Men’s Lacrosse (12-5)
Liam Matthews scored four goals in the national semifinal, including two behind-the-back shots, but it was not enough for the Nittany Lions in the Final Four. No. 1 seed Cornell defeated Penn State 11-9 in the semifinal on Saturday afternoon.
Penn State led 5-4 at halftime, but eight consecutive lost faceoffs and a 6-1 run in the third quarter for the Big Red did the Lions in. PSU trimmed the deficit to 10-9 midway through the fourth quarter and had a chance to tie the game, but Cornell’s defense slammed the door.
It was another excellent season for Jeff Tambroni and company, with the program making its third trip to the Final Four in the last seven seasons.
Baseball (33-23)
Another Cinderella run through the Big Ten baseball tournament came to a close on Saturday night in a 6-3 loss to Nebraska.
Jesse Jaconski and Matt Maloney each hit a solo home run to give Penn State a 3-2 lead in the fourth inning, but it was all downhill from there. Nebraska immediately took the lead in the bottom of the fourth inning and eventually stretched the lead in the seventh.
Penn State’s 33 wins are the most for the program in a single season since 2000, its last NCAA tournament appearance. This is still a program on the rise, although progress may be incremental from here.