Feb. 23, 2007
by Brian Logue, Lacrosse Magazine Online Staff
VILLANOVA, Pa. -- The turning point of Penn's 10-6 victory over Villanova came on a play that both teams rarely, if ever, practice. You just don't get looks like the one 'Nova's Eric Webber got in front of the Penn goal.
With Penn (1-0) clinging to a 4-3 lead late in the third quarter, Webber found himself completely unguarded with the ball five yards in front of Penn senior goalie Greg Klossner. Klossner had to do a quick double-take when he turned his view from behind the cage to see Webber right in front of him.
"I was surprised he was that open," said Klossner. "I just reacted. I thought he'd go high."
Klossner guessed right. He jumped and made a chest-high save on Webber, igniting a big Penn rally. It was the signature save of a brilliant second half for Klossner, who made 14 of his 18 saves in the half.
"He was great," said Penn coach Brian Voelker, whose team was ranked 18th in the preseason by Lacrosse magazine. "He stepped up and made that save and we made some big plays after that."
With 12 seconds remaining in the third quarter, Penn freshman Chris Harms scored to give the Quakers a 5-3 lead and Penn added three more goals in the opening five minutes of the fourth quarter to take a seemingly comfortable 8-3 lead. 'Nova was far from done though.
"The one thing I told these guys after watching film was they play tough," said Voelker of his crosstown rival.
Villanova (1-1) scored three straight goals in less than three minutes, pulling to within 8-6 after freshman Mike Scioscia scored with 7:21 to play. Penn won the ensuing faceoff, but Villanova quickly got it back after Scioscia delivered a huge hit on Penn's Brian Weiss. A Penn penalty with 7:06 remaining gave 'Nova an extra-man opportunity with the chance to pull within one, but the Wildcats failed to get off a quality shot.
Penn sophomore Drew Collins scored with 5:38 to play, his second goal of the quarter, to end the Villanova threat. Collins, J.J. Lian and Garvey Heiderman all had two goals for the Quakers while Craig Andrzejewski, who has switched to attack this season, added a goal and an assist.
Mike Haas had a pair of goals for Villanova and face-off specialist Chris Colliniates had a huge game, winning 15-of-20. Colliniates' play helped Villanova dominate possession in the first half, frustrating the Penn offense.
"We were really sloppy in the first half," said Voelker. "We played much better in the second half and I thought we confused them a little bit with some zone (defense)."
Penn had to overcome bitter cold temperatures, a wicked sun glare and gusting winds to register the victory.
"We've been practicing outside since February first in weather like this," said Klossner. "We've had scrimmages the last two weeks where it was colder."
The cold weather did serve to keep the crowd down at Villanova Stadium on Friday afternoon. With more than a dozen Philadelphia-area high school products on the two school's rosters and the close proximity of the campuses, the game has potential to be a great showcase for the area. The two teams have traditionally played in the early season.
"We've talked about moving the game, but this is the way the schedules have worked out," said Voelker. "It would be great to have a 60 degree night with a lot of people out here. Hopefully with both of us going up in the rankings we'll get some more attention."
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