Facing the No. 1 team in the country is a daunting test for any team, but the Penn men's lacrosse team stepped up to the challenge when it faced Johns Hopkins March 8.
"We held our own in the game," Penn coach Brian Voelker said. "We showed some flashes of light."
The Quakers (3-2) fell to Johns Hopkins, 14-5, but defeated Mount Saint Mary's, 11-9, and No. 18 Army, 13-8, later in the break.
Penn managed an early lead against Hopkins (3-1) when senior captain Alex Kopicki netted a goal one minute and nine seconds into the game. Senior Stephen Brown led the Quakers in scoring with two goals against the Blue Jays.
Next up for the Red and Blue was Mount Saint Mary's (3-9) on March 11. The Quakers took control early, going up, 6-2, at the end of the first quarter, but found themselves tied, 6-6, at the end of the third.
"We didn't have our greatest second half," Voelker said.
The Quakers refused to give up the win. Kopicki scored four goals in the final quarter to lead Penn's comeback.
"We showed little bit of character," Voelker said.
Motivated by their rally against Mount Saint Mary's, Penn was determined to upset then-No. 18 Army who was coming into the contest on a four-game winning streak.
The Quakers were in control of the ball from the outset, with players stepping up at every position.
"We outplayed them," Voelker said. "We dominated all aspects of the game."
The Quakers put the game out of reach in the third, when they upped their 5-4 lead to 9-5 by the end of the quarter. Freshman Chase McGowan recorded his first collegiate goal to kick off the half and senior Jake Martin and junior Will Phillips combined to score seven goals. Martin fired a career-high four shots and had one assist on the day.
Senior goalkeeper Mark Gannon recorded a career-high 13 saves against the Cadets
"It was by far our best game of the year," Voelker said. "We really took it to them."
Penn is hoping that this game was a indicative of how it will perform the rest of the year. The Quakers kicks off their Ivy League schedule this Saturday at Harvard.
"Hopefully it is a sign of things to come," Voelker said. "I'm really hoping we can do that starting our Ivy League schedule."
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