Adversity comes in many forms. An untimely injury, suspect officiating or even intangibles off the field. But what about travel problems? Say, the team bus breaking down on a lonely stretch of highway.

Well, the latter is exactly what happened to the women's lacrosse team Friday night en route to Harrisonburg, Va. Now it can be said that the Lady Lions are no strangers to adversity.

The bus was scheduled to arrive in Virginia around 9 p.m., but engine trouble stalled the team, and it did not arrive until 1:30 Saturday morning; somewhat later than expected. Game time was 1 p.m.

The short night was compounded with subpar field conditions at James Madison.

"We weren't really tired," junior defender Sue Nutter said. "(The field) was wet in spots, especially down in the arc area. Inside the crease was just a total mudpile. It was really awful."

Midfielder Chris McGinley said, "It makes us all feel a little bit slower. It was a lot different than what we have been used to."

But despite these inconveniences, the Lady Lions went on to triumph, 11-9. The team was led by Deanna Blood who notched three goals, all in the second half, and two assists. Lori Fitzgerald and Chris McGinley each added two scores. The win upped the team's record to a perfect 3-0.

James Madison falls to 2-2. The Dukes were led by Nora Maguire who tallied five goals and an assist. Michelle Bianco added three goals and an assist.

The Dukes surged to a 4-1 lead in the first half, but Penn State answered with four goals in just over six minutes. The team took a 5-4 lead after Marcy Kolongowski scored her first career goal. Penn State took a 6-5 lead into halftime.

"We came out very sluggish, both physically and mentally," Coach Julie Williams said.

"It just took us about ten minutes to get started," Nutter said. "We couldn't really get in gear."

Penn State began to pull away in the second, but couldn't seem to deliver the knockout punch. After Donna Bucci scored to give the Lady Lions a four goal lead at 9-5, Maguire answered with two goals 19 seconds apart. Penn State responded with two goals, promptly followed by two James Madison goals to end the scoring.

"The offense moved the ball real well," Williams said. "The defense was aware of the double team opportunites."

Williams also dipped into the talent pool on the bench more than usual, considering it was a close contest.

"The subs played very nicely," Williams said. "There was good hustle in the field in a pressure situation."

The Lady Lions travel to Philadelphia tomorrow to face Temple. Game time is 3 p.m.