Michigan
5-8, 1-4
Penn State
5-8, 2-3
Early Deficit Proves Too Much as U-M's Season Ends with Loss to PSU
4/25/2015 12:00:00 AM | Men's Lacrosse
Site: Ann Arbor, Mich. (Michigan Stadium)
Score: Penn State 10, Michigan 9
Records: U-M (5-8, 1-4 B1G), PSU (5-8, 2-3 B1G)
Attendance: 1,782
Next U-M Event: Season complete
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- Sophomore Ian King tied his school record of six goals, with five coming in the second half, but the University of Michigan men's lacrosse team was unable to overcome an early deficit and fell, 10-9, to the Penn State Nittany Lions Saturday (April 25) at Michigan Stadium.
With the loss, U-M concludes its fourth season of action while matching the program-record win total of five victories. The Wolverines bid farewell to eight seniors, six of whom played for the first NCAA Division I lacrosse team in program history.
Penn State got off to a 2-0 lead after one quarter on goals from TJ Sanders at 12:20 and Nick Aponte at 2:20 and ran the score to 3-0 on another Aponte score. U-M got on the board on a King righty roll dodge shot that beat PSU goalkeeper Conor Darcy to make it 3-1, but Michigan trailed 4-1 going into the half.
U-M trailed by as many as five goals in the third quarter and trailed 8-4 going into the fourth when U-M began to mount its comeback. Junior Mike Hernandez marked his third score of the day at 14:25 of the quarter, while PSU's TJ Sanders followed with a goal to bring it to 9-5 at 14:06. King then took over the game, scoring three straight at 11:53, 10:28 and 9:56 of the quarter to bring U-M within one at 9-8.
Sanders struck again to run the score to 10-8 with 5:35 left, just seconds after U-M killed off a two man-down penalty. King added his fourth of the quarter with 2:27 left in the game, but the Wolverines were unable even the contest up as time ran out on U-M's bid to earn a berth in the B1G Tournament.
U-M junior faceoff man Brad Lott came up huge on the afternoon, winning 13-of-22 chances at the dot, including 10-of-16 in the second half. Additionally, junior Chase Brown had an outstanding all-around contest with an assist, three ground balls and a caused turnover, while sophomore Gerald Logan stopped 14 shots in cage.
Penn State, which clinches a Big Ten Tournament berth with the win, was paced by Aponte's trio and three goals from Sanders, while Darcey stopped 14 shots.
The loss ends the U-M careers of seniors Mike Francia, Mack Gembis, David McCormack, Andrew Mosko, Will Meter, Andrew Portnoy, Thomas Orr and Kevin Wylie.
NOTES
• Ian King has now scored at least a point in 21 consecutive games, a streak that began on March 1, 2014, against Johns Hopkins. King has notched 46 goals and 11 helpers for 57 points over that span and has been held scoreless in a contest only once in his career (vs. Johns Hopkins on Feb. 22, 2014)
• King ends the season with a team-best 23 goals and 34 points, and today's hat trick gives him four on the season.
• U-M's 14-for-23 effort at the faceoff dot marks the first time in Big Ten play this season U-M has won the faceoff battle.
• U-M was held scoreless in the first quarter for the first time since the first quarter against Maryland (March 29).
• The assist for Chase Brown is the second of his career.
• Will Meter ends his U-M career tied for the program career record in assists with 26.
• Michigan falls to 0-4 all-time against Penn State and 4-12 in Maize tops.
• Eight of U-M's nine goals were of the unassisted variety.
