Penn men's lacrosse seeks rebound against Elis

It’s time to get down to business.

After dropping its first two games of the 2015 Ivy League season, Penn men’s lacrosse will look to turn its fortunes around as it takes on No. 11 Yale this Saturday.

After losing to then-No. 11 Princeton on March 14, Cornell defeated the Red and Blue (3-5, 0-2 Ivy) last Saturday in particularly frustrating fashion.

After trailing 9-4 at halftime, the Quakers fought back and took the No. 7 Big Red to three overtimes before dropping the contest, 10-9.

However, despite the hard-fought loss, coach Mike Murphy insists that the atmosphere in practice has been positive all week.

“We played our best half of lacrosse all year,” Murphy said. “Obviously, you don’t want to lose a game, you don’t want to lose an Ivy League game, and you don’t want to lose in triple overtime. But, all that being considered, it was definitely something we can build on.”

While the winless start to the Ivy season is not ideal, the Quakers have been here before. Last season, the Red and Blue were in the same position after losing to Princeton and Cornell. Of course, that campaign ended with a championship at the end of the Ivy League tournament.

“They’re very different,” Murphy said of the contrasts between the current team and last year’s squad. “I really like this team, but we do have some new faces in new places getting comfortable with their responsibilities.”

The Quakers have been powerful offensively all season, led by senior midfield Joe McCallion. The Narberth, Pa., native scored four goals last Saturday in Ithaca, pushing his season total to a team-high 18. Joining him with success in the front of the field is junior attack Nick Doktor, who has also been impressive, leading the team with 35 total points.

On the other side of the ball, Yale (5-2, 0-2) will be led by attack Conrad Oberbeck. The senior is in second place on the Bulldogs’ all-time scoring list with 133 career goals and leads his team with 19 tallies this season.

“We try not to game plan excessively for one individual,” Murphy said of the team’s plan to slow down Oberbeck. “He’s a really good player who can score in a lot of different ways ... but I think [Penn senior defenseman] Matt McMahon is a good matchup for him.”

A turnaround similar to last year’s will only be possible if the Quakers start winning games. A year ago, Penn ran the table in Ivy play after its two losses to begin the Ancient Eight season. And in a conference schedule that only features six games, Saturday’s showdown with Yale could be a major turning point.

Still, Murphy is quick to emphasize that his team’s chances don’t hinge on any one game alone.

“I don’t think putting any pressure on us is going to make us play better,” he said. “Historically, the fourth team that gets into the tournament is 3-3. But, of course, you have to approach every game as a must-win.”

While the Quakers will not be mathematically eliminated with a loss on Saturday, the Red and Blue need to get back into winning form if they are to have a shot at a second consecutive Ivy title.

Last year’s furious championship run started at this exact point in the season. This weekend, we will see if the Quakers are capable of an encore performance.

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