At the start of its game against Bucknell, the Penn men’s lacrosse team looked to have a classic case of a big-win hangover.
The Quakers looked groggy, sluggish and uninspired in the opening minutes of their 8-6 victory over Bucknell Tuesday night at Franklin Field — just three days after a dramatic 7-3 win over defending national champion Duke.
In the first quarter, it seemed the Red and Blue (2-0) were still in recovery mode from the high of their triumph over the Blue Devils.
Bucknell seniors Mike Danylyshyn and Ryan Klipstein got the Bison off on the right foot, both scoring within the first two minutes of play.
“We didn’t really play defense the way we talk about playing defense,” Penn coach Mike Murphy said after the game. “[The goals we allowed early] were just us breaking down.”
And break down the Quakers did.
By the end of the first quarter, the score was 3-1 in favor of the Bison, and there did not appear to be a light at the end of the tunnel.
Penn looked flatter than a crepe from Houston Hall.
And just when it looked like the Quakers were going to succumb, senior midfielder Al Kohart came to the rescue.
With a terrific one-on-one move, Kohart was able to snake past his defender and find the back of the net at the 10:09 mark in the second quarter.
Another goal from Bucknell made it 4-2, but the game was within reach at the half.
And then the Red and Blue sobered up.
Sloppy passing became more precise, the pace sped up and the Quakers put their collective foot on the gas to start the second half.
“We settled down,” Murphy said. “The thing I’m most pleased about is nobody really freaked out.”
And the scoreboard began to reflect their composure.
Making a statement about his individual talents, Kohart used a 360-spin move from the left side of the box to score his second goal just under six minutes into the third quarter.
“We kept digging,” Murphy said. “And climbed back into it.”
The Quakers allowed a quick goal to make it 5-3 for the Bison, but after that, the hosts took command.
Sharp Penn ball movement and great hustle on offense allowed the Red and Blue to score five unanswered goals, making the score 8-5.
Even goaltender Brian Feeney tried to get in on the action, attempting a field-length shot from his own zone when he saw Bucknell’s net was empty.
The Bison were able to tack on one more score before time ran out, but the outcome never seemed in question once Penn’s tally hit eight.
Through it all, Murphy is most impressed by his team’s ability to grind out close games, no matter how ugly the play may have to be.
“It wasn’t pretty, it wasn’t a work of art,” Murphy said. “But that’s a good team … and we did what we had to do to win. At the end of the day, that’s the most important thing.”
