. Ohio State couldn’t get a shot off and Kyle Aldridge rushed back up the field and beat Fyock to tie the game back up at 5-5. Ohio State won the ensuing draw and called a timeout.

Ohio State almost had another chance on goal with Fracyon out of the crease, but the netminder somehow rounded the net and robbed Ryan Donnery to keep the game tied.

The Nittany Lions held for the last possession and Traynor fired a shot at Fyock and grabbed his own rebound. With just over eight seconds left, Jeff Tambroni called his final timeout of the game. Lehman tried a shot at the buzzer but couldn’t net the ball and the first half ended tied at 5-5.

Ohio State started hot in the second half as Shane O’Leary beat Fracyon and put the Buckeyes back on top at 6-5. Ohio State won the next faceoff but quickly turned the ball over but the Nittany Lions were offsides and Ryan Donnery cashed in on the turnover and pushed the lead to two at 7-5.

A turnover gave the Nittany Lion defense a break as they moved the ball to the offensive zone. Jonny Cool sent a shot high and the Buckeyes took possession before Donnery scored another goal. Trailing 8-5, Penn State called the first timeout of the half.

Ohio State continued to pile on with another score from Marinier as the Nittany Lions trailed 9-5. Tripping was called on Ohio State’s Cullen Brown and the Nittany Lions went on their first man advantage of the night.

Aimone seemingly scored but play rolled on and review confirmed the no-goal and the score remained 9-5. Penn State finally broke through on a fastbreak goal from Matthews with 3:32 left in the third quarter. Ohio State answered right back, though, and Jack McKenna pushed the lead back to four.

Ethan Long got the Nittany Lions back to within three off a failed Ohio State clear and the score moved to 10-7 and the third quarter came to an end.

The fourth quarter started with a faceoff win and a quick goal from Long just 33 seconds into the final frame as Penn State cut the deficit to 10-8. Penn State kept possession on the next draw but two shots from Aimone and Hunter Aquino went wide and the Nittany Lions committed a shot clock violation.

O’Leary sent a shot wide and Penn State cleared back to the offensive end. Matthews was stuffed by Fyock but Penn State retained the ball after an Ohio State push. Another shot was sent wide and Ohio State cleared.

O’Leary scored his fourth of the night with 9:29 remaining and the Nittany Lions trailed 11-8. Fyock remained strong in the net and stymied the Nittany Lion offense. After a clear, Ed Shean made it 12-8 in favor of the Buckeyes.

Ohio State started to prioritize clock management and the Nittany Lions finally regained possession with 3:32 seconds left trailing 12-8.

Ohio State continued to run out the clock and called a timeout with 1:50 left. Gannon Matthews added another goal out of the timeout and the Buckeyes led 13-8. Jon King added one for Penn State with less than a minute to go. Ohio State ran out the clock and Penn State fell 13-9.

Takeaways

• Jack Fracyon started strong but faltered with Penn State’s defense as the Buckeyes found open space in the offensive zone. Fracyon finished with 7 saves on a .350% clip.
• Matt Traynor was held relatively quiet on Sunday, scoring just one goal. Ethan Long, Liam Matthews, and Luke Walstrum all finished with 2 goals.
• While the Nittany Lion offense created good looks on goal, Ohio State goalie Cole Fyock was a brick wall, making 17 saves.

What’s Next?

The Nittany Lions will travel to College Park, Maryland, to face No. 1 Maryland at noon on Saturday, March 29.