PHILADELPHIA – The University of Pennsylvania men's lacrosse team has one more game to go in the 2019 regular season, heading to Wilton, Conn. on Saturday to take on the University of Vermont in the IMLCA Game Of The Week.
 
No. 5 Penn (8-3, 6-0 Ivy) will look to add to its NCAA resume with a win over the Catamounts (7-5, 4-2 America East). Opening faceoff is set for 1 p.m. at Wilton H.S.
 
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Ivy Champs!
For the first time since 1988, Penn has won an Ivy League championship! The Quakers secured the fifth Ivy League championship in program history with a 26-13 win at Harvard and then locked up an outright title for the first time since 1986 with a 22-6 win over Dartmouth last weekend.
 
Rising In The Rankings
The Quakers have risen higher than any team in the USILA Coaches Poll this season, climbing to No. 5 this week after starting the season unranked. This is the highest the Red and Blue have been ranked in the USILA Coaches Poll since 1988 and just the 10th week all-time in the history of the poll the Quakers have been inside the Top-5. The Quakers are also climbing in the Inside Lacrosse Media Poll, sitting at No. 4 this week after starting the season No. 23.
 
Down Go The National Champs
Penn's 13-12 win over Yale in triple overtime ended a seven-game losing streak to the Bulldogs for the Quakers dating back to 2015. Penn's seniors had not beaten Yale until March 30, falling twice in each of the previous two seasons – including in the Ivy League Tournament semifinals the last three years. The win over the defending national champions was just the second all-time by the Quakers, the other coming in 2011 against Duke.
 
6-0
The Quakers wet 6-0 in the Ivy League for the first time since 1984. The six Ivy League wins this season matches Penn's total from each of the last two seasons combined.
 
We're Going Streaking!
Penn's eight-game winning streak tie its longest since an eight-game run in 2014 as the Quakers worked their way to a NCAA Tournament appearance. The Quakers are tied with No. 1 Penn State for the longest active winning streak in the nation – ironically, Penn State's streak started with a win over the Quakers and Penn's began the game after a loss in State College. Penn's six-game winning streak inside the Ivy League is the longest conference winning streak in the country.
 
All-Time Series
Saturday will be the first meeting all-time between Penn and Vermont. Penn's last opponent from the America East Conference was UMBC. The Quakers knocked off the Retrievers, 8-7, in Baltimore in 2016.
 
Mike Murphy vs. Ranked Opponents
Mike Murphy is 20-45 all-time against USILA Top-20 opponents following Penn's 13-12 (3OT) win over No. 2 Yale. The Red and Blue have played six teams ranked in the USILA Coaches Poll this season – each ranked inside the Top-11. The Quakers are 3-3 against Top-20 opponents this season, with wins over the Bulldogs, No. 8 Cornell and No. 11 Villanova.
 
Simon Says…
Few have been more reliable over a playing career than Simon Mathias. In 54 career games played, Mathias has 107 goals and 66 assists for 173 points – an average of 3.1 points-per-game. He ranks second among active Division I players with a 54-game point streak and is tied for No. 1 among active players with a 31-game goal scoring streak. His 107 career goals are No. 4 all-time at Penn – two away from tying for No. 3. His 173 career points are tied for No. 4 all-time by a Quaker – seven away from tying for the No. 3 spot on Penn's all-time list.
 
The Gold Standard
Adam Goldner leads Penn with 44 goals this season, already surpassing his single-season high of 28 last season. His 44 goals in a season are tied for No. 1 all-time by a Quaker, he's one away from surpassing John Shoemaker (1987) for the top spot. He has scored multiple goals in all 11 games this season, and his 4.0 goals per game are No. 1 in the Ivy League and No. 2 among all Division I players. In his six Ivy League games this season, Goldner has 28 goals and 32 total points. At Cornell, Goldner scored four times – including the game-winner with 17.9 seconds remaining in regulation. Goldner has now scored in 20 consecutive games dating back to last season, with 65 total goals scored in that stretch. There are only 12 players in the nation with goal scoring streaks of 15 or more games – Penn is the only team with two of them.
 
Gallagher's Greatest Hits
A 21-for-27 debut showed signs of what Kyle Gallagher can bring to the X for the Quakers in his first year with the team following his transfer from Hofstra. Through 11 games, Gallagher is 185-for-295, ranking No. 2 in the Ivy League and No. 12 in the country in faceoff winning percentage (.627). Gallagher has won 20+ faceoffs four times this season, and was he won 14-of-29 against Yale's TD Ierlan – the NCAA record holder for faceoff wins in a season. Gallagher's 9.7 groundballs per game are also No. 2 in the Ivy League and are No. 4 in the country.
 
Relying On Reed
Senior Reed Junkin has played in 54 career games in goal, manning the cage for over 3,170 minutes. The 2016 second-team All-Ivy selection and Ivy League Co-Rookie of the Year alongside teammate Simon Mathias, Junkin has earned four career Ivy League Player of the Week honors – his latest coming after a 22-save day against Yale. He enters this weekend with a .537 save percentage, with 139 saves made to 120 goals allowed. He has 10+ saves in nine of 11 games this season and ranks No. 3 in the Ivy League and No. 17 in the country in saves per game with 12.6. Junkin is third all-time in saves by a Penn keeper with 582. His 582 saves are fifth-most among active Division I goalies.
 
Sam The Man
Freshman Sam Handley has been named Ivy League Rookie of the Week four times this season – winning the award four consecutive weeks between and March 25 and April 15 – including after the Yale win where he scored the game-winner in the third overtime. He lead the Quakers with 21 assists and is second in both goals (27) and points (48). His 44 points are a new record for a Penn freshman, eclipsing the 42 registered by John Ward in 1995.  Handley's 1.9 assists per game rank No. 2 among freshmen in the country, and his 4.36 points per game are also No. 2 among freshmen in the nation.
 
On The Mark
Junior defender Mark Evanchick has developed into one of the Ivy League's premier defenders. After appearing in just three games as a freshman, Evanchick started all 15 games at close defense last season and often drew the assignment of the opposing team's top offensive threat. He finished with eight caused turnovers and 19 ground balls last season. He has three caused turnovers and 10 ground balls this season. Earlier this season, he held Princeton's Michael Sowers to a goal and two assists. At Cornell, his caused turnover with just over 1:00 to play in a tie game sent Penn in transition downfield towards its eventual game-winning goal.
 
All Clear
The Quakers are 195-for-227 on clearing attempts this season. Penn's .859 clearing percentage is No. 2 in the Ivy League.
 
Offensive Explosion
The Quakers have scored 171 goals through 11 games this season, ranking No. 1 in the Ivy League and No. 2 in the country in Scoring Offense at 15.6 goals per game. Penn has scored 12+ goals in 10 of 11 games, and the Quakers are averaging 17.3 goals per game over their eight-game winning streak. Penn has scored 48 goals over its last two games – the most goals scored in back-to-back games in program history. Penn's team record for goals in a season is 188, set in 1988 over 15 games.
 
Start Fast, End Faster
Penn has outscored opponents, 43-29, in the first quarter of games this season. In the fourth quarter, the Quakers have outscored opponents, 51-37.
 
Man-Up Momentum
Penn is 18-for-43 (.419) on the man-up this season, No. 1 in the Ivy League and No. 12 in the country in man-up percentage. The Quakers had 12 man-up goals all of last season.
 
Players Of The Week
Six Quakers have earned Ivy League weekly awards this season.
March 25 – Tyler Dunn (Player of the Week), Sam Handley (Rookie of the Week)
April 1 – Reed Junkin (Player of the Week), Sam Handley (Rookie of the Week)
April 8 – Sam Handley (Rookie of the Week)
April 15 – Sam Handley (Rookie of the Week)
 
Tewaaraton Watch
Simon Mathias was named to the Watch List for the 2019 Tewaaraton Award presented to the nation's top player. This marks the second season in a row he has been named to the Watch List. In the second round of additions to the Watch List, Adam Goldner and Sam Handley were added.
 
Fresh Faces Gain Recognition
A pair of Penn rookies earned spots on Inside Lacrosse's Top-25 Freshmen List. Sam Handley has 15 goals and 16 assists, landing as the No. 4 freshman in the country according to IL. Classmate BJ Farrare has seven caused turnovers, 13 ground balls, three goals and two assists as a long-stick midfielder to slot in at No. 21.
 
Best In The City!
The Quakers took care of business inside the City of Brotherly Love to start March, dispatching No. 11 Villanova (13-11) and Saint Joseph's (13-6) to sweep through the first Philly 4 Classic. Adam Goldner had six goals over the two games, while Sam Handley had four goals and seven assists.
 
Concerning The Catamounts …
Vermont's 4-2 record has the Catamounts sitting third in the America East behind Stony Brook and Albany who play each other the final weekend of the regular season … Vermont is No. 9 in the country in Scoring Defense, allowing 9.6 goals per game … Opposing teams have only scored 10+ goals against UVM six times in 12 games this season … Goalkeeper Nick Washuta is No. 6 in the country in save percentage (.576) and GAA (9.19) … Ben French leads the Catamounts in scoring with 23 goals and 32 points … He's the only Vermont player with more than 20 goals, but the Catamounts have seven players with 10+ goals … David Closterman is second on the team with 17 goals and 10 assists for 27 points … Alex Semler is 99-for-187 on faceoffs (.529) to lead the team … Andrew Simeon has 45 ground balls.