Four seconds.

That's how long the No. 18 Loyola (1-2, 1-0 ECAC) men's lacrosse team had the lead in yesterday's contest against Penn State (0-3, 0-1) at Holuba Hall, but those few seconds were enough.

Penn State lost, 10-9, after leading by four goals at the beginning of the fourth period to remain winless for the 2007 season. Penn State has not started a season with three losses in the past six years. Shane Koppens' goal for the Greyhounds in the final seconds capped off a seven-goal, fourth-quarter rally and left the Lions in disbelief.

"It's just tough. It's terrible," sophomore attacker Rob Forster said. "I don't even know what to say. I'm shocked right now, just after what happened. I've never experienced that before."

The Lions came out strong in the first half, going on a four-goal run to open the game, dominating face-offs and ground balls, two inconsistent areas for the Lions this season. However, in the fourth quarter, Penn State only won two of 10 face-offs and only recovered seven of 17 ground balls, giving Loyola ample opportunities to take back the lead.

Defensive miscues late in the game also led to Penn State's demise. Penn State head coach Glenn Thiel said the defense mistakenly double teamed the ball when it had a man down because of a penalty. These unforced errors were what ultimately allowed Loyola to control the end of the game and mount an unstoppable comeback.

"It's just bizarre. We just gave it away," Thiel said. "We just gave them opportunities galore. We just never got a ground ball. We just got to get better in those circumstances, that's for darn sure. I mean that's the game all the time, who's tougher on groundballs, who can handle the rock. We did it well early, but we didn't do it late."

The offense showed signs of improvement, especially early in the contest. The inability to convert on offensive opportunities plagued the Lions in their first two games, but yesterday they converted on nine of their 19 shots. Last year's team leader in points, Brian Boyle returned to the starting lineup for the first time this season. Preseason All-America Pat Heim had his second straight three-goal performance, followed by Matt Radecic's two goals and one assist.

However, the offense went on a scoring drought late, managing only three shots in the final period, another contributor to the late collapse.

"Lacrosse is a game of runs," junior defender Tommy Zichelli said. "They went on a run in the stretch, and we couldn't get one going."

Loyola head coach Charles Toomey said Loyola's opening season losses to Notre Dame and Towson both came in close games, and the confidence they gained from sticking with those ranked teams was in the back of their minds during the comeback yesterday.

Now, it will be Penn State's turn to take motivation from its losses.