M. Lax opens at home v. Lafayette

After losing its season opener to Notre Dame, the Penn men's lacrosse team hosts Lafayette tonight at 7 p.m. in its home-opener. The Quakers (0-1) are hoping to garner their first victory of the year. "We just have to focus on Lafayette, get that first win under our belt, and move on from there," Penn coach Brian Voelker said. After their most successful season in 13 years -- in which the team had nine wins and a top-20 national ranking -- the No. 23 Quakers lost to No. 17 Notre Dame, 14-5, last weekend. Penn sparked last year's run with a 7-6 win over Notre Dame at Franklin Field. But Voelker is not too worried about the early-season setback. "I think, number one, Notre Dame is a pretty good team," he said. "They took advantage of our youth and inexperience a little bit." Indeed, the Quakers lost several key seniors and their starting goalie from last season. "People have to understand that it's a very different team than last year's," Voelker said. Last season, then-junior Ryan Kelly manned the goal for Penn and earned the I.W. Burnham II Award, presented annually to the program's Most Outstanding Player. But Kelly is no longer on the Penn roster. Senior Mark Gannon started in goal for Penn against Notre Dame and allowed 14 goals. "He gave us a real good first half," Voelker said of Gannon. "He had a little let down in the third quarter, but so did a lot of our guys." Gannon will start against Lafayette, Voelker noted. While Penn lost by nine to the Fighting Irish, the first half was relatively even. "We played pretty decent and were tied at 4-4 right before the half," Voelker said. Notre Dame dominated the second half, outscoring the Quakers 9-1. The Fighting Irish had more practice time than the Quakers, as many of Penn's practices were cancelled due to the snow, Voelker said. The Quakers are still confident about the season ahead. "We can't reinvent the wheel and panic," Voelker said. "It's only the second game of the year." Penn eagerly awaits playing Lafayette. "It's good that we have a game [today]," Voelker said. "We have a chance to redeem ourselves right away."

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