In the weeks leading up to its season opener, Penn State’s men’s lacrosse team practiced at Holuba Hall due to freezing temperatures. Conveniently and advantageously, the squad hosted its season opener against Colgate inside the practice facility.

“We’re blessed,” head coach Jeff Tambroni said. “To be outside today in 10 degrees would have been a challenge.”

It may have been cold, but Sunday’s weather was considerably enjoyable. The day before, men’s hockey hosted an outdoor game at Beaver Stadium, where fans suffered through wind chills in the single digits for three hours.

But lacrosse isn’t meant to be played on ice, nor in the frigid weather early February brings.

For now, and as suggested by Punxsatawney Phil, the team will play its next several weeks in Holuba Hall, which presents challenges not found in Panzer Stadium. Sunday’s game had to be played with neon green lacrosse balls instead of the traditional white, which blends into the backdrop of Holuba Hall.

“Sight line is by far the most [unique challenge],” Tambroni said. “The goalies get it the worst. It is really hard to pick the ball up, even though we’re using neon, the background does not provide what an outdoor background would.”

The Nittany Lions certainly had a slight advantage in that regard, as they had been practicing in Holuba Hall for weeks. Their goalie, Preston Hawkins, didn’t allow a goal in the first 17 minutes of the contest. By that point, Penn State had already tabbed three, and Hunter Aquino, a developing attacker, was responsible for two of them.

Aquino played midfield last season, but the departure of the Big Ten’s Offensive Player of the year, Matt Traynor, left big shoes to be filled, and Tambroni chose Aquino, the Big Ten’s Freshman of the Year, as his replacement.

“It’s a work in progress, he’s adapting well,” Tambroni said. “The season will have to come upon him, and he has to be in different situations to learn how to manage [them].”

The dynamic sophomore certainly adapted well to the indoor conditions. Aquino scored two goals in the first quarter and added one in each of the next three. However, no sequence from Aquino was more crucial than the one he delivered after Colgate took a 5-3 lead early in the second frame.

Aquino already had two goals to that point and was being restricted from driving to the middle with possession, so he circled the back of the net and found a cutting Michael Faraone for Penn State’s fourth goal.

Immediately after, Penn State’s Reid Gillis won the faceoff and dished the ball back to the red-hot Aquino. Working from left to right, Aquino centered himself and split two defenders before burying a shot in the top-left corner of the goal.

Aquino and his offensive cohort’s success owed much credit to their face-off tandem of Gillis and Colby Baldwin, who won 24 of 25 face-offs. Tambroni gave props to them, saying their dominance allowed the ball to roll downhill into Penn State’s offensive end, resulting in 18 goals.

Perhaps the conditions inside Holuba Hall played a role in the team’s offensive success; at the very least, it kept both teams warm.