Penn State Lacrosse Earns First Win on New Home Field
The Penn State men’s lacrosse team defeated the Michigan Wolverines 16-9 behind a 9-goal third quarter in the first ever game between the two teams at the new Penn State Lacrosse Field on Saturday afternoon.
Senior Jack Forster controlled the offense and led the Nittany Lions with five goals and three assists for a combined eight points. Sophomore Gavin Ahern contributed three goals and an assist to go along with nine shots on goal.
Matthew Mackrides added two goals while Ryan Link, Pat Manley, and Tom Lacrosse all scored a goal as well. Taylor Stothoff and Kyle Zittel scored their first goals as Nittany Lions.
Will Meter, Alex Vaslieff, and Doug Bryan each scored two goals for Michigan while Thomas Paras, David McCormack, and Trevor Yealy each netted a goal.
The Nittany Lions were led in net by sophomore Austin Kaut, who earned the win by playing over 50 minutes and denying six Wolverine shots in the process. Juniors Dave Baker and Conor Baucum were given the opportunity to play in net during the fourth quarter.
Netminder Dylan Westerhold, who stopped nine shots, played a majority of the game for Michigan before Cy Abdelnour relived him in the fourth quarter
The scoring got underway in the first half after Alex Vaslieff scored to give the Wolverines a 1-0 lead.
Matthew Mackrides responded just over a minute later with the first goal at the new Penn State Lacrosse Field. Then, Jack Forster gave Penn State the lead with his first of the season.
Alex Vaslieff tied it at two with his second of the game. Then Jack Forster and Matthew Mackrides countered with a goal a piece to give Penn State a 4-2 lead going into the half.
Penn State never relinquished the lead, outscoring Michigan 9-3 in the third quarter, and earning the first win on their home field.
The win gave Penn State an early advantage in the battle for the Creator’s Trophy.
The Creator’s Trophy will be awarded to whichever team earns a 2-0 record against the other two teams this season.
Penn State's next home game will be against Denver on March 10 at 1 p.m. That game will be broadcast live on ComRadio.
Chris Pierangeli is a junior majoring in Journalism. To contact him, email cjp5202@psu.edu.
