Penn State lacrosse blows past Ohio State in top-15 battle

State College — Needless to say, Penn State was excited to head back to the friendly confines of its home turf Sunday for the first time since March 4th. Penn State lacrosse took on Ohio State as the Nittany Lions looked to snap a two-game losing streak. Riding high after a three-game win streak against top-10 opponents, the Lions (5-3, 0-1 Big Ten) were stunned by Marquette at a neutral site two weeks ago. That was followed up by a closely contested loss to No. 2 Maryland. 

Panzer Stadium hosted this crucial top-15 Big Ten showdown against the Ohio State Buckeyes (5-4, 1-0 Big Ten). Ohio State is coming off a massive win against an excellent Rutgers team. But on Sunday, it appeared as if Penn State lacrosse bested its demons, as it trounced Ohio State by a final score of 17-9. 

Slow start for both sides

The first quarter of this game felt like a sluggish noon kickoff in football. Ohio State broke the ice first just over a minute to take a 1-0 lead. But junior attacker Jake Morin got Penn State on the board to tie the game just 55 seconds later.

But that would be all the scoring for quite some time. It would be almost nine minutes before either team found the back of the net again. Star sophomore attacker Matt Traynor collected a pass from his brother, Jack, and broke the scoring drought to give Penn State their first lead at 2-1. 

Penn State tacked on another with senior midfielder Grant Haus’s first goal of the year late in the quarter. Ohio State quickly cut the deficit down to one. In the dying seconds of the first quarter, senior attacker Jack Traynor netted one giving the Lions a 4-2 lead heading to the break.

Ohio State falls apart

Similar to the first quarter, Ohio State quickly opened the scoring. Penn State would answer back on a delayed penalty situation with senior midfielder Mac Costin’s tenth goal of the season to extend the lead back to two. 

During the ensuing man-up time, graduate student Kevin Winkoff extended the Lions’ lead to three goals. The Buckeyes would quickly string two goals together to cut the lead back to one. The teams would trade goals after that, with Matt Traynor picking up a hat trick in the process.

But Ohio State started to get undisciplined after that point. The Buckeyes would take two penalties toward the end of the half. In both man-up situations, Penn State scored. This extended the lead to 10-6, which Penn State lacrosse would take into the locker room for halftime.

Lions keep their foot on the gas

Penn State wasn’t content to sit on its four goal halftime lead. The Nittany Lions would score the first five goals of the second half, ballooning the lead to nine. Mac Costin scored two of these goals, making him the second Nittany Lion of the day with a hat trick. 

The teams would trade goals to end the third quarter, giving Penn State a 16-8 lead ahead of the final frame. Both teams added a goal late in the fourth, but the Lions easily won 17-9.

Massive showdown looming for Penn State lacrosse

Penn State lacrosse will stay home for a colossal clash against top-10 Johns Hopkins at 7:00 p.m. next Saturday. The game will be televised on Big Ten Network.