Michigan Lacrosse held a one-goal lead through three quarters, but a 5-1 final frame against Penn State crushed any hopes of entering the top-10 in the upcoming national rankings. Here’s how it went down:
The No. 13 Michigan Wolverines (6-5, 2-1 Big Ten) looked poised for their first-ever 3-0 start in conference play through three quarters. However, a dominant fourth-quarter performance by the No. 10 Penn State Nittany Lions (7-3, 1-2 Big Ten) squashed all hope of that happening.
The final score of 11-8 doesn’t show how tightly contested a battle this game was.
The Wolverines struggled offensively in settled situations early on, but an Alex Lobel goal to maintain his hot streak, and defensive midfielder Jack Marlow getting in on the action kept the deficit at one heading into the second.
Ryan Cohen began to look comfortable, particularly in the two-man game with Lukas Stanat on the left wing. The two often ran big-little sets where Stanat would pick Cohen’s long pole before either popping for a quick dodge or shot, or letting Cohen sweep toward the cage.
In the second quarter, head coach Kevin Conry and defensive coordinator Jim Rogalski’s unit dialed in against a fast-paced Nittany Lions offense.
Close poles Pace Billings, Kees Van Wees and Mason Whitney all had plenty of shutdown 1-on-1 defense and some ferocious wrap and poke checks. Whitney was especially brilliant, scooping two ground balls and causing four turnovers, some of which came from the midfield during the ride.
Michigan tied the game at four thanks to a relentless ride not by Cohen and Lobel before Cohen hit Jackson Clay for his first career goal in Ann Arbor.
But Penn State had answers all day. The Wolverines never led by more than one goal and were unable to provide that gut-punch tally.
The two teams traded blows, and Cohen, backing down his defender, ripped a left-handed shot to give the Wolverines a 7-6 lead entering the fourth quarter.
However, this is where it went downhill. The Nittany Lions were a team possessed and dominated the final frame.
Goalie Hunter Taylor had plenty of quality saves, making eight on 19 shots faced, but needed to be perfect to preserve the upset. He was also the benefactor of nearly half a dozen posts by the Penn State shooters, and had it not been for some lucky bounces, this could have been a five- or six-goal defeat.
The faceoff X was just okay on Sunday, with Jack Rideout winning six out of his 12 draws and his partner, Nick Lauderback, having a rough outing with three wins on 11 attempts. They did not win many cleanly, but even on losses, the wing play of Billings, Rowan Clay and a rotation of shorties never gave up on ground balls.
This is a disappointing loss not because Penn State is a talented and desperate team that was trying to avoid an 0-3 start in Big Ten play, but because of how it ended. Michigan has been so good in the fourth quarter this season and did not play its best down the stretch.
Outside of Cohen and Stanat, the offense had trouble generating quality shots. The duo paced the team with two goals and an assist each.
Credit to the Nittany Lions for sporadically implementing a zone defense, which confused the Wolverine passers. Yet, even in man-to-man situations, top guys like Aidan Mulholland, Bo Lockwood and John Morgan had a hard time getting free. They had numerous inverted dodges from behind the net against short-sticks but rarely won those matchups.
Defensively, the poles were phenomenal in coverage, Penn State constantly won critical chases, ground balls, and had two man-up opportunities compared to Michigan’s zero.
SSDM Justin Ennis had a tough day and was often the targeted defender, but is still an excellent athlete who just needs some communication work. Penn State opened the second half with a pick and pop play where both Ennis and Max Bonner over-pursed the ball carrier. This is a frustrating but fixable slip-up.
The Wolverines may have been riding a little close to the sun, as a victory against Penn State would have put a stunning three-game difference between these well-matched squads.
Next up is a road trip to New Jersey to battle the Rutgers Scarlet Knights , a team that just beat No. 2 Maryland. That game will be played Sunday, April 13 at noon.