No. 6 Penn State men’s lacrosse (6-3, 0-2 Big Ten) lost No. 2 Maryland (8-1, 1-1 Big Ten) 13-8 after both teams fell from the No. 1 and No. 2 rankings a week ago.

Penn State scored first, but the Nittany Lions weren’t able to get anything going on offense against one of the best defenses in the country and only scored once more in the first half. Maryland, on the other hand, made use of the transition game and took a 7-2 lead into halftime because of it.

The second half was a little better for Penn State, but a 20-minute goal lapse meant there was no coming back. If there was a positive to take out of the game, it was the zone defense that Penn State used to decent success throughout the game.

How It Happened

Maryland won the opening draw and took the first offensive possession, but a incredible save from Jack Fracyon stopped the Terrapins’ initial efforts.

Penn State moved the ball from defense to offense well and chose early offense. Matt Traynor found the stud freshman Hunter Aquino, who took a quick shot to make it 1-0.

Maryland tied it up three minutes later from Brandon Irska on a perfectly executed question mark move from behind the net. The Terripins kept rolling after equalizing, scoring twice more within five minutes to make it 3-1.

Eric Spanos extended the Maryland lead with five minutes left in the first quarter, running through his defender and putting it between Fracyon’s legs. Subsequently, Penn State head coach Jeff Tambroni called a timeout to talk things over.

After the first possession, Penn State switched to a zone, they remained in this defense after the timeout.

Penn State’s difference in pace on offense after the timeout was noticeable. The Nittany Lions used the whole shot clock before Luke Waltrum cut the Maryland lead to just two.

Penn State had the ball for most of the final minutes of the quarter but could not score. It ended 4-2.

Maryland kept rolling in the second quarter, and a couple of poor decisions from Penn State gave Spanos two more goals and extended the lead to four.

Both teams’ offenses slowed as the quarter moved on. Penn State’s offense was turning the ball over a lot, but its defense had settled in, and Fracryon was playing well.

Regardless, the Terrapins made it 7-2 with another transition goal with four minutes left in the first half. With neither team getting much space the rest of the time, the score remained at 7-2 until halftime.

Maryland opened the second half four minutes into the quarter with another Irksa goal, this time running up the right hash. Penn State had gone 20 minutes without a goal between the second and the third quarters.

Finally, with 10 minutes to go in the third, Jack Aimone scored his first goal of the game, cutting the Terrapin lead to five. Traynor made it 8-4 just two minutes later.

Irksa stopped the Nittany Lions mini-run, though, completing his hat trick from a transition goal. Tambroni called his second timeout following the goal.

Once play resumed, Penn State rattled a shot off the crossbar, but it was Maryland who got the first goal after the time out. A lazar from about 12 yards beat Fracyon low-to-high with two minutes left in the quarter. This was followed by another Terrapin goal 30 seconds later to make it 11-4.

As the third quarter closed, Kyle Lehman scored a buzzer beater to keep the game in range for Penn State.

The late goal from Lehman gave the Nittany Lions some momentum in the fourth quarter with Traynor scoring just 40 seconds in, he made it 11-6. Traynor had another chance shortly after, but Logan McNaney robbed him.

Both Maryland and Penn State scored in the next two minutes, both well-placed shots from the outside.

Four minutes later, Maryland put the game to bed and pushed the score to 13-8 with under five minutes to play in the game.

Maryland wasted the rest of the time after drawing a penalty and took home the win 13-8.

Takeaways

• Between the second and third quarters, Penn State went scoreless for 20 minutes. That is no recipe for success, and a late comeback attempt fell short because of this lapse.
• McNaney is up for the Tewaaraton Award as a goalie for a reason. The senior stonewalled Penn State all day and finished with 10 saves.
• Maryland is 22-1 all-time against Penn State when playing at home. SECU Stadium has been one of the hardest places to play in the country for a long time, and today, it was no different.

What’s Next?

Penn State will remain on the road to face No. 19 Michigan in Ann Arbor at noon on Sunday, April 6.