PHILADELPHIA – The 19th-ranked University of Pennsylvania men's lacrosse team used a strong first half and overcame a penalty-filled day to knock off city rival Villanova Saturday at Franklin Field, 11-8.
In the annual Farrell Cup contest, the Quakers outscored the Wildcats 6-0 in the first half and kept that margin for much of the second half in getting the victory.
Penn leveled its record at 3-3 while Villanova fell to 2-4.
Quaker Notemeal
*Penn won despite committing nine penalties on the day, five of which were one-minute majors and another that was a two-minute non-releasable.
*Junior
Griffin Scane scored a career-high five goals to lead the Quakers on Saturday.
*Senior
Cam Rubin scored Penn's last two goals for his third straight multi-goal game and fourth this season.
*Senior defenseman
Brendan Lavelle scored his first goal of the season with a full-field effort that was assisted by goalie
Emmet Carroll.
*Penn's other goal scorers on Saturday were
Nate Lucchesi,
Grayson McClements, and
Davis Provost.
*Senior
Ben Smith had three assists on Saturday while sophomore
Leo Hoffman had two.
*At the other end, Carroll finished the day with 14 saves and had a .636 save percentage.
How It Happened
Penn's first goal came in spectacular fashion, Carroll hustling to save a ball from going over the end line behind his goal. He slid it back into play where it was picked up by Lavelle, who then fired a shot from behind his own team's goal and into the net at the other end of the field…in the air. It was the Quakers' second long-pole goal of the season and the All-America defender's second collegiate tally.
Scane netted his first a little more than two minutes later, finding the low corner from the left wing. Penn led after one, 2-0.
Scane bookended a four-goal second quarter, netting four minutes in and again with 2:10 left. In between,
Grayson McClements bounced home a shot from a low angle for his first collegiate goal, and about three minutes later Lucchesi finished a tic-tac-goal sequence that started with Provost, continued with Smith and ended with the freshman open on the doorstep.
At the other end, Carroll had seven saves—six of them in the first quarter—and as a result the Quakers took a 6-0 lead into the locker room.
Villanova came out flying in the third quarter, finally getting on the board 2:52 into the period and tacking on two more within a three-minute span. Scane got one of those back less than a minute later, taking a feed from Lucchesi and in one motion firing home a behind-the-back effort.
The Wildcats answered, but then Provost and Scane scored just 29 seconds apart and that pushed the Quakers back in front by five. Villanova scored in the final 10 seconds of the third, and Penn led 9-5 heading into the final 15.
VU then scored five minutes into the fourth, but Rubin effectively put the game away with a pair of rips from up top—the first with 6:22 left and the other with 3:58 to play. That upped the margin back to five, and made a pair of Wildcats goals in the final few minutes inconsequential.
Up Next
Penn continues this four-game homestand next Saturday, hosting Brown in its Ivy League opener. The Quakers and Bears will face off at 1 p.m.
For the latest on Penn men's lacrosse, follow @PennMensLax on X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram, and on the web at PennAthletics.com.
#ILPL | #FightOnPenn
