Princeton University Athletics
Sunday, May 14
University Park, Pa.
7:30 PM
Princeton University
at
#5 Penn State
Photo by: Shelley M. Szwast
Princeton Heads To Penn State For NCAA Tournament Opening Round
May 12, 2023 | Men's Lacrosse
PRINCETON (8-6) vs. PENN STATE (9-4)
NCAA TOURNAMENT OPENING ROUND
Sunday, May 14 • 7:30 pm
Panzer Stadium • State College, Pa.
ESPNU/ESPN+
In-game Twitter updates (@tigerlacrosse)
ESPN+
Live Stats
Tickets
Probable Princeton starters
Career highs
Career scoring/pronunciations
Princeton Laxcast With Matt Madalon
Feature Story: Sam English and Tyler Sandoval
All-time Princeton NCAA results
All-time Princeton NCAA individual records
The Princeton men's lacrosse team shut Penn State out for the final 32:16 of their last meeting, which means that the Nittany Lions haven't scored a goal against the Tigers in more than 27 years. Of course, Princeton hasn't scored against Penn State in more than 27 years either.
Despite their proximity and the fact that they play so many of the same teams, there's little history between Princeton and Penn State in men's lacrosse. It's even been 13 years since Penn State head coach Jeff Tambroni coached against the Tigers back in his time as the Cornell head man, though Tambroni does have the distinction of being the winning head coach in Bill Tierney's final game at Princeton, in the 2009 NCAA quarterfinals.
History or not, Princeton and Penn State will be meeting in the present-day, and the stakes are fairly high.
PRINCETON vs. PENN STATE
Five Storylines
NCAA history
Princeton played the first game on Saturday in last year's NCAA tournament and will now play the last game on Sunday in this year's NCAA tournament.
Princeton defeated Boston University 12-5 and then Yale 14-10 to reach Championship Weekend a year ago before falling to Maryland in the semifinals. Princeton is making consecutive trips to the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2009 and 2010.
Princeton is also playing in its 22nd NCAA tournament. The Tigers have won six NCAA championships (1992, 1994, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2001), reached two other NCAA championship games (2000, 2002) and been a semifinalist three other times (1993, 2004, 2022).
More NCAA history
Princeton is 32-15 all-time in NCAA tournament games. The Tigers' winning percentage of .681 trails only Syracuse (.691) in Division I history.
Princeton is 14-5 all-time in one-goal NCAA games, including 5-3 in overtime (players who have scored OT NCAA goals for Princeton: Andy Moe, Scott Conklin, Kevin Lowe, Jesse Hubbard, B.J. Prager). The Tigers played three NCAA games in 2001 and won all three by one goal.
The 2023 Tigers are 0-3 in overtime games and 1-3 in one-goal games, having lost in OT to Rutgers, Penn and Cornell but having beaten Penn last weekend in the Ivy League tournament semifinals 1-3. Other than that game, Princeton has seven other wins, all by at least four goals and by an average of 8.6 goals.
Some things in common
Princeton and Penn State aren't exactly mirror-images, but they do have many commonalties. For instance:
* Princeton's Michael Gianforcaro is second in Division I save percentage at .592; Penn State's Jack Fracyon is third at .574
* Princeton allows 10.93 goals per game; Penn State allows 10.69
* Princeton averages a little more than 14 goals per game; Penn State averages just under 14 goals per game
* Both teams are below 50 percent on face-offs for the season
More in common
Princeton has played 14 games, exactly half of which were played against teams that also played Penn State. Princeton played Big Ten schools Rutgers (14-13 OT loss on March 11) and Maryland (11-5 loss on Feb. 25), while Penn State beat Rutgers (13-5 on April 21) and lost to Maryland (13-10 March 25).
Penn State also played games against Ivy League teams Yale, Penn and Cornell on consecutive Saturdays in March, winning all three. Princeton is 3-2 against those three, having beaten Yale twice, split with Penn and lost to Cornell.
Series history ... or what there is of it.
Princeton and Penn State have played three times, all Princeton wins, all in the 1990s, all in the month of March, all in three different states.
The first game was played in 1991 at Loyola as part of a two-day tournament. Princeton defeated Penn State 9-7 in that game as Andy Moe scored twice; he would score the game-winning goal in the second overtime against Syracuse in the 1992 NCAA final to give the Tigers their first NCAA title. As an aside, Princeton fell to Loyola 10-9 the next day despite 24 saves from Scott Bacigalupo; no Princeton goalie has had more in a game since.
Princeton then defeated the Nittany Lions in State College 18-6 in 1997 in a game that was moved inside Holuba Hall. Jesse Hubbard returned from a shoulder injury to score four goals in that one. Princeton also won the next year on a rainy day in Princeton, taking that game 13-5 behind a goal and five assists from Jon Hess.
The teams have not played since.
Other notes
* Princeton's two leading returning goal scorers from last year's NCAA tournament, Sam English and Christian Ronda, are both out injured. Both of the middies had six goals in the three games last year; English also had an assist, three caused turnovers and eight ground balls. Princeton does have six players who scored at least one NCAA goal last year who are back: Alex Slusher 5, Alexander Vardaro 5, Coulter Mackesy 4, Jake Stevens 1, Pace Billings 1, Sean Cameron 1. No Princeton goalie played in last year's tournament, when Erik Peters played all 180 minutes. Koby Ginder was 7 for 15 on face-offs in last year's tournament, including 6 for 9 against Yale in the quarterfinals.
*Â Princeton had five players named to the USA Lacrosse Magazine All-American team: attackman Coulter Mackesy (second-team), middie Alexander Vardaro (third-team), SSDM Beau Pederson (third-team), goalie Michael Gianforcaro (honorable mention), middie Jake Stevens (honorable mention). Stevens was named to the USA Lacrosse Magazine team without earning any All-Ivy League honors. Princeton did have eight All-Ivy honorees: first-team selections Mackesy (unanimous) and Vardaro, second-team selections Gianforcaro, Pederson, LSM Cathal Roberts, D Pace Billing and Ben Finlay, and honorable mention selection middie Christian Ronda.
* Princeton is fourth in Division I in fewest turnovers per game at 13.21 per game. Princeton turned the ball over 21 times in the Ivy League tournament between the two games combined.
* Matt Madalon is 51-31 as Princeton's head coach. His .622 winning percentage trails only Bill Tierney at Princeton since 1950.
* Coulter Mackesy is tied for third on Princeton's single-season goals-scored list with 49, even with Wick Sollers in 1977. He trails only Gavin McBride (54 in 2017) and Jesse Hubbard (53 in 1996). Mackesy is also the only Princeton player ever with multiple games with at least eight goals and one of two Princeton players ever with at least two games of 10 or more points (Michael Sowers did it five times).
* Princeton's two leaders in caused turnovers are LSMs Cathal Roberts (17) and Michael Bath (13). Princeton has never had LSMs be first and second in caused turnovers for a full season.
* Michael Gianforcaro, the Most Outstanding Player of the Ivy League tournament, has a .592 save percentage, .001 behind UMass' Matt Knote for the Division I lead. Had Gianforcaro made one more save during the season, he would be at .595. The last time a Princeton goalie had a better save percentage for a full season was in 2012, when Tyler Fiorito had a .595 percentage; Fiorito was .615 in 2011.
* Princeton has .452 face-off percentage. The last time Princeton was above .500 for a full-season was 2012.
* Andrew McMeekin has been Princeton's No. 1 face-off man for the last five games, during which time Princeton is 4-1. McMeekin is 51 for 98 with 35 ground balls and an assist in the four wins; he was 9 for 31 with eight ground balls in the one loss (to Cornell). McMeekin was selected to the Ivy League All-Tournament team and was a two-time Ivy Rookie of the Week.
* Princeton went 32 days without winning a game between Feb. 21 and March 25, losing four straight during that time. Princeton was 2-0 before that and is 6-2 since. Princeton was 2-4, 0-1 in the Ivy League back in 2002 and then reached the NCAA final.
* Princeton has only four players who have started every game: Coulter Mackesy, Alexander Vardaro, Ben Finlay and Colin Mulshine.
* Jeff Tambroni was 7-5 against Princeton while the head coach at Cornell. Princeton's only other Ivy League tournament championship prior to this came in 2010, when the Tigers defeated Cornell in overtime in Tambroni's final season as Cornell head coach.
* Princeton led the Ivy League in scoring defense this season.
* Princeton is second nationally in saves per game and assists per game.
* Princeton ranks 54th in Division I in man-down defense at .586. The Tigers did, however, allow only one man-down goal in seven chances in the two Ivy League tournament games.
* Princeton needs one goal to reach 200 goals in a season for the seventh time in program history. The record for goals in a season at Princeton was set a year ago, when the Tigers had 237 while reaching Championship Weekend. Princeton needs eight goals against Penn State to move into a tie for sixth with the 1994 team. Of the six teams to score at least 200 goals in a season at Princeton, all but the 2017 team reached Championship Weekend and four others — 1996, 1997, 1998, 1994 — won the national title.
What can you say about? …
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No. 0 Griffen Rakower (Sr., G)
* made 11 saves while allowing three goals in first half against Maryland
* also made 11 saves while allowing seven goals against Georgetown
* has a .564 save percentage
* had six saves while allowing three goals against Monmouth
* had eight saves while allowing five goals against Manhattan
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No. 3 Pace Billings (Jr, D)
* second-team All-Ivy League selection
* Tewaaraton Award watchlist
* started the first three games and then missed three games due to injury before returning
* has 11 caused turnovers and 16 ground balls
* had three caused turnovers in ILT semifinal against Penn
* played mostly LSM last year, when he was named to the NCAA Final Four All-Tournament team
No. 4 Paul Weathington Jr. (Jr., SSDM)
* has been injured for much of his career
* has played in five games this season after playing in eight last year
* has two ground balls
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No. 5 Alex Slusher (Sr., A)
* had two goals against Yale in the Ivy League final, including one six seconds into the game for the fastest goal to start a game in program history
* had two goals against Cornell
* has 63 career goals
* had started every game of his career before missing two games in midseason due to injury
* one of Princeton's captains
* had a streak of at least one goal in 21 straight games snapped against Maryland; streak is eighth longest in program history
* second-leading scorer on USA U-21 team at the 2022 World Championships
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No. 6 Cathal Roberts (Sr., LSM)
* second-team All-Ivy League selection
* full-time LSM while also playing on face-off wings; had been a defensive starter earlier in his career
* leads team with 17 caused turnovers
* also has 26 ground balls
* had three caused turnovers and three ground balls against Penn in the regular season
* had four caused turnovers against Syracuse and three against Dartmouth
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No. 7 Luca Lazzaretto (Sr., LSM)
* has been a consistent LSM throughout his career
* plays man-down D this season
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No. 10 Ben Finlay (Sr., D)
* second-team All-Ivy League selection
* Academic All-Ivy League selection
* only current Tiger who has started every game of his career
* has five caused turnovers and 20 ground balls
* named to USILA Team of the Week after holding Yale's Matt Brandau without a goal, ending Brandau's 45-game goal scoring streak, during the regular season
* held Leo Johnson to one goal in the ILT final
* one of Princeton's captains
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No. 11 Sean Cameron (So., M)
* selected to the Ivy League All-Tournament team after having four goals and an assist
* had a goal and assist in the fourth quarter of the ILT semifinal win over Penn
* had three first-half goals against Yale in the final
* has started the last five games at midfield after the injury to Sam English
* has 11 goals and three assists in the last five games; had four goals and two assists in the first eight games
* had a goal and two assists against Cornell
* had three goals against Harvard
* had two goals and an assist against Yale in the regular season
* had a goal against Georgetown
* had a goal against Manhattan
* older brother Brian plays for Rutgers
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No. 12 Christian Ronda (Sr., M)
* honorable mention All-Ivy League selection
* will miss the rest of the season with a broken collarbone suffered in the ILT final against Yale
* has 21 goals and 11 assists this season
* joined current teammates Jake Stevens and Alexander Vardaro, as well as Austin Sims, Kip Orban, Jake Froccaro, Tom Schreiber and Brad Dumont, as the only Princeton middies this century to have at least two seasons with 20 or more goals (Josh Sims did so three times, in 1998-2000)
* had six NCAA tournament goals last year
* had three goals and an assist in ILT semifinal against Penn
* had four goals and two assists against Harvard for his fourth career game with at least four goals
* also had four goals against Yale
* had three goals and an assist against Rutgers
* had two goals and an assist against Brown
* scored the tying game goal with three minutes left against Penn
* had 23 goals a year ago
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No. 13 Joe Juengerkes (Jr., SSDM)
* has played in every game as second line SSDM
* had first career assist in the ILT final against Yale
* had a key caused turnover late in the fourth quarter against Penn in the ILT semifinal
* has five caused turnovers and five ground balls
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No. 14 Jake Stevens (Sr., M)
* USA Lacrosse Magazine HM All-American
* Ivy League All-Tournament team selection
* had career-high six goals (on six shots) with an assist in ILT final
* had two goals against Penn in the semifinal
* joined current teammates Christian Ronda and Alexander Vardaro, as well as Austin Sims, Kip Orban, Jake Froccaro, Tom Schreiber and Brad Dumont, as the only Princeton middies this century to have at least two seasons with 20 or more goals (Josh Sims did so three times, in 1998-2000)
* plays midfield and face-off wings
* has 23 goals and five assists Â
* had two goals against Penn in the ILT semifinal
* had three goals, five ground balls and three caused turnovers against Georgetown; no other Princeton player has ever achieved at least all three of those in a game
* has five games with at least two goals
* 2022 honorable mention All-American
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No. 15 Sam English (Sr., M)
* Tewaaaraton Award watchlist
* ruptured his spleen on the first possession against Syracuse; spent four nights in the hospital
* still third on the team with 13 assists and fifth with 20 points
* had three goals and an assist against Brown
* scored the first goal of a game for the eighth time in his career when he scored Princeton's first goal against Brown
* had two goals and an assist against Penn
* tied the Rutgers game late in the fourth quarter to force overtime
* had 30 goals and 18 assists a year ago
* 2022 honorable mention All-American
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No. 17 Michael Bath (So., LSM)
* plays LSM and on the face-off wings
* has 13 caused turnovers, second on the team, and 18 ground balls
* had a goal against Dartmouth, for his second career goal
* had three caused turnovers and five ground balls against Yale
* had two caused turnovers and three ground balls against Brown
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No. 18 Luc Anderson (Sr., SSDM)
* one of the Tiger captains
* broke his wrist against Brown and has not played since; will miss the rest of the season
* has two caused turnovers
* had 30 ground balls and 10 caused turnovers as a freshman, but injuries have limited him to just 13 games since
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No. 19 Alexander Vardaro (Sr., A/M)
* USA Lacrosse Magazine third-team All-American
* first-team All-Ivy League selection
* second on the team with 24 goals and leads the team in assists with 23
* became the 39th player in program history to reach 100 career points with his three assists against Brown
* is one of three Princeton middies ever with at least 20 goals and 20 assists in the same season (Tom Schreiber did it three times; Zach Currier also did it); had four goals and two assists while playing attack, so he has 20 goals and 21 assists as a middie
* joined current teammates Christian Ronda and Jake Stevens, as well as Austin Sims, Kip Orban, Jake Froccaro, Tom Schreiber and Brad Dumont, as the only Princeton middies this century to have at least two seasons with 20 or more goals (Josh Sims did so three times, in 1998-2000)
* had three goals against Cornell
* had a goal and four assists against Yale in the regular season
* had two goals and two assists against Rutgers in second start on attack
* had two goals and two assists against Penn as well
* had five goals against Monmouth and four against Manhattan
* first Princeton player in 29 years to have at least nine goals in the first two games of a season (Scott Reinhardt in 1993)
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No. 21 Tommy Barnds (Jr., M)
* very solid second-line midfielder
* had a goal against Yale in the ILT final
* had a goal and two assists against Yale in the regular season
* had a goal and two assists against Brown
* had a goal against Cornell
* started as a midfielder against Georgetown and had a goal
* had a goal against Monmouth
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No. 23 Beau Pederson (Sr., SSDM)
* second-team All-Ivy League selection
* Ivy League All-Tournament team selection
* USA Lacrosse Magazine third-team All-American
* one of Princeton's captains
* had 10 caused turnovers and 23 ground balls
* had two goals against Yale, with a caused turnover and three ground balls
* had two caused turnovers against Maryland
* had two caused turnovers and three ground balls against Penn
* third-team All-American a year ago
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No. 24 Marquez White (Jr., SSDM)
* first line defensive midfielder
* has seven caused turnovers and 12 ground balls
No. 27 Michael Gianforcaro (Jr., G)
* second-team All-Ivy League selection
* USA Lacrosse Magazine HM All-American
* has .592 save percentage, second in Division I; he is .001 behind UMass goalie Matt Knote for first
* also leads Ivy League in goals-against average (10.40)
* the Most Outstanding Player at the Ivy League tournamet
* made 17 saves, the most ever by a Princeton goalie in an Ivy League tournament game, while allowing eight goals in the ILT final against Yale; also had an assist in the game
* made 15 saves in the ILT semifinal against Penn
* save percentage in the last five games is .643
* made first career start against Penn and made 17 saves
* had a career-high 20 saves while allowing nine goals against Harvard
* has at least 13 saves in every start
* made 14 saves in second start, against Yale
* made 13 saves against Brown
* started the second half of the first five games
* made 10 saves while allowing five goals against Rutgers
* had six saves against Georgetown
* made three of his five saves against Manhattan in the first four minutes of the third quarter, when Princeton went from down a goal to start an 8-2 run that led to a 14-9 win
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No. 28 Jacob Stoebner (Sr., D)
* veteran defenseman who is part of the regular rotation
* held Yale's Leo Johnson to no goals and one assist while having three caused turnovers and three ground balls
* also started against Rutgers, Penn and Brown
* had five caused turnovers and seven ground balls
No. 29 Lukas Stanat (Jr., A)
* has 10 goals and eight assists
* has started the last eight games
* had two assists in the second half against Penn in ILT final
* had two goals and four assists against Cornell
* had three goals against Dartmouth
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No. 32 Andrew McMeekin (Fr., FO)
* Ivy League All-Tournament team selection
* two-time Ivy Rookie of the Week
* went 26 for 50 with 18 ground balls in the two Ivy games
* was 16 for 29 with 12 ground balls against Yale in the ILT; won the opening face-off and fed Alex Slusher for a goal six seconds in, the fastest goal to start a game in program history
* was 10 for 21 with six ground balls against Penn in ILT semifinal
* won the face-off and got the ground ball with 13 seconds left and Princeton up 9-8 in the ILT semifinal against Penn
* was 25 for 48 with 17 ground balls in wins over Dartmouth and Harvard, winning league's top rookie honor both times
* leads team with 37 ground balls
* won 3 of 5 against Yale
* won 5 of 9 face-offs against Monmouth
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No. 35 Tyler Sandoval (Jr., FO)
* won 48 of 107 face-offs with 16 ground balls
* had an assist against Manhattan five seconds after another Princeton goal (it was the shortest elapsed time between goals in Princeton history)
* will miss the rest of the season after suffering knee injury against Syracuse
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No. 36 Braedon Saris (So., A)
* is fourth on the team in assists and sixth in points despite playing in only five games and starting only three due to multiple injuries
* will miss the rest of the season
* had two goals and five assists against Dartmouth
* had three goals and three assists against Monmouth
* had a goal and two assists against Manhattan
* had an assist against Maryland
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No. 39 Weston Carpenter (Sr., M)
* plays mostly man-up offense
* had first career two-point game, with a goal and assist against Yale in the Ivy final
* has six goals this year, with one against Yale in each game plus Rutgers, Maryland, Manhattan and Monmouth
* also has three assists, including one against Penn in ILT semifinal
* did not have a goal in his career prior to this season
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No. 43 Colin Mulshine (So., D)
* starter on defense
* has eight caused turnovers and 17 ground balls
* had two caused turnovers against Georgetown, Dartmouth and Cornell
* started 11 games as a freshman, including the final nine
No. 48 John Dunphey (Fr., M)
* has played on the second midfield unit for the last five games
* had a goal in the ILT final against Yale and an assist in the semifinal against Penn
* has four goals and three assists
* had Princeton's first goal against Cornell
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No. 50 Liam Fairback (So., SSDM)
* converted offensive midfielder who is in the regular defensive midfield rotation
* had two caused turnovers against Penn in the ILT semifinal
* had first career caused turnover in the game against Rutgers
* also has eight ground balls
No. 51 Jack Ringhofer (So., A)
* started four games on attack after Braedon Saris was hurt before missing several games with his own injury
* has seven goals and an assist
* had two goals against both Brown and Syracuse
No. 55 Jackson Kane (Fr., A)
* plays on the man-up unit
No. 88 Cooper Kistler (Fr., LSM)
* has four caused turnovers and eight ground balls, of which all four CTs and seven of the eight ground balls have come in the last five games
* had two CT against Yale in the Ivy final
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No. 91 Coulter Mackesy (So., A)
* USA Lacrosse Magazine second-team All-American
* unanimous first-team All-Ivy League selection
* leads team with 49 goals and 72 points
* 49 goals are tied with Wick Sollers (49 in 1977) for third-best in a season in program history, trailing Gavin McBride (54 in 2017)Â Jesse Hubbard (53 in 1997)
* was a Tewaaraton Final 25 nominee
* is the only player in program history with at least 49 goals and 23 assists in a season
* three time Ivy League Player of the Week
* has at least three goals in 10 of 14 games
* is fifth in Division I in points per game and sixth in goals per game
* is one of two players in program history with multiple games of at least 10 points (had 8G, 2A against both Harvard and Yale; Michael Sowers is the other player, and he did so five times)
* is the only player in program history with multiple career games of at least eight goals
* is the second Princeton player ever with at least 45 goals and 20 assists in a season (Mike MacDonald in 2015 was the other)
* is one of three Princeton players with at least 10 games of three goals or more in a season (Mike MacDonald in 2015, Chris Massey in 1997)
* became the first Princeton player with at least three goals in five or more games since Gavin McBride did it twice (2016, 2017)
* has three or more goals in 14 of 29 career games
* had career highs of eight goals and 10 points in win over Yale, earning Ivy Player of the Week and USA Lacrosse National Player of the Week honors
* had three goals and three assists against Brown for his second straight Ivy Player of the Week award
* had two goals against Penn in the ILT semifinal
* had five goals and six points against Georgetown
* had three goals and three assists against Rutgers
* had three of Princeton's five goals against Maryland
* had four goals and two assists against Monmouth
* had three goals against Manhattan
* had 28 goals and 15 assists a year ago; his 43 points were the fourth-most ever by a Princeton freshman, behind only Michael Sowers, Kevin Lowe and Ryan Boyle
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No. 99 Koby Ginder (So., FO)
* is 60 for 133 on face-offs with 27 ground balls for the season
* won 15 of 29 with a goal and six ground balls against Yale
* had an assist aganst Brown
* won 9 of 17 against Maryland, Georgetown, Rutgers and Penn
* won 8 of 12 face-offs against Manhattan with five ground balls
Head coach Matt Madalon
* 51-31 at Princeton, with a .622 winning percentage that trails only Bill Tierney at Princeton since 1950
* became the interim head coach for the final five games of the 2016 season
* has been the full time head coach since
* has won an Ivy League tournament championship and taken Princeton to two NCAA tournaments, reaching Championship Weekend a year ago
* is a former MLL goalie with the San Francisco Dragons and the Long Island Lizards
* is a member of the Roanoke College Hall of Fame
* coached at Stevens Tech under Gene Paluso before coming to Princeton
* he and his wife Ashely have three children: Waverly, Whitney and Wyatt, who was born April 22 about seven hours before Princeton's game at Dartmouth; Madalon FaceTimed during the birth from the hotel in Hanover when the baby arrived nearly a week early
NCAA TOURNAMENT OPENING ROUND
Sunday, May 14 • 7:30 pm
Panzer Stadium • State College, Pa.
ESPNU/ESPN+
In-game Twitter updates (@tigerlacrosse)
ESPN+
Live Stats
Tickets
Probable Princeton starters
Career highs
Career scoring/pronunciations
Princeton Laxcast With Matt Madalon
Feature Story: Sam English and Tyler Sandoval
All-time Princeton NCAA results
All-time Princeton NCAA individual records
The Princeton men's lacrosse team shut Penn State out for the final 32:16 of their last meeting, which means that the Nittany Lions haven't scored a goal against the Tigers in more than 27 years. Of course, Princeton hasn't scored against Penn State in more than 27 years either.
Despite their proximity and the fact that they play so many of the same teams, there's little history between Princeton and Penn State in men's lacrosse. It's even been 13 years since Penn State head coach Jeff Tambroni coached against the Tigers back in his time as the Cornell head man, though Tambroni does have the distinction of being the winning head coach in Bill Tierney's final game at Princeton, in the 2009 NCAA quarterfinals.
History or not, Princeton and Penn State will be meeting in the present-day, and the stakes are fairly high.
PRINCETON vs. PENN STATE
Five Storylines
NCAA history
Princeton played the first game on Saturday in last year's NCAA tournament and will now play the last game on Sunday in this year's NCAA tournament.
Princeton defeated Boston University 12-5 and then Yale 14-10 to reach Championship Weekend a year ago before falling to Maryland in the semifinals. Princeton is making consecutive trips to the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2009 and 2010.
Princeton is also playing in its 22nd NCAA tournament. The Tigers have won six NCAA championships (1992, 1994, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2001), reached two other NCAA championship games (2000, 2002) and been a semifinalist three other times (1993, 2004, 2022).
More NCAA history
Princeton is 32-15 all-time in NCAA tournament games. The Tigers' winning percentage of .681 trails only Syracuse (.691) in Division I history.
Princeton is 14-5 all-time in one-goal NCAA games, including 5-3 in overtime (players who have scored OT NCAA goals for Princeton: Andy Moe, Scott Conklin, Kevin Lowe, Jesse Hubbard, B.J. Prager). The Tigers played three NCAA games in 2001 and won all three by one goal.
The 2023 Tigers are 0-3 in overtime games and 1-3 in one-goal games, having lost in OT to Rutgers, Penn and Cornell but having beaten Penn last weekend in the Ivy League tournament semifinals 1-3. Other than that game, Princeton has seven other wins, all by at least four goals and by an average of 8.6 goals.
Some things in common
Princeton and Penn State aren't exactly mirror-images, but they do have many commonalties. For instance:
* Princeton's Michael Gianforcaro is second in Division I save percentage at .592; Penn State's Jack Fracyon is third at .574
* Princeton allows 10.93 goals per game; Penn State allows 10.69
* Princeton averages a little more than 14 goals per game; Penn State averages just under 14 goals per game
* Both teams are below 50 percent on face-offs for the season
More in common
Princeton has played 14 games, exactly half of which were played against teams that also played Penn State. Princeton played Big Ten schools Rutgers (14-13 OT loss on March 11) and Maryland (11-5 loss on Feb. 25), while Penn State beat Rutgers (13-5 on April 21) and lost to Maryland (13-10 March 25).
Penn State also played games against Ivy League teams Yale, Penn and Cornell on consecutive Saturdays in March, winning all three. Princeton is 3-2 against those three, having beaten Yale twice, split with Penn and lost to Cornell.
Series history ... or what there is of it.
Princeton and Penn State have played three times, all Princeton wins, all in the 1990s, all in the month of March, all in three different states.
The first game was played in 1991 at Loyola as part of a two-day tournament. Princeton defeated Penn State 9-7 in that game as Andy Moe scored twice; he would score the game-winning goal in the second overtime against Syracuse in the 1992 NCAA final to give the Tigers their first NCAA title. As an aside, Princeton fell to Loyola 10-9 the next day despite 24 saves from Scott Bacigalupo; no Princeton goalie has had more in a game since.
Princeton then defeated the Nittany Lions in State College 18-6 in 1997 in a game that was moved inside Holuba Hall. Jesse Hubbard returned from a shoulder injury to score four goals in that one. Princeton also won the next year on a rainy day in Princeton, taking that game 13-5 behind a goal and five assists from Jon Hess.
The teams have not played since.
Other notes
* Princeton's two leading returning goal scorers from last year's NCAA tournament, Sam English and Christian Ronda, are both out injured. Both of the middies had six goals in the three games last year; English also had an assist, three caused turnovers and eight ground balls. Princeton does have six players who scored at least one NCAA goal last year who are back: Alex Slusher 5, Alexander Vardaro 5, Coulter Mackesy 4, Jake Stevens 1, Pace Billings 1, Sean Cameron 1. No Princeton goalie played in last year's tournament, when Erik Peters played all 180 minutes. Koby Ginder was 7 for 15 on face-offs in last year's tournament, including 6 for 9 against Yale in the quarterfinals.
*Â Princeton had five players named to the USA Lacrosse Magazine All-American team: attackman Coulter Mackesy (second-team), middie Alexander Vardaro (third-team), SSDM Beau Pederson (third-team), goalie Michael Gianforcaro (honorable mention), middie Jake Stevens (honorable mention). Stevens was named to the USA Lacrosse Magazine team without earning any All-Ivy League honors. Princeton did have eight All-Ivy honorees: first-team selections Mackesy (unanimous) and Vardaro, second-team selections Gianforcaro, Pederson, LSM Cathal Roberts, D Pace Billing and Ben Finlay, and honorable mention selection middie Christian Ronda.
* Princeton is fourth in Division I in fewest turnovers per game at 13.21 per game. Princeton turned the ball over 21 times in the Ivy League tournament between the two games combined.
* Matt Madalon is 51-31 as Princeton's head coach. His .622 winning percentage trails only Bill Tierney at Princeton since 1950.
* Coulter Mackesy is tied for third on Princeton's single-season goals-scored list with 49, even with Wick Sollers in 1977. He trails only Gavin McBride (54 in 2017) and Jesse Hubbard (53 in 1996). Mackesy is also the only Princeton player ever with multiple games with at least eight goals and one of two Princeton players ever with at least two games of 10 or more points (Michael Sowers did it five times).
* Princeton's two leaders in caused turnovers are LSMs Cathal Roberts (17) and Michael Bath (13). Princeton has never had LSMs be first and second in caused turnovers for a full season.
* Michael Gianforcaro, the Most Outstanding Player of the Ivy League tournament, has a .592 save percentage, .001 behind UMass' Matt Knote for the Division I lead. Had Gianforcaro made one more save during the season, he would be at .595. The last time a Princeton goalie had a better save percentage for a full season was in 2012, when Tyler Fiorito had a .595 percentage; Fiorito was .615 in 2011.
* Princeton has .452 face-off percentage. The last time Princeton was above .500 for a full-season was 2012.
* Andrew McMeekin has been Princeton's No. 1 face-off man for the last five games, during which time Princeton is 4-1. McMeekin is 51 for 98 with 35 ground balls and an assist in the four wins; he was 9 for 31 with eight ground balls in the one loss (to Cornell). McMeekin was selected to the Ivy League All-Tournament team and was a two-time Ivy Rookie of the Week.
* Princeton went 32 days without winning a game between Feb. 21 and March 25, losing four straight during that time. Princeton was 2-0 before that and is 6-2 since. Princeton was 2-4, 0-1 in the Ivy League back in 2002 and then reached the NCAA final.
* Princeton has only four players who have started every game: Coulter Mackesy, Alexander Vardaro, Ben Finlay and Colin Mulshine.
* Jeff Tambroni was 7-5 against Princeton while the head coach at Cornell. Princeton's only other Ivy League tournament championship prior to this came in 2010, when the Tigers defeated Cornell in overtime in Tambroni's final season as Cornell head coach.
* Princeton led the Ivy League in scoring defense this season.
* Princeton is second nationally in saves per game and assists per game.
* Princeton ranks 54th in Division I in man-down defense at .586. The Tigers did, however, allow only one man-down goal in seven chances in the two Ivy League tournament games.
* Princeton needs one goal to reach 200 goals in a season for the seventh time in program history. The record for goals in a season at Princeton was set a year ago, when the Tigers had 237 while reaching Championship Weekend. Princeton needs eight goals against Penn State to move into a tie for sixth with the 1994 team. Of the six teams to score at least 200 goals in a season at Princeton, all but the 2017 team reached Championship Weekend and four others — 1996, 1997, 1998, 1994 — won the national title.
What can you say about? …
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No. 0 Griffen Rakower (Sr., G)
* made 11 saves while allowing three goals in first half against Maryland
* also made 11 saves while allowing seven goals against Georgetown
* has a .564 save percentage
* had six saves while allowing three goals against Monmouth
* had eight saves while allowing five goals against Manhattan
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No. 3 Pace Billings (Jr, D)
* second-team All-Ivy League selection
* Tewaaraton Award watchlist
* started the first three games and then missed three games due to injury before returning
* has 11 caused turnovers and 16 ground balls
* had three caused turnovers in ILT semifinal against Penn
* played mostly LSM last year, when he was named to the NCAA Final Four All-Tournament team
No. 4 Paul Weathington Jr. (Jr., SSDM)
* has been injured for much of his career
* has played in five games this season after playing in eight last year
* has two ground balls
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No. 5 Alex Slusher (Sr., A)
* had two goals against Yale in the Ivy League final, including one six seconds into the game for the fastest goal to start a game in program history
* had two goals against Cornell
* has 63 career goals
* had started every game of his career before missing two games in midseason due to injury
* one of Princeton's captains
* had a streak of at least one goal in 21 straight games snapped against Maryland; streak is eighth longest in program history
* second-leading scorer on USA U-21 team at the 2022 World Championships
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No. 6 Cathal Roberts (Sr., LSM)
* second-team All-Ivy League selection
* full-time LSM while also playing on face-off wings; had been a defensive starter earlier in his career
* leads team with 17 caused turnovers
* also has 26 ground balls
* had three caused turnovers and three ground balls against Penn in the regular season
* had four caused turnovers against Syracuse and three against Dartmouth
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No. 7 Luca Lazzaretto (Sr., LSM)
* has been a consistent LSM throughout his career
* plays man-down D this season
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No. 10 Ben Finlay (Sr., D)
* second-team All-Ivy League selection
* Academic All-Ivy League selection
* only current Tiger who has started every game of his career
* has five caused turnovers and 20 ground balls
* named to USILA Team of the Week after holding Yale's Matt Brandau without a goal, ending Brandau's 45-game goal scoring streak, during the regular season
* held Leo Johnson to one goal in the ILT final
* one of Princeton's captains
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No. 11 Sean Cameron (So., M)
* selected to the Ivy League All-Tournament team after having four goals and an assist
* had a goal and assist in the fourth quarter of the ILT semifinal win over Penn
* had three first-half goals against Yale in the final
* has started the last five games at midfield after the injury to Sam English
* has 11 goals and three assists in the last five games; had four goals and two assists in the first eight games
* had a goal and two assists against Cornell
* had three goals against Harvard
* had two goals and an assist against Yale in the regular season
* had a goal against Georgetown
* had a goal against Manhattan
* older brother Brian plays for Rutgers
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No. 12 Christian Ronda (Sr., M)
* honorable mention All-Ivy League selection
* will miss the rest of the season with a broken collarbone suffered in the ILT final against Yale
* has 21 goals and 11 assists this season
* joined current teammates Jake Stevens and Alexander Vardaro, as well as Austin Sims, Kip Orban, Jake Froccaro, Tom Schreiber and Brad Dumont, as the only Princeton middies this century to have at least two seasons with 20 or more goals (Josh Sims did so three times, in 1998-2000)
* had six NCAA tournament goals last year
* had three goals and an assist in ILT semifinal against Penn
* had four goals and two assists against Harvard for his fourth career game with at least four goals
* also had four goals against Yale
* had three goals and an assist against Rutgers
* had two goals and an assist against Brown
* scored the tying game goal with three minutes left against Penn
* had 23 goals a year ago
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No. 13 Joe Juengerkes (Jr., SSDM)
* has played in every game as second line SSDM
* had first career assist in the ILT final against Yale
* had a key caused turnover late in the fourth quarter against Penn in the ILT semifinal
* has five caused turnovers and five ground balls
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No. 14 Jake Stevens (Sr., M)
* USA Lacrosse Magazine HM All-American
* Ivy League All-Tournament team selection
* had career-high six goals (on six shots) with an assist in ILT final
* had two goals against Penn in the semifinal
* joined current teammates Christian Ronda and Alexander Vardaro, as well as Austin Sims, Kip Orban, Jake Froccaro, Tom Schreiber and Brad Dumont, as the only Princeton middies this century to have at least two seasons with 20 or more goals (Josh Sims did so three times, in 1998-2000)
* plays midfield and face-off wings
* has 23 goals and five assists Â
* had two goals against Penn in the ILT semifinal
* had three goals, five ground balls and three caused turnovers against Georgetown; no other Princeton player has ever achieved at least all three of those in a game
* has five games with at least two goals
* 2022 honorable mention All-American
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No. 15 Sam English (Sr., M)
* Tewaaaraton Award watchlist
* ruptured his spleen on the first possession against Syracuse; spent four nights in the hospital
* still third on the team with 13 assists and fifth with 20 points
* had three goals and an assist against Brown
* scored the first goal of a game for the eighth time in his career when he scored Princeton's first goal against Brown
* had two goals and an assist against Penn
* tied the Rutgers game late in the fourth quarter to force overtime
* had 30 goals and 18 assists a year ago
* 2022 honorable mention All-American
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No. 17 Michael Bath (So., LSM)
* plays LSM and on the face-off wings
* has 13 caused turnovers, second on the team, and 18 ground balls
* had a goal against Dartmouth, for his second career goal
* had three caused turnovers and five ground balls against Yale
* had two caused turnovers and three ground balls against Brown
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No. 18 Luc Anderson (Sr., SSDM)
* one of the Tiger captains
* broke his wrist against Brown and has not played since; will miss the rest of the season
* has two caused turnovers
* had 30 ground balls and 10 caused turnovers as a freshman, but injuries have limited him to just 13 games since
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No. 19 Alexander Vardaro (Sr., A/M)
* USA Lacrosse Magazine third-team All-American
* first-team All-Ivy League selection
* second on the team with 24 goals and leads the team in assists with 23
* became the 39th player in program history to reach 100 career points with his three assists against Brown
* is one of three Princeton middies ever with at least 20 goals and 20 assists in the same season (Tom Schreiber did it three times; Zach Currier also did it); had four goals and two assists while playing attack, so he has 20 goals and 21 assists as a middie
* joined current teammates Christian Ronda and Jake Stevens, as well as Austin Sims, Kip Orban, Jake Froccaro, Tom Schreiber and Brad Dumont, as the only Princeton middies this century to have at least two seasons with 20 or more goals (Josh Sims did so three times, in 1998-2000)
* had three goals against Cornell
* had a goal and four assists against Yale in the regular season
* had two goals and two assists against Rutgers in second start on attack
* had two goals and two assists against Penn as well
* had five goals against Monmouth and four against Manhattan
* first Princeton player in 29 years to have at least nine goals in the first two games of a season (Scott Reinhardt in 1993)
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No. 21 Tommy Barnds (Jr., M)
* very solid second-line midfielder
* had a goal against Yale in the ILT final
* had a goal and two assists against Yale in the regular season
* had a goal and two assists against Brown
* had a goal against Cornell
* started as a midfielder against Georgetown and had a goal
* had a goal against Monmouth
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No. 23 Beau Pederson (Sr., SSDM)
* second-team All-Ivy League selection
* Ivy League All-Tournament team selection
* USA Lacrosse Magazine third-team All-American
* one of Princeton's captains
* had 10 caused turnovers and 23 ground balls
* had two goals against Yale, with a caused turnover and three ground balls
* had two caused turnovers against Maryland
* had two caused turnovers and three ground balls against Penn
* third-team All-American a year ago
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No. 24 Marquez White (Jr., SSDM)
* first line defensive midfielder
* has seven caused turnovers and 12 ground balls
No. 27 Michael Gianforcaro (Jr., G)
* second-team All-Ivy League selection
* USA Lacrosse Magazine HM All-American
* has .592 save percentage, second in Division I; he is .001 behind UMass goalie Matt Knote for first
* also leads Ivy League in goals-against average (10.40)
* the Most Outstanding Player at the Ivy League tournamet
* made 17 saves, the most ever by a Princeton goalie in an Ivy League tournament game, while allowing eight goals in the ILT final against Yale; also had an assist in the game
* made 15 saves in the ILT semifinal against Penn
* save percentage in the last five games is .643
* made first career start against Penn and made 17 saves
* had a career-high 20 saves while allowing nine goals against Harvard
* has at least 13 saves in every start
* made 14 saves in second start, against Yale
* made 13 saves against Brown
* started the second half of the first five games
* made 10 saves while allowing five goals against Rutgers
* had six saves against Georgetown
* made three of his five saves against Manhattan in the first four minutes of the third quarter, when Princeton went from down a goal to start an 8-2 run that led to a 14-9 win
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No. 28 Jacob Stoebner (Sr., D)
* veteran defenseman who is part of the regular rotation
* held Yale's Leo Johnson to no goals and one assist while having three caused turnovers and three ground balls
* also started against Rutgers, Penn and Brown
* had five caused turnovers and seven ground balls
No. 29 Lukas Stanat (Jr., A)
* has 10 goals and eight assists
* has started the last eight games
* had two assists in the second half against Penn in ILT final
* had two goals and four assists against Cornell
* had three goals against Dartmouth
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No. 32 Andrew McMeekin (Fr., FO)
* Ivy League All-Tournament team selection
* two-time Ivy Rookie of the Week
* went 26 for 50 with 18 ground balls in the two Ivy games
* was 16 for 29 with 12 ground balls against Yale in the ILT; won the opening face-off and fed Alex Slusher for a goal six seconds in, the fastest goal to start a game in program history
* was 10 for 21 with six ground balls against Penn in ILT semifinal
* won the face-off and got the ground ball with 13 seconds left and Princeton up 9-8 in the ILT semifinal against Penn
* was 25 for 48 with 17 ground balls in wins over Dartmouth and Harvard, winning league's top rookie honor both times
* leads team with 37 ground balls
* won 3 of 5 against Yale
* won 5 of 9 face-offs against Monmouth
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No. 35 Tyler Sandoval (Jr., FO)
* won 48 of 107 face-offs with 16 ground balls
* had an assist against Manhattan five seconds after another Princeton goal (it was the shortest elapsed time between goals in Princeton history)
* will miss the rest of the season after suffering knee injury against Syracuse
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No. 36 Braedon Saris (So., A)
* is fourth on the team in assists and sixth in points despite playing in only five games and starting only three due to multiple injuries
* will miss the rest of the season
* had two goals and five assists against Dartmouth
* had three goals and three assists against Monmouth
* had a goal and two assists against Manhattan
* had an assist against Maryland
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No. 39 Weston Carpenter (Sr., M)
* plays mostly man-up offense
* had first career two-point game, with a goal and assist against Yale in the Ivy final
* has six goals this year, with one against Yale in each game plus Rutgers, Maryland, Manhattan and Monmouth
* also has three assists, including one against Penn in ILT semifinal
* did not have a goal in his career prior to this season
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No. 43 Colin Mulshine (So., D)
* starter on defense
* has eight caused turnovers and 17 ground balls
* had two caused turnovers against Georgetown, Dartmouth and Cornell
* started 11 games as a freshman, including the final nine
No. 48 John Dunphey (Fr., M)
* has played on the second midfield unit for the last five games
* had a goal in the ILT final against Yale and an assist in the semifinal against Penn
* has four goals and three assists
* had Princeton's first goal against Cornell
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No. 50 Liam Fairback (So., SSDM)
* converted offensive midfielder who is in the regular defensive midfield rotation
* had two caused turnovers against Penn in the ILT semifinal
* had first career caused turnover in the game against Rutgers
* also has eight ground balls
No. 51 Jack Ringhofer (So., A)
* started four games on attack after Braedon Saris was hurt before missing several games with his own injury
* has seven goals and an assist
* had two goals against both Brown and Syracuse
No. 55 Jackson Kane (Fr., A)
* plays on the man-up unit
No. 88 Cooper Kistler (Fr., LSM)
* has four caused turnovers and eight ground balls, of which all four CTs and seven of the eight ground balls have come in the last five games
* had two CT against Yale in the Ivy final
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No. 91 Coulter Mackesy (So., A)
* USA Lacrosse Magazine second-team All-American
* unanimous first-team All-Ivy League selection
* leads team with 49 goals and 72 points
* 49 goals are tied with Wick Sollers (49 in 1977) for third-best in a season in program history, trailing Gavin McBride (54 in 2017)Â Jesse Hubbard (53 in 1997)
* was a Tewaaraton Final 25 nominee
* is the only player in program history with at least 49 goals and 23 assists in a season
* three time Ivy League Player of the Week
* has at least three goals in 10 of 14 games
* is fifth in Division I in points per game and sixth in goals per game
* is one of two players in program history with multiple games of at least 10 points (had 8G, 2A against both Harvard and Yale; Michael Sowers is the other player, and he did so five times)
* is the only player in program history with multiple career games of at least eight goals
* is the second Princeton player ever with at least 45 goals and 20 assists in a season (Mike MacDonald in 2015 was the other)
* is one of three Princeton players with at least 10 games of three goals or more in a season (Mike MacDonald in 2015, Chris Massey in 1997)
* became the first Princeton player with at least three goals in five or more games since Gavin McBride did it twice (2016, 2017)
* has three or more goals in 14 of 29 career games
* had career highs of eight goals and 10 points in win over Yale, earning Ivy Player of the Week and USA Lacrosse National Player of the Week honors
* had three goals and three assists against Brown for his second straight Ivy Player of the Week award
* had two goals against Penn in the ILT semifinal
* had five goals and six points against Georgetown
* had three goals and three assists against Rutgers
* had three of Princeton's five goals against Maryland
* had four goals and two assists against Monmouth
* had three goals against Manhattan
* had 28 goals and 15 assists a year ago; his 43 points were the fourth-most ever by a Princeton freshman, behind only Michael Sowers, Kevin Lowe and Ryan Boyle
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No. 99 Koby Ginder (So., FO)
* is 60 for 133 on face-offs with 27 ground balls for the season
* won 15 of 29 with a goal and six ground balls against Yale
* had an assist aganst Brown
* won 9 of 17 against Maryland, Georgetown, Rutgers and Penn
* won 8 of 12 face-offs against Manhattan with five ground balls
Head coach Matt Madalon
* 51-31 at Princeton, with a .622 winning percentage that trails only Bill Tierney at Princeton since 1950
* became the interim head coach for the final five games of the 2016 season
* has been the full time head coach since
* has won an Ivy League tournament championship and taken Princeton to two NCAA tournaments, reaching Championship Weekend a year ago
* is a former MLL goalie with the San Francisco Dragons and the Long Island Lizards
* is a member of the Roanoke College Hall of Fame
* coached at Stevens Tech under Gene Paluso before coming to Princeton
* he and his wife Ashely have three children: Waverly, Whitney and Wyatt, who was born April 22 about seven hours before Princeton's game at Dartmouth; Madalon FaceTimed during the birth from the hotel in Hanover when the baby arrived nearly a week early
Players Mentioned
Midfield
/ Men's Lacrosse
Attack
/ Men's Lacrosse
LSM
/ Men's Lacrosse
Defense
/ Men's Lacrosse
Midfield
/ Men's Lacrosse
Attack
/ Men's Lacrosse
Midfield
/ Men's Lacrosse
Midfield
/ Men's Lacrosse
Midfield
/ Men's Lacrosse
Defense
/ Men's Lacrosse
Goalie
/ Men's Lacrosse
FO/Midfield
/ Men's Lacrosse
Attack
/ Men's Lacrosse
Defense
/ Men's Lacrosse
LSM
/ Men's Lacrosse
Attack
/ Men's Lacrosse
Face-Off
/ Men's Lacrosse
Defense
/ Men's Lacrosse
Midfield
/ Men's Lacrosse
Goalie
/ Men's Lacrosse
Goalie
/ Men's Lacrosse
Attack
/ Men's Lacrosse
Defense
/ Men's Lacrosse
Attack
/ Men's Lacrosse
FO
/ Men's Lacrosse
Attack
/ Men's Lacrosse
Attack
/ Men's Lacrosse
Attack
/ Men's Lacrosse
Midfield
/ Men's Lacrosse
Defense
/ Men's Lacrosse
Midfield
/ Men's Lacrosse
Midfield
/ Men's LacrosseSticks and Stripes - Episode 3
Wednesday, May 14
Sticks and Stripes - Episode 2
Wednesday, April 23
Sticks and Stripes - Episode 1
Wednesday, April 09
Reflections from the Princeton Athletics Class of 2024
Tuesday, June 04