Penn State Men's Lacrosse 'Never Stopped Believing' This Season

Penn State had a tough day Saturday in a pair of tournament semifinal games. The men's lacrosse team fell to Cornell in the NCAA Championship before the Nittany Lions baseball team ended a second straight season with a Big Ten Tournament loss to Nebraska.

Both team took early leads but gave them up in falling a step shy of championship-game appearances. Ultimately, that's where they want to get.

Penn State men's lacrosse fell to top-seeded Cornell 11-9 on Saturday at Gillette Stadium, giving up five unanswered goals in a critical third quarter. The Nittany Lions (12-5) scored three straight goals to pull within one in the fourth quarter, but the Big Ten shut down Penn State after that to reach the NCAA championship game.

For Penn State coach Jeff Tambroni, the NCAA semifinal appearance was his third in 15 seasons with the Nittany Lions. Tambroni told reporters at Gillette Stadium after the game that he wants Penn State to become a "blue blood" in college lacrosse.

"In the last six years, Penn State has been back to championship week [three times]," Tambroni said after the game. "If you want to be a blue blood, you want to get over the hump and get into the
championship game, you're going to have to win one or two of these to put yourself in that landscape.

"But we've got a lot of respect for those who have done it and recognize that tradition. It's not built in a day and it doesn't go away in a day. But we're getting closer to the expectation that when the season starts, this is where we should be. I think these guys helped us keep that momentum going in the right direction."

Penn State won two NCAA Tournament games, including a superb comeback victory over two-time defending champ Notre Dame in the quarterfinals. The Nittany Lions attempted another rally Saturday against Cornell but couldn't work the magic for a second straight game.

"I'm proud of this particular group," Tambroni said. "The two guys that were sitting here, Kevin [Parham] and Matt [Traynor], were terrific leaders, and Jack [Fracyon] was a terrific leader as well. They never stopped believing. You know, if you would have asked us in the fall, or certainly when the season started, if we would be sitting right here, you'd like to dream. But that is a possibility every year.

"But as the season was going on, we lost a couple of tough games to Ohio State and Maryland, and to know that these guys continued to keep grinding said a lot about their character, their belief. ... It was a fun championship weekend to be a part of, just all too short."

Penn State baseball falls to Nebraska again

The Nittany Lions baseball team didn't want to come home early either, especially after beating Washington and USC to win its pool at the Big Ten Tournament. The situation Saturday appeared to favor Penn State as well.

Penn State had a day off Friday while Nebraska and Oregon waded through a rain delay. The teams were forced to play Saturday morning in Omaha, meaning the winner would have to play a doubleheader. Nebraska, the defending Big Ten Tournament champ, beat top-seeded Oregon to earn a date Saturday night with the Nittany Lions, who could have avenged their loss to the Cornhuskers in last year's tournament final.

Penn State took a 3-2 lead in the third on solo home runs from Jesse Jaconski and Matt Maloney, but a defensive mishap cost the team in the bottom of the third. Nebraska's Riley Silva drilled a deep fly to right-center, which Penn State's outfield misplayed, allowing the tying run to score. Nebraska scored the go-ahead run on a fielder's choice and added insurance runs in the seventh on Gabe Swansen's two-run homer.

Penn State concluded the season with a 33-23 record, its second-highest win total in program history. Next up for the Nittany Lions under head coach Mike Gambino is to get into the Big Ten championship game.