PHILADELPHIA – Hosting its first game of the 2023 season, the #8 University of Pennsylvania men's lacrosse team takes on #10 Duke Saturday afternoon kicking off at 1 p.m. from Ace Adams Field at Penn Park.
 
The Quakers started the new year off strong last Saturday with a 9-7 victory over Georgetown in Washington, D.C., riding solid performances from junior Cam Rubin (four goals) and junior goalie Emmet Carroll (18 saves).
 
Saturday will mark the 11th all-time matchup against the Blue Devils and will feature a battle against a Top 10 opponent for the second consecutive week.
 
GAME 2: #8/7 Penn (1-0, 0-0 Ivy) vs. #10/14 Duke (3-1, 0-0 ACC)
Saturday, Feb. 25 | 1 p.m.
Philadelphia, Pa. | Ace Adams Field at Penn Park
Watch (ESPN+) | Live Stats | Game Notes | Tickets
 
HOME SWEET HOME
*Penn returns home for the first time in 2023, starting the season off at Penn Park Saturday against Duke. The Quakers went 4-2 at home last season, winning their regular season matchup at Ace Adams Field against Saint Joseph's, 13-12 in OT. Penn trailed the Hawks, 10-5, early in the fourth quarter before pulling out the comeback victory capped by James Shipley's game-winning goal.
 
LAST TIME DOWN AT PENN PARK
*Who can forget Penn's last time playing at Penn Park? Playing against Richmond in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, the Quakers scored in the final minute of regulation and then won an 11-10 final in overtime to advance to the quarterfinals for the second time in as many opportunities. Sam Handley scored three times with an assist, while Ben Smith had five goals and six points along with the game-tying and game-winning goals.
 
THE PENN-DUKE SERIES
*This particular series has been an entertaining one, and one that has gone in the Quakers' favor over the years. Penn is 7-4 all-time against the Blue Devils in a series that dates back to 1970. The Quakers have won three of the last four matchups including two in a row, both of which came in neutral-site matchups including a 14-13 overtime victory last season at MacArthur HS in Levittown, N.Y.
 
The last time Penn and Duke squared off in Philadelphia, the Quakers won 10-9 at Franklin Field on Feb. 24, 2018, a little over five years to the date.
 
DOWN GO THE HOYAS
*What a start to the 2023 season for Penn, who took down #8/10 Georgetown in Washington last weekend, 9-7. Six different scorers notched nine goals with a team-high four for junior Cam Rubin. Both Shipley and Dylan Gergar tacked on a pair of assists while Peter Blake picked up three ground balls and Ethan Till led the way with three caused turnovers.
 
Between the pipes, junior Emmet Carroll made a career-high 18 saves and Chris Arceri finished 11-for-20 on faceoff opportunities.
 
YOU JUST MADE THE LIST!
*Carroll was excellent in net for the Quakers over the weekend, stopping 18 shots with a save percentage of .720. For his performance, he was named to the USILA Division I Team of the Week.
 
Carroll's 18 saves were the most by a Quaker since Patrick Burkinshaw had 20 in two games last season, most recently in Penn's Ivy League Tournament semifinal victory over Brown.
 
HEY, WE KNOW YOU!
*Penn will have a familiar face lining up with Arceri in the circle on Saturday as former Quakers faceoff specialist Jamie Zusi is currently playing his grad year at Duke. He's 4-for-10 on faceoff opportunities this season after going 183-for-336 in 2022 for Penn and 205-for-365 in his two-year career.
 
FOUR AWAY
Gergar is just four goals away from joining a prestigious fraternity. After tallying one score against the Hoyas on Saturday, the senior put himself just four goals away from putting himself in the 100-goal club, now at 96. Only six players in program history have more than 100 goals, the last being Adam Goldner, who scored 115 from 2017-21.
 
PENN IN THE NATIONAL STATS
*The Quakers rank first in saves per game (18.00)
 
*They are also second in clearing percentage (.957)
 
*Penn heads into the upcoming weekend ranked fourth in scoring defense (7.00) and 25th in faceoff winning percentage (.550).
 
PENN PLAYERS IN NATIONAL STATS
*Carroll leads the nation in two major goalkeeper categories—save percentage (.720) and saves per game (18.0)—and is currently sixth in goals against average (7.00).
 
*Till is eighth in the nation in caused turnovers per game (3.00).
 
*Rubin enters the weekend third in shot percentage (.800) and 12th in goals per game (4.00).
 
*Gergar and Shipley are both tied for 30th in assists per game (2.00).
 
PENN IN IVY STATS
*The Quakers pace the Ivy League in two categories currently—saves per game (18.00) and scoring defense (7.00)—while ranking second in clearing percentage (.957), just behind Brown (.960).
 
PENN PLAYERS IN IVY STATS
*Carroll is the cream of the crop for goalkeepers in the Ivy League after the first weekend of action, leading the way with the top mark in goals against average (7.00), save percentage (.720) and saves per game (18.00)
 
*Rubin ranks second in shot percentage (.800).
 
*Ben Smith is fourth in man-up goals (1), while Arceri ranks fifth in faceoff percentage (.550).
 
BEHIND ENEMY LINES
*Duke heads into Saturday's matchup looking for its fourth victory of 2023 so far, winning three of its last four. The Blue Devils are coming off a gritty, 14-13 overtime victory against Denver last Friday evening as Brennan O'Neill scored a man-up goal 22 seconds into OT to lift Duke to the win. He also netted the game-tying goal with 19 seconds remaining to force overtime.
 
*Dyson Williams leads the team with 16 goals, followed by Brennan O'Neill (13) and Andrew McAdorey (10). O'Neill also leads the team with 10 assists, totaling a team-high 23 points in just four contests. William Helm has been solid in net, posting a 10.03 GAA with 42 saves and a .538 save percentage.
 
*Duke has played just one ranked team so far this season, which happens to be its only loss of the campaign, a 13-12 defeat to #17 Jacksonville on Feb. 11.
 
FOLLOW THE ACTION
*Penn's battle with Duke will be streamed live on ESPN+ (subscription required) with live stats provided via StatBroadcast.