Even a half-hour after practice, the intense scowl is still on Penn State men's lacrosse defenseman Jan Northrop's face. He walks around the locker room with ice on his wrist, numbing the pain of the latest of a serious of minor injuries he has played through.

This is Northrop's essence. Whether he is at a practice or a game, or any other type of lacrosse workout, the intensity is there, and it never wanes. He is now in his second year as the leader of Penn State's 19th ranked defense because of that intensity, and an ability to lead his team vocally.

"He's a very hard worker," Penn State men's lacrosse coach Glenn Thiel said. "He's been the most consistent guy on defense. He's a real emotional guy. He speaks his mind and the other kids listen."

Some of that intensity is from the family genes. He comes from a military family. His father John was a West Point graduate who retired a colonel and served as the advisor to the vice chief of staff of the Army. His two brothers, Ian and Jason, were both West Point grads, and both are still in the service. Though Jan himself decided against military life, his upbringing has a clear influence in his style of play.

"I think I get some of that from my dad," Northrop said. "I just naturally get really intense. Once I get on the field, I get in such a zone. I want to be the best guy out there. I want to be getting the hard ground balls and do whatever else the team needs me to do."

That intensity translated into a tremendous work ethic and passion for the sport of lacrosse, which was made most evident when Northrop picked up the sport.

He had focused on soccer for most of his youth, but he was cut from the ninth grade team at Lake Braddock High School in Burke, Va. He had some friends on the lacrosse team who eventually convinced him to join the team.

The next Christmas, he got a lacrosse stick. He immediately got to work, taking the stick out and throwing a ball against a wall for between two and four hours a day.

"This was one of the coldest winters in Northern Virginia in 50 years," John said. "For that whole Christmas break, the temperature was between 5-and-10 degrees with large amounts of snow, but Jan would walk out to the nearby high school where the road were salted and throw the ball against a wall for hours."

He started out just throwing against the wall left handed and right handed, and eventually learned how to pick up the tough ground balls, getting nearly all of his training from the wall of the school, working with pure self-motivation.

"I just loved it," Northrop said. "I threw every day, not so much because I was training, but I just thought it was a lot of fun."

He joined the school team his sophomore year, playing for an undefeated junior varsity squad. The varsity team made the playoffs, and Northrop was given a chance to travel with them. After the defensive starter in charge of covering the opposition's crease attacker allowed two goals within the game's first four minutes, Northrop was put in the game. His squad lost, but he shut his man down. This was less than six months after the first time he picked up a lacrosse stick.

He would go on to be elected a high school All-American unanimously, and led his team to the district finals in lacrosse-mad Northern Virginia his senior year.

"He just had such a tremendous work ethic," Lake Braddock coach Steve Price said. "I've got to say that he's among a handful of the best players I've ever coached."

By his sophomore year at Penn State, he won a starting job. In the past two years he has become the unquestioned leader of the defense. He has a physical style of play that usually gets him matched up with the opposition's best ball handler.

"He can be the physical enforcer," Glenn Thiel said. "He's not the fastest guy, but when he's on a match up that suits him well, he can bang around with the guy he's on, and get the ball that way."

Jan's passionate attitude on the field is exactly what his coaches look for in a defenseman.

"For Jan, every goal the opposition gets is the worst thing imaginable," assistant coach Lars Tiffany said. "When they score, he just becomes frantic and crazy, and he reacts to everything."

Jan is a vocal leader, but he also possesses humility, and an understanding of the power of constructive criticism, which has garnered him respect without alienating him from his teammates.

"I'm a firm believer that actions speak louder than words," he said. "There's a time when something needs to be said. If I have to, I will get in somebody's face. That's my job, but I try to keep things constructive.

His teammates have noticed this, and see his style of leadership as one of the driving forces of the team.

"Jan's always trying to fire up everybody around him," senior attacker Tim Emmick said. "He's always intense. He's definitely an important defender, and his leadership is a very important part of our team."

Northrop is among a group of 12 seniors that will likely graduate without playing a game in the NCAA tournament, despite finishing ranked in all four of their seasons on the roster. There is no denying that he will leave somewhat disappointed, but he will still look back on his days as a Nittany Lion and remember them with pride, not disappointment.

"If we don't make it, this won't be all for not," Northrop said. "Playing lacrosse at Penn State has been the greatest experience of my life. I've had a great career, and this has just been the most amazing thing. I wouldn't have traded this for anything."

And there isn't much for which Penn State would have traded Northrop's intensity and leadership .