M. Lax caps perfect home slate

With 2:51 left in the third quarter against No. 10 Brown Saturday at Franklin Field, Penn men's lacrosse sophomore P.J. Gilbert took a pass from freshman Alex Salihi, beat a Brown defender down the field and flung a shot around his back that trickled past Brown goalie Mike Levin to increase Penn's lead to 7-3. The Quakers went on to win, 10-5, as they closed out Ivy play.

Gilbert's goal highlighted an all-around dominant effort by the Quakers (6-5, 3-3 Ivy), who improved to 6-0 at home. This year's perfect home mark was the team's first since 1987.

The victory was extra sweet for the team's five seniors, who all served important roles in the program's turnaround since Penn coach Brian Voelker arrived from Johns Hopkins two years ago.

"That was part of our speech before the game," Voelker said. "If you look at our five seniors and what they've meant to this program, both on and off the field ... they're very important for us. We really wanted this one for them."

The Quakers went up 3-0 early with goals by sophomores Pat Rogers, Alan Eberstein and Jimmy Riordan. After carrying a 5-1 lead into halftime, Penn's defense allowed two early second-half goals, as Brown cut the lead to 5-3. The Quakers would respond, however, as sophomore Luke Dixson's third quarter tally, followed by Gilbert's circus goal late in the period put the game out of reach for the visiting Bears.

Penn senior Will Phillips, who has been harassed as of late by visiting defenses, took advantage of an overly aggressive Brown defense in the second half to net three consecutive goals, extending his now 29-game scoring streak in the process.

"They changed their 'D' up in the second half," Voelker explained. "They had to start pressuring us, and when they did, Will was able to take control of the ball out there. He always does a great job handling pressure, and when teams give him that opportunity he knows what to do."

The goals were Phillips' 20th, 21st and 22nd on the season. He leads the Quakers in goals and assists, and has amassed over 40-more shots than any other member of Penn's offensive unit. When he's not scoring, his presence has opened up scoring chances for the team's younger offensive threats like Gilbert, Riordan and Salihi.

On defense, senior goalie Ryan Kelly turned in another quality performance, stopping five Brown shots en route to the Quakers' victory. Led by Kelly and senior co-captain Pat Connelly, the defense limited Brown to 10 shots in 60 minutes of action.

"We really dominated the game," Connelly said. "The defense was strong all day. We were very successful because we really only allowed outside shots."

After four years with the Quakers, Connelly cannot imagine a better way to have ended his career at Franklin Field.

"I think it was just our day," he said. "It was one of the biggest games we've every played in. Our seniors meant a lot to this team, and we played incredible. Everything clicked on offense and on 'D'. It seems like we always play well at home."

While the Quakers have been perfect at home this year, they have yet to win a game on the road. The team is 0-5 in games against No. 1 Johns Hopkins, No. 9 Army, Yale, No. 6 Princeton and Dartmouth -- all of which were played away from Franklin Field. Vying for a playoff spot as the season winds down, the Quakers will have to figure out how to play tough at No. 19 Loyola and No. 3 Maryland to stand any shot.

"I think it is really going to be a mental game against Loyola -- we have to travel well," Connelly said. "I'm not sure what it is, but we really need to come together on the road. It's really about us right now -- if we can get the mental sharpness to go with our effort, we'll be successful."

"We're definitely focused on Loyola Saturday," Voelker said. "We really need to get a road win, and we won't look ahead to Maryland. We've been playing teams in the top 20 all year, so we know how to approach this."

With the win, the Quakers finished their Ivy campaign at 3-3. In all likelihood, they will need convincing victories over both Loyola and Maryland to earn the team's first playoff berth since 1989.

PENN 10, Brown 5 First quarter -- 1, 7:59, Rogers (P); 2, 0:09, Eberstein (P)

Second quarter -- 3, 14:17, Riordan (P); 4, 8:32, Mucciolo (B); 5, 7:21, Reich (P); 6, 2:19, Salihi (P)

Third quarter -- 7, 11:32, Madeira (B); 8, 8:22, Buckley (B); 9, 7:25, Dixson (P); 10, 2:51, Gilbert (B); 11, 0:02, Mucciolo 2 (B)

Fourth quarter -- 12, 13:17 Phillips (P); 13, 11:43, Phillips 2 (P); 14, 8:20, Phillips 3 (P); 15, 7:33, Derkac (B)

Please note All comments are eligible for publication in The Daily Pennsylvanian.