No Sanctuary

After slow start, Notre Dame dominates laxers in first game of season

When the Penn State and Notre Dame men's lacrosse teams opened their seasons Sunday in South Bend, Ind., two experienced goalies stood where they always do, by themselves, apart from their teams. They stood prepared to guard their cages, prepared to take the heat as the last line of defense.

Penn State's Kevin Keenan and Notre Dame's Alex Cade were hidden by helmets and chest guards and gloves, ready to stand alone. They are goalies, after all.

"Notre Dame just kept scoring. I just couldn't make a save," Keenan said. "I played the worst game of my career. I have to flat-out play better."

Before it turned into Keenan's personal nightmare, however, the game appeared to be in Penn State's control.

Notre Dame defenseman Todd Rassas got a quick penalty for an illegal check and seconds after the penalty ran out, Penn State senior attacker Chris Killoren scored one minute, 38 seconds into game on the Lions' first shot. Penn State junior attacker John Chescavage scored an unassisted goal just eight seconds later giving the Lions a 2-0 advantage after their first two shots.

The Irish, however, regained their poise after the sloppy, undisciplined start.

While the experience of 10 seniors helped the Irish regain focus in the opening minutes, their main offensive contributor was a freshman. With the Lions concentrating on junior attacker Chris Dusseau, the leading Irish scorer for the past two seasons, David Ulrich, was able to capitalize with five goals and two assists in his collegiate debut.

"We knew nothing about him. He certainly gave us fits," Penn State coach Glenn Thiel said. "We didn't have a good matchup for him. He was a key guy."

Ulrich struck first for the Irish, sneaking a shot through Keenan's legs with 10:06 to play in the first quarter. He also scored two goals in the second quarter when the Irish were able to pull away from the Lions. The first quarter ended with the Irish up 5-3, but then Notre Dame outscored Penn State 5-2 in the second and Keenan found himself watching freshman goalie Matt Vallone from the sideline.

"The second quarter just killed us," Thiel said. "Nobody should score on 100 percent of their shots."

Notre Dame outshot Penn State 40-37, won 14 faceoffs to the Lions' 10 and had a decided advantage in groundballs, taking 40 compared to Penn State's 28.

"There's always penalties early, but I attribute it to Midwest refereeing," Thiel said. "We tend to be aggressive anyway. We just gave them too many penalties."

Vallone stepped in to stop the bleeding and came up with six saves while allowing four goals. The Lions regrouped to stay even with the Irish in the second half, getting goals from Chescavage, Ted Holmes, Killoren and Chris Schiller.

While it wasn't enough to repair the damage done in the second quarter, Penn State did regain some confidence for its game at Villanova Saturday.

"We're going to try some different combinations. We have to be better in the goal," Thiel said. "We were athletic and intense. We just didn't perform the way we have to perform."