Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1518105
5 0 A P R I L 2 0 2 4 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M W hen coach Jeff Tambroni was hired in the summer of 2010 to take charge of the Penn State men's lacrosse program, the Nittany Li- ons were competing in the Colonial Ath- letic Association. It was a strong lacrosse conference, offering annual matchups against some of the country's better programs. But the affiliation with the CAA didn't stir up the kind of passion among follow- ers of PSU athletics that the school's Big Ten affiliation inspired in other sports. So, when the Big Ten began sponsoring men's lacrosse in 2015, Tambroni was excited. "When you're going against traditional rivals that everyone recognizes, regard- less of the sport, like an Ohio State, like a Michigan, it definitely elevates the sense of pride, the sense of belonging that you have in the Big Ten," he said. "These are fun games to be a part of, they're chal- lenging games to be a part of." The Nittany Lions have risen to the occasion, winning the league's regular- season title in 2019 and 2023. They also captured the tournament title the first of those two seasons, and in both of them they used their strong showing against league competition as a springboard to the NCAA Tournament's final four on Memorial Day weekend. They'll look to do so again in the com- ing weeks after winning six of seven non- conference games, then launching their Big Ten campaign with a 12-9 comeback victory at Ohio State on March 24. The Buckeyes jumped out to an early 6-1 lead but weren't able to hold off the Lions' at- tack in the second half. With 6:31 to play and the score tied, 8-8, Penn State tal- lied 4 consecutive goals to put the game away. The potency of its offense is one of the reasons for Penn State's 7-1 start. The Lions were averaging a Big Ten-best 14.6 goals per game heading into their March 31 matchup against visiting Maryland. Attackmen TJ Malone and Matt Traynor were leading the way with 42 and 31 points, respectively. Traynor, a junior from Downingtown, Pa., has been a relentless goal scorer with 27 tallies, while Malone, a graduate student from nearby West Chester, sports a more bal- anced statistical résumé with 17 goals and 25 assists. Traynor was a midfielder as a sopho- more, but this year he and Malone have been teaming up to overpower opposing goalkeepers. "I think they complement each other in so many different ways," Tambroni said. "I also think that Matt takes a lot of pressure off TJ. He's a little imbalanced when you look at him statistically with his ability to score versus his productiv- ity in assists. But at the same time, he's a capable dodger who manages the ball re- ally well, rides really hard when the ball is turned over and does some things at the other end that we admire. "I think in so many ways, they work really well together, but at the same time, [Traynor] provides a lot of options in the attack that take some pressure off TJ and give him a breather every once in a while so that the ball doesn't have to be in his stick 100 percent of the time." The Nittany Lions were ranked No. 4 nationally in the Inside Lacrosse media poll prior to their matchup against the CONFERENCE CALL A tough Big Ten schedule awaits the surging Penn State men's lacrosse team M AT T H E R B | M AT T. H E R B @ O N 3 . C O M OLYMPIC SPORTS Graduate attackman TJ Malone was leading the Nittany Lions through eight games with 42 points on 17 goals and 25 assists. PHOTO BY CRAIG HOUTZ/PENN STATE ATHLETICS