Penn State men’s lacrosse falls to Albany
No. 18 Albany and the Thompson brothers were too much for No. 12 Penn State, defeating the Nittany Lions 17-10 on Saturday afternoon.
Lyle Thompson finished the game with three goals and five assists. His brother, Miles Thompson contributed four goals and two assists of his own. The Great Danes keeper, Blaze Riorden had a phenomenal game, allowing only 10 goals on 50 shots from Penn State. Riorden made a couple of timely saves for the day and finished with 19 saves.
The first half was actually very close. Penn State controlled the possession almost the entire half, yet still trailed seven to five when the second quarter ended. Penn State face-off specialist Drake Kreinz won 10 out of the 14 faceoffs in the first half and finished by winning 20 of the 31 faceoffs for the game.
However, Albany was always able to score on their fast break and unsettled opportunities. The Great Danes got off to a fast start jumping out to a five to one lead just three minutes into the second quarter. The Nittany Lions were able to bounce back with four of their own goals. TJ Sanders had both of his goals in the first half.
The third quarter was dominated by the Great Danes, who took a 13-6 advantage into the fourth, outscoring the Nittany Lions six to one in the third. Miles Thompson had two of his four goals in the period, while Lyle Thompson had two assists. Cousin, Ty Thompson also contributed with two goals and one assist in the period.
Penn State struggled to score all day because of sloppy play and the Great Dane defense.
“I think we were shooting the ball from appropriate locations on the field, obviously not putting the ball in the right places on goal, and therefore he (Riorden) was doing a great job saving the shots,” said Penn State head coach Jeff Tambroni.
The Great Danes applied pressure defense, always bothering the Penn State players hands, never allowing them to get comfortable.
“We are really working on our communication and we are getting some consistency from out short stick middies and playing really well,” said Albany coach Scott Marr. “It’s great that when our defense sees the ball go in on the other end they get more confidence.”
Penn State’s defense struggled for most of the day. Tambroni was forced to start sending quick double teams to Lyle Thompson after the first quarter. This worked for most of the second quarter, but in the second half Thompson was able to find the open man.
The single season record holder for points in a season did not disappoint in this contest. The star attack man had a couple of phenomenal plays, including a behind-the-back dodge at X, into a pass to his cutting brother, who finished with a behind-the-back goal.
Penn State will look to bounce back against Villanova next Saturday, in University Park.
Tim Alvarez is a sophomore majoring in broadcast journalism you can reach him at tva5063@psu.edu.
