Reigning National Champions and No. 4 ranked Denver men’s lacrosse were dropped 15-10 against the unranked Penn State (PSU) Nittany Lions on Saturday, March 26 at Ford Stadium in Dallas, Texas. The Denver Pioneers continued to struggle holding off their opponent defensively and were unable to counter in order to secure the victory and maintain their 20-game winning streak.
The Nittany Lions took a 1-0 lead just 2:02 into the first quarter. Denver responded with tallies from junior Connor Cannizzaro (Cazenovia, New York), sophomore Joe Reid (Petaluma, California) and junior Tyler Pace (Coquitlam, British Columbia) to deliver a 3-1 lead. PSU cut the deficit down to one before the end of the first quarter.
In the span of only one minute, a man-up goal and an additional quick strike returned the lead to Penn State. Denver tied the score 4-4 with 12:03 remaining in the first half. The Nittany Lions then sparked a three-goal run, taking a 7-4 lead. Before intermission, Denver countered with two goals against PSU, who added another goal to extend their lead 8-6 heading into the locker room.
Following halftime, PSU dominated the third quarter with a 4-1 run, resulting in a 12-7 lead before the final stanza. Freshman goalie Alex Ready (Lancaster, Pennsylvania) was replaced by classmate David Winsor (Boulder, Colorado) following PSU’s third goal during the third quarter. The Pioneers constructed a few threats on PSU’s net, but couldn’t convert. United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association (USILA) First Team All-American Trevor Baptiste (Denville, New Jersey) lost six out of six faceoff attempts at the X during the third quarter.
The Nittany Lions’ momentum carried over into the final quarter, when PSU administered three consecutive tallies to extend their lead 15-7 with 4:13 remaining in the game. The Pioneers rallied three goals before the clock wound down, confirming the 15-10 upset in favor of Penn State.
Penn State out-shot the Pioneers 33-26 and secured 31 ground balls over Denver’s 27. Cannizzaro finished the day with four points, three goals and one assist, marking the 24th four-point game of his career and 21st hat trick. Baptiste finished with 15-for-28 faceoff wins. Ready recorded eight saves during his time in net and conceded 11 goals, while Winsor relinquished four goals within his duration.
The Pioneers travel to Washington D.C. to face Georgetown University kicking off BIG EAST conference play at 9 a.m. MT on Saturday, April 2.
