Ohio State men’s lacrosse sophomore Jesse King notched a win for the Buckeyes in overtime with no time remaining on the clock to clinch a 10-9 win against rival Penn State on Saturday at University Park, Pa.
The Nittany Lions had previously dominated OSU, winning 12 of the last 16 affairs between the two programs.
No. 8 Penn State took an 8-2 lead into halftime after freshman TJ Sanders exploded for five goals as part of a 6-0 run in the second quarter.
Ohio State came out strong in the second half, as two goals from sophomore Turner Evans and one from King helped ignite a 6-0 run in the third quarter that knotted the score at eight apiece.
Logan Schuss gave the Buckeyes their first lead of the game with seven minutes, one second left in the fourth.
Moments later, the short-lived Ohio State lead was gone after Penn State junior Shane Sturgis netted the game-tying goal with 4:04 remaining in regulation. A back and forth final four minutes ended in a 9-9 tie, forcing overtime.
The Buckeyes outshot the Nitty Lions, 36-28, while faceoffs were even at 11-11.
Ohio State returns to action Saturday against Denver, while Penn State takes on Lehigh.
Drexel’s late efforts pay off, takes down Robert Morris
Drexel freshman Frank Fusco sent the Dragons home happy as his late efforts earned them a 13-12 win over Robert Morris on Saturday.
Fusco’s only goal of the game came when it was needed most, depositing the game-winner with 1:57 left to play in the contest.
The Dragons were behind 12-10 with 8:25 remaining in the fourth, but goals by Ryan Belka and Robert Church tied the score with 4:32 to play, setting the stage for Fusco’s game-winner.
Trailing 6-4 at the half, Drexel came out of the gates running in the third quarter with six goals to take a 10-9 lead heading into the fourth. The Colonials did not back down, responding with three of their own to take a 12-10 lead midway through the fourth.
Church, a senior, finished the contest with a game-high five goals for the Dragons, as he moved into eighth place in school history with 96 goals for his career.
While the scoreline remained close, the shot count didn’t, as the Dragons outshot the Colonials, 51-28.
Robert Morris redshirt senior goalie Charles Ruppert had 14 saves on the day, while Dragons true freshman goaltender Will Gabrielsen ended the day with eight saves.
Drexel hosts Bryant on Saturday for its next affair, while the Colonials travel to Dartmouth.
Nova runs away from Blue Hens
Under the lights of Villanova Stadium, the Wildcats used a home field advantage and 7-3 run in the second half to secure a 14-9 win against Delaware.
Villanova clung to a 9-8 lead midway through the third, but put the game away with five of the next six goals to close out the Blue Hens.
Delaware suffered its third straight loss, dropping its record to 1-4 on the year after back-to-back losses to No. 4 Loyola and tough Patriot League opponent Bucknell. The Wildcats notched their first win of the year, improving their record to 1-2.
After a slow start to begin the game, the Blue Hens rallied back from a 2-0 deficit to tie the game with goals from Mike Frisina, Nick Diachenko and Eric Smith. The two teams traded goals until the end of the first half, when Villanova took a 7-6 lead into the locker room.
Villanova senior attack Jack Rice tallied his 15th career hat trick, and is now just one goal shy of 100 goals for his career while donning the Wildcats’ blue and white.
Villanova freshman goalie Greg Stamatov had eight saves, while the Blue Hens used three different goalies to snatch up 16 saves in the loss.
The Wildcats have a quick turnaround as they travel to Princeton on Tuesday. Delaware has no time for rest either, as it also plays Tuesday with a tilt at Lafayette.
Ryan Barry can be reached at [email protected].
