UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa., April 30, 2004 ¨CThe Penn State men¡¯s lacrosse team (5-7, 0-3) lost its fourth non-conference match of the season as Villanova (11-2, 4-1) tallied three goals in the fourth quarter to seal an 11-9 victory. This is the first time that Penn State has lost to Villanova in its 90-year history. Sophomore attackman Nate Whitaker (Great Falls, Va.) notched three goals and two assists in the game for the Lions.

Seven goals were scored in the opening quarter as Villanova took an early 4-3 advantage. The Wildcats jumped out to a 2-0 lead when Dan Fanelli and Matt Starker each found the back of the net. The Lions responded with a goal from junior attackman Will Cutler (Vienna, Va.) who has now scored at least one point in six of the last seven games he has played in. Sophomore John Eremus (Rosemont, Pa.) and Whitaker each tallied their first goals of the game before Villanova¡¯s Chris Kramer scored a goal with three seconds left to end the first quarter.

Both teams traded goals three times in the second quarter. Senior Greg Hale (Pittsford, N.Y.) scored two goals for the Lions in the period on assists from senior captain Edmond Perry (Port Washington, N.Y.) and Whitaker. Brendan O¡¯Donnell notched two points in the period for the Wildcats and Marc Ceegan tallied his 24th goal of the season to keep Villanova on top at halftime with a 7-6 lead.

Junior midfielder Mike Jacober (Providence, R.I.) scored an unassisted goal for the Lions to open up the third quarter and tie the game at 7-7. The Wildcats answered back 23 seconds later with a goal from Kramer who finished with two points on the day. Whitaker tied the game once more for Penn State when he tallied his third goal of the game at the 6:22 mark to end the third quarter with an 8-8 tie.

Villanova outplayed Penn State in the final 15 minutes of the game opening up the fourth quarter with three straight goals. Wildcat Matt Starker notched two goals in the quarter while Richie Kratz scored one goal to give Villanova an 11-8 lead. The Nittany Lions tried to mount a late comeback when freshman Gil Pearsall (Carthage, N.Y.) found the back of the net at the 2:31 mark but it was the last scoring either team would see as Villanova claimed victory 11-9.

Junior goalkeeper Josh LaGrow (Skaneateles, N.Y.) played all 60:00 minutes making 12 saves on 23 shots. Villanova goal keeper Joseph Canuso also played the entire match finishing with 14 saves on 41 shots.

Penn State will return home and host Virginia in its final game of the season on Saturday, May 8 at 1:00 p.m.