Game Preview: Men’s Lacrosse vs. Stony Brook
The Penn State Nittany Lions return to State College after a 12-14 defeat to the Villanova Wildcats on Sunday. The loss marks the seventh straight defeat the blue and white have suffered on the road, its last road win coming against Ohio State in April of 2021.
In the loss to the Wildcats, the Nittany Lions were brought back down to earth after scoring 21 goals against Lafayette in the season debut. On Sunday, Penn State scored 12 goals against Villanova’s defense while turning the stickball over 24 and losing 15 of the 28 total face-offs.
TJ Malone led the team in scoring with three goals on eight shots throughout four quarters of play. While his performance would help the Nittany Lions keep the game close, Malone would also turn the ball over five times.
Hudson Bohn couldn’t repeat his efforts from the opening game of the season where he won 20 of 29 face-offs. Against the Wildcats, Bohn won just 13 of 27 while turning the ball over two times.
The sophomore goalkeeper, Jack Fracyon, picked up his first loss of the season after giving up 14 goals in 42 shots faced throughout 60 minutes of play. Fracyon will look to get back to the same level of succes that he had against Lafayette where he allowed only eight goals on 35 shots.
Penn State falls to 1-1 on the season and will look to bounce back when it hosts the Stony Brook Seawolves on Saturday at noon.
The Seawolves began their season against Rutgers on Saturday where it trailed for the majority of the game. The Scarlet Knights won the game 11-7, sending Stony Brook down to an 0-1 start to the season.
The game on Saturday will mark the fifth time that the two programs have faced eachother since 2005. The series is tied 2-2, with Penn State winning the past two games against, an effort it will seek to repeat in the upcoming matchup.
In the road loss to Rutgers, the Seawolves’ Matt Anderson and Dylan Pallonetti combined for five goals on seven shots and one assist. A pairing that the Nittany Lions will keep an eye on throughout Saturday's game.
While the season is still young, the game on Saturday could be a season-defining moment for both squads. Outside of the fact that one of these teams will lose two straight in the early season, both teams have challenging matchups coming at the end of Feburary leading into the beginning of March.
For Penn State, it faces Yale, Penn and Cornell, all that finished in the Top 10 of the 2022 season. Stony Brook will have an easier time than the blue and white with games against Air Force and Sacred Heart, but that all goes away when it faces No. 12 Brown in the first week of March.
Micheal Bolger is a sophomore majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact him, email mpb6233@psu.edu.
