Penn men's lacrosse plays against Cornell on March 30, 2024.
Credit: Grace ChenLast Saturday, I sat in the press box above Georgetown’s Cooper Field to watch Penn men’s lacrosse open its season. Even though the 40-degree rainy weather was emblematic of the fact that it was barely halfway through February, the time for spring sports had begun.
Two hours later, the game ended, and Penn was defeated 8-6. The team looked strong at times, and several players — such as senior goalkeeper Emmet Carroll — were living up to their preseason hype. But other parts of the team looked slightly disjointed. The offense sputtered at times, with senior attacker Ben Smith — who was second in goals on the team last season — being held to just one shot. Opening-game mistakes were also on full display, as the team committed a pair of costly penalties in the fourth quarter which let the Hoyas hold onto the lead.
After that game, it seemed as if the Quakers might be in jeopardy of missing some of their preseason goals. Men’s lacrosse is one of the most successful programs at Penn in recent years, and the Ivy League consistently ranks among the top conferences in the sport. Therefore, Penn should strive to compete for a conference title year in and year out and parlay a strong regular season into performances in the NCAA Tournament. I find calling any season “national championship or bust” to be counterproductive, but making it to the final few rounds in the NCAA Tournament should not be a pipe dream.
Any doubts that Penn wouldn’t be able to live up to this preseason prediction were quickly allayed, though, by the Quakers’ two performances this week. At home on Tuesday against UAlbany, an offense that sputtered at Georgetown roared to life.
The Quakers tallied 14 goals, more than double their mark against the Hoyas. Smith notched a hat trick. And instead of trailing nearly the entire game — as had been the case at Georgetown — Penn jumped out to a quick lead, being up 5-1 with a few minutes left in the first quarter.
The entire Penn offense looks well balanced, with several different players looking like they will be serious goal-scoring threats. Three games in, a quintet of Quakers have at least four goals, with sophomore attacker Chris Patterson and junior midfielder Griffin Scane leading the team with six.
The offense continued to be strong on Saturday, when the Quakers again traveled south — this time to face Delaware. Penn scored 10 goals, including seven in the first half. But while the scoring ensured the Quakers would stay ahead and gave coach Mike Murphy the cushion to give many players time on the field, even if most of those goals had not counted, Penn still would have won.
That’s because Penn only allowed two goals. Not in a quarter, not even in the first half, but all game. The mark is the fewest the Quakers have given up since an 11-2 win against Dartmouth in 2013. The defense was strong all game long, and Carroll set a career high with a 0.933 save percentage, notching 14 saves while letting in just one goal.
The season is still young. Penn doesn’t start Ivy League play for several weeks, and the conference is bound to be as strong as ever, with five teams in the top 17 of the Inside Lacrosse Media Poll. A trip to the Tar Heel State to visit North Carolina and Duke next weekend will be crucial in assessing the Quakers’ ceiling. But so far, it looks like any concerns after Georgetown were overblown, and Penn men’s lacrosse is going to be pretty good.
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