No. 15 Penn State men’s lacrosse (8-5, 4-2 Big Ten) defeated No. 10 Maryland (8-6, 4-3 Big Ten) 8-6 in the first round of the Big Ten Tournament.

The offense had a slow start, only scoring three goals in the first half. Despite this, the Nittany Lions remained in control throughout the game. Hunter Aquino played a key role, scoring three goals on the day.

The defense stepped up for Penn State, only allowing six goals. Seniors Alex Ross and Will Costin led the way.

How It Happened

Penn State won the opening faceoff. The team had solid movement, but only had one shot attempt and threw the ball out of bounds to avoid a shot clock violation.

Maryland quickly chucked the ball downfield, where it scored the first goal of the game with 12:49 left in the first quarter. The Terrapins set up a screen for a top-shelf goal.

Both teams had a few back-and-forth possessions following the first goal. Penn State had an illegal screen and a shot saved on offense. The team struggled to produce strong shot opportunities early in the game.

The Nittany Lions couldn’t win offensive matchups. Their dodges weren’t enough to get around defenders, and Maryland’s stick checking was dominant. The Terrapins also looked more efficient on offense, moving the ball quickly for stronger shots on goal.

Penn State eventually went man-up on offense. The team couldn’t score man-up, but Michael Farone finally put Penn State on the board. He had a quick catch-and-shoot goal in front of the crease with 4:57 left in the first. It was the longest openning drought Penn State had all season to score its first goal.

On the Nittany Lion’s next drive, Hunter Aquino spun around a defender behind the crease for an easy shot. He scored his first of the game with 2:34 left in the quarter, giving Penn State its first lead.

After a turnover by both teams on their next possessions, the first quarter ended with Penn State up 2-1. The Nittany Lions took a long time to score their first goal, but picked up late in the first quarter. They were keeping up with the Terps statistically, going 3-3 on clears, 3-1 on face-offs, and had more shot attempts.

Both teams started the second quarter with two turnovers. Preston Hawkins made some impressive saves, preventing Maryland from getting momentum. After Maryland’s third turnover, Jeff Tambroni called a timeout.

Following the timeout, Penn State turned the ball over but stopped Maryland’s clear attempt. Aquino found himself open in the slot for his second goal of the game. Penn State went up two goals over the Terrapins with 8:58 left in the half.

Both teams had more back-and-forth possessions for the next five minutes. It was a hard-fought defensive battle on each side. Penn State’s defensive pressure was very strong, especially close to the crease. Maryland could only find shots on the outside of the field and was on a huge scoring drought.

Penn State went man-up under two minutes in the half. The team couldn’t capitalize on the opportunity, going against the best man-down defense in the Big Ten. Penn State called a timeout with possession with 27 seconds left in the half.

After the Nittany Lions couldn’t score, the first half ended 3-1. Penn State’s defense was on point after the first goal. Hawkins had five saves and a .833 save percentage. Despite the low-scoring game, Penn State’s offense remained dominant, but needed to find separation and stronger shot opportunities closer to the goal.

Maryland won the first faceoff in the second half, but quickly turned the ball over. The Terrapins got the ball back and went man-up. Maryland scored and ended its scoring drought with 13:36 left in the third quarter.

Maryland won the next faceoff but missed its shot, giving Penn State the ball. Will Costin ran downfield, had an open long-range shot, and scored with 12:29 left in the third. Costin, who doesn’t get many opportunities to shoot the ball, put Penn State back up two.

On Penn State’s next possession, Aquino ripped the ball from distance to get a hat trick on the day. Three out of the five goals for the Nittany Lions came from Aquino, who only recently came back from an injury.

Penn State then went man-up after the defense forced another turnover. Once again, the Maryland man-down defense was too strong. The Terrapins eventually drove downfield and scored with 5:37 left in the quarter.

Both teams continued to struggle with scoring. Maryland went man-up with under 1:30 remaining in the third, but couldn’t get a goal. The third quarter ended with Penn State leading 5-3. The team remained dominant on both sides of the field, but needed to jump ahead offensively to secure the game.

Penn State won the first faceoff of the fourth quarter, but missed its next shot. The team went man-down after an illegal procedure penalty. Maryland couldn’t score, which led to Penn State eventually going man-up.

Liam Matthews found an open lane to the crease and scored with 11:01 left in the game.

But Maryland didn’t give up and scored an open goal with 8:42 left in the game. The Terrapins also went man-up on the same drive, but lost the next faceoff. The game went even with Penn State having possession.

After a turnover by the Nittany Lions, Maryland took advantage of its next offensive opportunity and scored another goal with 6:27 remaining.

Penn State won the next faceoff and quickly bounced back. Jon King ripped the ball at the bottom of the goal, giving the Nittany Lions a two-score lead with 6:12 left in the game.

On Penn State’s next drive, the team couldn’t find a good shot opportunity. Maryland forced a turnover and scored with 2:40 left in the game. A dodge-and-distance bounce shot was just enough to hit the net. The game went back to a one-score difference.

Penn State won the next faceoff with an opportunity to jump ahead. Andrew Beard used his speed to get around the crease, sneaking by two defenders, and scored.

Penn State won the next faceoff and attempted a contested shot on a wide-open goal, but Maryland stopped it. The Terrapins ran downfield and called a timeout with 34 seconds left.

Hawkins had a great save to prevent any extra goals from being scored, and Penn State ran down the clock.

The Nittany Lions won 8-6 after a close battle and head to the Big Ten championship.

Takeaways

• The first quarter was slow for Penn State, taking its biggest first-quarter scoring drought all season. The offense didn’t pick up until later in the first half, but remained dominant.
• Hunter Aquino was a huge offensive weapon for Penn State, scoring a hat trick. Despite just recently coming back from an injury, he has proven to be healthy and a threat on the field.
• Maryland came close in the fourth quarter, but Penn State’s offense jumped ahead in the final minutes to close the game.

What’s Next?

Penn State stays in Piscataway, New Jersey, to take on No. 7 Johns Hopkins at noon on Saturday, May 2, at SHI Stadium. The Big Ten Championship will be nationally televised on the Big Ten Network.