Penn State lacrosse fighting for postseason life against Michigan

Penn State lacrosse is looking to make a return to the Final Four in Philadelphia this season after a heartbreaking loss in 2023. The Nittany Lions have had a solid year so far, but after back-to-back losses return home for a must-win game against the Michigan Wolverines Saturday to keep their NCAA Tournament hopes alive.

Up and down year for the Nittany Lions

Penn State lacrosse started the year ranked No. 4 in both preseason polls. That ranking quickly plummeted outside the top 10 after a shocking 13-12 upset home loss to Colgate in the season opener. The Nittany Lions looked lost offensively at times in that matchup, and had issues with turnovers throughout.

Then, Penn State turned it around, going on a seven-game win streak to push its record to 7-1. The Nittany Lions defeated No. 9 Yale 15-14 in OT and No. 8 Cornell 20-9 at Panzer Stadium during that stretch. The Yale victory proved the resolve of the team as the Lions trailed 9-2 at the half and 13-9 heading into the fourth quarter before battling back and winning in overtime.

Penn State lacrosse found itself back inside the top four in the country by the time the program welcomed No. 12 Maryland to town. The Nittany Lions jumped out to an early 6-2 first-quarter lead and held the Terrapins offense down to take a 10-7 margin into the half. However, a fourth-quarter collapse resulted in a shocking 13-11 loss, where a lack of faceoff wins late was the difference.

What needed to be a rebound week for No. 7 Penn State in Baltimore against No. 10 Johns Hopkins ended up feeling like déjà vu. The Nittany Lions once again led 6-4 heading into the fourth quarter before falling 9-8 to Johns Hopkins in OT. Penn State looked similar to its season opener against Colgate, turning the ball over 17 times compared to Johns Hopkins’ 9.

Penn State lacrosse faces must-win vs Michigan

No. 11 Penn State lacrosse 7-3 (1-2 Big Ten) now welcomes Michigan 6-5 (1-2) to Panzer Stadium on Saturday at 12 p.m. The Nittany Lions lead the all-time series 10-3, although the last meeting was a 17-15 win for the Wolverines in the 2023 Big Ten Tournament semifinal.

This game is a must-win if Penn State hopes to secure an at-large bid in the 17-team NCAA Tournament field. The Nittany Lions’ final two games against Michigan at home and Rutgers on the road must both be victories. If Penn State can finish the regular season 9-3 and win one game in the Big Ten Tournament, the Lions should be safe to return to the NCAA Tournament.

Typically, the top 10 of the RPI is considered good enough for an at-large bid, depending on bid stealers. Currently, Penn State sits at No. 9 in the latest RPI rankings heading into its matchup with No. 17 Michigan. In 2023, both the Big Ten and Ivy League had bid stealers, making the lowest at-large team Yale at No. 9.

This team has the talent to make another run to the Final Four at Lincoln Financial Field at the end of May. Penn State has played close and competitive with all of its top-ranked opponents this season. However, the key will be beating the teams that the Nittany Lions are supposed to, in order to give them a shot at making a run.

With Happy Valley rocking for the Blue-White Game on Saturday, the environment should be primed for the Nittany Lions to get back on track.

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