Penn State lacrosse uses late push to upset No.10 Yale

No. 12 Penn State lacrosse put together a thrilling second-half comeback to knock off No. 10 Yale 15-14 in overtime at Panzer Stadium on Saturday. The Nittany Lions never led until the golden goal in overtime. What did we learn from Penn State’s upset win?

Old issues lead to slow start

The first half on Saturday brought back old flaws that we saw in the first game of the season against Colgate. Penn State couldn’t get anything going offensively, and the Nittany Lions were down 6-1 after the first quarter and 9-2 at the half.

The Nittany Lions turned the ball over multiple times in the attack area and often didn’t even get a shot on net. Yale had possession for much of the first half. Despite a brilliant effort from Penn State goalie Jack Fracyon, the Bulldogs had opportunity after opportunity.

Offensive flurry fuels Nittany Lions’ late comeback

While the first half led many to wonder whether Penn State lacrosse was an NCAA Tournament team this year, the second half was a reminder of why the Nittany Lions garnered a preseason top-four ranking. The Nittany Lions came out firing and tallied the first five goals of the second half to cut the Yale lead to 9-7.

The Bulldogs then pushed the lead back up to five late in the third before the score settled at 13-9 heading into the fourth quarter. There, Penn State found itself down 14-11 with under 10 minutes to go before a flurry of goals pushed the game to overtime. The Nittany Lions picked up a few clutch stops on defense and eventually picked up the overtime winner.

The team that showed up in the second half looked all the part of the Final Four program we saw a season ago. The offense was crisp and efficient and seemed to confuse a Yale defense that was playing incredibly in the first half. A flurry of late scoring took the pressure off Fracyon, and allowed him to settle in and make crucial saves. The Nittany Lions’ goalie finished with 17 saves on 31 shots on goal. That is the second most shots on net he has taken in his career.

Another top 10 test awaits Penn State lacrosse

Yale was the first ranked opponent that Penn State lacrosse had played this season. After the one-point upset loss to Colgate to open the season, the Nittany Lions cruised past Villanova, Stony Brook, and Navy.

Now the schedule begins to really heat up, as the 4-1 Nittany Lions finish up the non-conference slate and move into Big Ten play. Next week, Penn State hosts top 10 Cornell at Panzer Stadium, fresh off a 15-11 win over Ohio State. The Big Red are 3-1 on the year, with their only loss coming to top-five Denver. This will be another crucial test for the Nittany Lions, and a chance to pick up another ranked win to help with their tournament resume.

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