Final Score: Penn 27 Georgetown7

Chris Wynn took the opening kickoff back 88 yards for the score and the Quakers never looked back. Even after Mike DiMaggio went down, freshman Matt Hamscher filled in admirably, going for over 100 yards on the day. They stopped Georgetown quarterback Keerome Lawrence on the ground, and put together a few nice drives, resulting in 2 Samson field goals and a pair of short rushing touchdowns. Only a late fumble and fourth-down conversion prevented Penn from getting the shutout. The Quakers move back to .500 and end their non-conference slate with a win here in the nation’s capital.

Penn 27 Georgetown 7 End of Regulation

Lawrence runs it, but is rocked by Glen Cressman. He drops the ball and the Quakers recover at the Georgetown 18. Junior fullback Thurston Hamlette comes in and takes a few carries to run out the clock.

Penn 27 Georgetown 7 2:42 Fourth Quarter

A short, high kickoff gives Penn good field position, at their own 36. Hamscher spins and dodges defenders to gain 9 yards when it looked like there was nothing. He fumbles at the end of the play, but the Quakers get it back. On second down, the refs give Hamscher the first down, but it didn’t look like he got it from up here. Hamscher runs to the outside for 2 yards, and is now over 100 yards on the day in relief of Mike DiMaggio. An Olson incompletion and a five-yard screen to Hamscher means Olson stays on the field, only this time it’s to punt. His kick is downed at the 9.

Penn 27 Georgetown 7 6:03 Fourth Quarter

Lawrence picks up a first down on the ground. But a few Quakers tackles bring up a 4th and 4 for the Hoyas. A Lawrence pass is caught at the 3, good for the first down but no touchdown. And the training staff is tending to Georgetown lineman Kelvin Moses, who is helped off the field by a pair of teammates. Upon resuming play, Wade gets to the 1 and Lawrence completes a second down bootleg pass to a diving Collin Meador. The shutout suffers, but not much else. That is Lawrence’s first passing touchdown of the season. Comically, the team gets whistled for having 12 men on the field during the extra point, but Georgetown drills it anyway.

Penn 27 Georgetown 0 9:34 Fourth Quarter

Second stringers come in for Penn. That means Olson comes in, but the running back position remains the same, as Hamscher is still in the backfield. Two Hamscher runs sandwiching a DeLuca carry give Penn a first down. A second down pass complete to Koontz, but he fumbles it and the Hoyas recover at the Penn 28.

Penn 27 Georgetown 0 11:28 Fourth Quarter

Larence completes a pass for a first down to Kenny Mitchell, who remains on the ground after the play. Trainers attend to him and he trots off the field without help. Lawrence scrambles on the next play and picks up 28 yards on the broken play. He rushes for 10 yards and another first down on the next play. He tries it on the next third down, but the Quakers swarm him short of the line, and the Hoyas will go for fourth down. A blitzing Ertman gets to Lawrence in the backfield, and Guillermo Ruffolo brings him up short of the first.

Penn 27 Georgetown 0 End of Third Quarter

A Wade run for about a yard, brings us to the end of the third quarter. This one’s a blowout, folks.

Penn 27 Georgetown 0 0:34 Third Quarter

After a pass goes for a loss, Lawrence throws away an option toss on second down, but the ball goes out of bounds. Lawrence’s third down pass lands right in the hands of Tony Moses for his first career interception. He returns it to the Georgetown 14. On second down, Hamscher takes it to the 2 for a first down. A Georgetown substitution penalty brings Penn to the 1, and Irvin hands it to Luck DeLuca for the touchdown plunge, a career-first for DeLuca. Samson kicks it through, and Penn is up comfortably, 27-0

Penn 20 Georgetown 0 2:51 Third Quarter

Goergeown starts at their own 34. Lawrence tries to scramble on third down and fumbles the ball, but the Hoyas recover and punt it away. Short punt caught by Marcus Lawrence on the Penn 46, so the Quakers take over with good field position. Koontz drops it on first down, and a Georgetown linebacker drops a ball right to his hands on the second. Appenfelder gets the ball on third down and comes up just short of the first down, though the spot was very questionable. Olson in to punt it away. It goes into the endzone for a touchback.

Penn 20 Georgetown 0 5:23 Third Quarter

Kyle Olson sees his first time at quarterback. He hands it off to Hamscher a couple times for a first down. Olson completes it to Koontz, who five catches a re a career high. Hamscher takes the handoff, dodging and hurdling defenders for 14 yards. Another completion to Koontz, who levels a defender en route to a first down. Georgetown sniffs out a screen to Hamscher, and he loses 4, while a Patrick O’Donnell sack knocks Penn back 12 more. A Hamscher run brings them to the 20-yard line, and Samson drills a 37-yard field goal right down the middle and with plenty of distance.

Penn 17 Georgetown 0 11:00 Third Quarter

After Penn stops the Hoyas on 2 runs, Lawrence completes his second pass of the day, an dit’s good for a first down. He drops back to pass again, but is chased out of the pocket and throws it away. The pocket collapses on him on his next attempt, but he tucks it and runs for a first down. The Hoyas go for fourth down, and the pass is complete to Philip Oladeji, but he is rocked by linebacker Glen Cressman well short of the first down. Penn takes over.

Halftime Stats

The 3rd shutout half for the Quakers. They also shut out Villanova and Lafayette in the second half.

Matt Hamscher, 11 rushes for 40 yards and a TD in relief for Mike DiMaggio, who was sidelined with what is rumored to be a separated shoulder. His return is doubtful

Irvin: 9-16 for 132 yards, outgaining the Georgetown offense by 19 yards

Koontz: 4 receptions for 43 yards (matching his career high for receptions and totaling a new career yardage total)

Colabella leads the Quakers with 6 tackles

For Georgetown:

Lawrence: 10 rushes for 39 yards and a crucial fumble for a loss

Wade: 6 rushes for 35 yards

Lawrence and Brady passing: 2-8 for 17 yards

And around the Ivy League:

Harvard 38, Cornell 17

Yale 34, Dartmouth 7

Penn 17 Georgetown 0 Halftime

A couple of Hamscher runs result in a first down. Derham drops a screen pass, Irvin is sacked, and Hamscher rushes for only a few. Georgetown calls timeout to get the ball back. Kyle Olson’s punt and a slight return gives the Hoyas the ball on their own 45 with under a minute to go. Georgetown’s passing quarterback James Brady comes in, and his attempt at a dumpoff is incomplete as Wade drops the ball and is met with a big hit from Penn safety Britton Ertman. A completion and an incompletion later, and Penn gets the ball back on their own 21. Irvin takes a knee and we’re into halftime, with the Quakers up 17-0. I’ll get you halftime stats when I can.

Penn 17 Georgetown 0 2:22 Second Quarter

Wade runs all the way to his right, and cuts back all the way across the field to his left, but the first down play results in 7 yards. The Quakers stop a few Georgetown rushes, and that brings up fourth and long for the Hoyas. Lawrence calls for a fair catch at the 10-yard line, and the Quakers will have 2:22 and 90 yards to work with.

Penn 17 Georgetown 0 5:28 Second Quarter

Irvin moves the chains with a pass to Koontz. A Hamscher hold pushes the Quakers back 10 yards, and a Georgetown offsides moves them up 5. A pass to Derham is broken up, and the Quakers will punt it away. Subpar punt and a decent return, so Georgetown will take over on their own 48-yard line.

Penn 17 Georgetown 0 8:30 Second Quarter

Poor tackling by Penn, as Georgetown kick returner Kenny Mitchell takes the kickoff all the way to their own 42. But the defense makes up for it, stopping the Hoyas on three straight plays to force a punt. But Georgetown tries some trickeration, as the punt is snapped directly to running back Dean Duchak, who runs for 30 yards. Lawrence follows that up with the Hoyas’s first completion of the day. Wade rushes for a first down. Lawrence fumbles the shotgun snap on the next play, and Penn linebacker Jack Lewko recovers.

Penn 17 Georgetown 0 12:28 Second Quarter

Irvin completes the pass to Matt Appenfelder, who turns up the sideline and powers it to the 4 yard line. Georgetown stops Hamscher a few times up the gut, before he takes a pitch to the left, and waltzes into the endzone for his first career touchdown. Samson nails the extra point. That’s an impressive 16 play, 84-yard, 2 running back drive for the Quakers.

Penn 10 Georgetown 0 End of First Quarter

Hamscher takes over for DiMaggio (Bradford Blackmon is in uniform, but not playing), and starts off strong, powering through for a first down after two rushes. Timeout taken on the field, and this looks like a godo time to point out the incredible Penn contingency here. Penn fans are spilling out of the modest bleachers set up for them, and sitting on the ground. Another Hamscher run gets the Quakers a first down on Georgetown’s 24 as the first quarter winds down.

Penn 10 Georgetown 0 2:45 First Quarter

21-yard run by freshman running back Matt Hamscher on his first career carry is called back for a holding call downfield. Irvin follows that up by completing a pass to Marcus Lawrence for his first reception of the year, and it goes for a first down. Irvin rockets the ball to Josh Koontz for a first down over the middle; he fumbles but the Quakers retain possession. DiMaggio hit awkwardly on a run, and he remains on the ground while trainers attend to him. He walks off the field on his own volition.

Penn 10 Georgetown 0 6:22 First Quarter

Chancellor Logan is stopped in the backfield, and then Keerome Lawrence tries to make something out of nothing, running all the way across teh field, only to be tackled for a loss. Georgetown tries a shovel pass on third down, and it almost intercepted by Kevin Gray before dropping to the turf. Georgetown punt out of bounds at the 16, and Penn will take over on downs.

Penn 10 Georgetown 0 7:02 First Quarter

Georgetown quarterback Keerome Lawrence gets a first down on a couple of runs. And they move the chains again after a pair of inside handoffs. Georgetown guard Rich Hussey is shaken up after Keion Wade rushes for a first down. He is helped off the field.

Penn 10 Georgetown 0 9:01 First Quarter

After a few DiMaggio runs, Rob Irvin hits Kyle Derham on a 46-yard pass. One penalty and a few incompletions later, Andrew Samson nails a 36-yarder. He crushed that ball, hitting it over the net and into the neighboring construction sight. That’s a 9 play, 57-yard drive that ends in a field goal.

Neil Fanaroff here, live blogging from Washington DC. Sorry for the delay, but we had some wireless troubles. Penn got off to a quick 7-0 start thanks to a touchdown return on the opening kickoff by Chris Wynn. We’ll try and keep you updated from here on out.

It’s a beautiful day at Franklin Field, as the Penn Quakers look to get in the win column today in their Ivy League opener as they host the Dartmouth Big Green. There are approximately 14 students here; I guess the 12 pm start was tough to make. Stay tuned to the Buzz for live updates throughout the afternoon.

Final, Penn 23, Dartmouth 10

Despite a very ugly first half offensively, Penn looked very sharp in the second half, and the defense played very well throughout the game. Impressive performances from Lewko and Wynn on defense, and from DiMaggio, Irvin, and Derham on offense. Overall, a solid win for the Quakers, who move to 1-0 in Ivy League play.

1:15 to go in the 4th, Penn 23, Dartmouth 10

Jenny was put back in under center for this drive and moved Dartmouth to inside Penn’s 10 yard-line, but Eric Paul tripped in the endzone on fourth and goal and couldn’t come up with the catch. Penn will coast from here.

3:53 to go in the 4th, Penn 23, Dartmouth 10

Mike DiMaggio is doing a great job running the ball, despite a fumble that Wurst recovered. He moved the ball down the field very well on several runs for the Quakers, consistently breaking through the line and bouncing outside to the right sideline for large gains. Penn couldn’t put it in the endzone, but Samson knocked through another field goal, his third on the game, to put Penn up by 13.

8:16 to go in the 4th, Penn 20, Dartmouth 10

A late-hit by Drew Goldsmith after a McManus scramble moved Dartmouth up to Penn’s 34, but the Penn defense responded. First Goniprow broke through with a sack, and then the defense chased McManus out of the pocket and forced him to dump it off for no gain to set up a 3rd and 14. Jordan Manning finished off the solid defense with a great open-field tackle on a Milan Williams screen pass, forcing Dartmouth to punt. Penn will take over at their 20 on the touchback — Britton Ertman got a piece of the punt on a block attempt, so the running-into-the-kicker flag was picked up.

11:10 to go in the 4th, Penn 20, Dartmouth 10

Tim McManus is now in at quarterback for Dartmouth, relieving a struggling Alex Jenny.

11:24 to go in the 4th, Penn 20, Dartmouth 10

On 1st down, Irvin dumped the ball off to DiMaggio, who made a few nice moves and broke it out for a 20-yard pickup. DiMaggio is really stepping it up in Blackmon’s absence. Penn couldn’t do much else, and Samson came on and knocked through a 33-yard field goal.

A sidenote: the attendance has just been announced. Apparently there are 12,000 people here. I guess we’re counting double, these days?

14:15 to go in the 4th, Penn 17, Dartmouth 10

Another three-and-out for Dartmouth’s anemic offense — Dartmouth tried a fake punt of its own, but the completion came up well short of the first down. Penn takes over at Dartmouth’s 44. Not sure why you need the fake punt there down seven with a whole quarter to play?

14:43 to go in the 4th, Penn 17, Dartmouth 10

Irvin put too much mustard on a third down toss, throwing it out of the endzone. Andrew Samson booted a 27 yard-field goal to give Penn a seven-point advantage.

0:00 to go in the 3rd, Penn 14, Dartmouth 10

A huge play got Penn deep into Dartmouth’s territory — Irvin launched a bomb downfield to Kyle Derham, who made a great catch while backpeddling. He followed up with another catch on first down to move Penn up to Dartmouth’s 10. On the deep ball, Irvin racked up 3,000 yards passing for his career, becoming the tenth quarterback in Penn history to do so. Penn will have 2nd and goal from the 10 to start the fourth quarter.

2:08 to go in the 3rd, Penn 14, Dartmouth 10

A three-and-out for Dartmouth — the ball was nearly picked off as Britton Ertman and Jonathan Saelinger converged on the ball but knocked into each other, and no one came away with it. Penn takes over at its own 12 after another punt.

3:11 to go in the 3rd, Penn 14, Dartmouth 10

Penn couldn’t capitalize on the opportunity. Irvin did a beautiful job of selling a play-action fake to give himself plenty of time to throw, but he hit Dartmouth’s Shawn Abuhoff right in the numbers. Dartmouth will take over on the interception at its own 45.

4:22 to go in the 3rd, Penn 14, Dartmouth 10

A little trickery on fourth down — it looked like it would be another three-and-out. Kyle Olsen lined up to punt but rolled left and hit Tyson Maugle for a nice first-down completion on the fake punt, giving the Quakers new life.

5:50 to go in the 3rd, Penn 14, Dartmouth 10

A nice kickoff return gave Dartmouth good field position at close to midfield to start the drive. After a holding penalty, a good stop by Jake Lewko on Milan Williams forced Dartmouth into a 3rd-and-22 situation, and Lewko finished it off on the next play with a sack on Jenny for a 10-yard loss. Lewko has been playing a great game for Penn today. Scullin punted it away to Wynn, and the Quakers will take over on their own 35. Worth noting is that Bradford Blackmon hasn’t been out on the field this half — he must be injured.

8:00 to go in the 3rd, Penn 14, Dartmouth 10

An 18-yard completion from Irvin to Derham moved Penn up to midfield, and then Michael DiMaggio made a great cutback on a run up the middle and bounced out towards the right sideline for a 33-yard pickup. On the next play, Irvin tried to find Marcus Lawrence in the endzone but threw the ball beyond his reach — however, a late hit by Ian Wilson on Lawrence gave Penn an automatic first down at Big Green’s 10 yard-line. The Quakers took a step back on the next play — a Derham end-around — as tight end Ryan Murray was flagged for a hold, bringing up 1st and goal from the 20. A great shoe-string catch by Tyler Fisher moved Penn up to the 9, setting up a third and goal. Finally, Fisher capped it off on the next play, receiving a strike in the back of the endzone from Irvin for an important touchdown to put the Quakers back on top.

11:45 to go in the 3rd, Penn 7, Dartmouth 10

Dartmouth had a good opportunity on 2nd and 10 from around midfield, but Eric Paul dropped an easy pass for what would have been a first down. But then on the next play, Jenny heaved up a desperation toss that was up for grabs between Jordan Manning and Tim McManus, the backup quarterback and a receiver for Dartmouth. McManus made a fantastic catch, wrestling it away from Manning, to put Dartmouth at Penn’s 6. Dartmouth couldn’t put it in the endzone, though, and Chris Wynn made a nice hit on McManus on 3rd and goal to break up what could have been a touchdown pass. Foley Schmidt’s chip shot was good, giving Dartmouth the three-point edge.

Halftime Stats

6 punts for Dartmouth, 6 punts for Penn

Irvin: 13-23, 143 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT

DiMaggio and Blackmon: 6 carries for 10 yards

Jenny: 8-16, 46 yards

Milan Williams: 9 carries for 28 yards

Dartmouth has only 61 yards of total offense, compared to 144 for Penn

0:00 to go in the 2nd, Penn 7, Dartmouth 7

Irvin bought some extra time and rolled right but couldn’t hit anyone in a blue uniform. Instead, Peter Pidermann picked off the pass, and Dartmouth kneeled down to end the half. And what an ugly half it was. I’ll be back in a few with the halftime stats.

0:21 to go in the 2nd, Penn 7, Dartmouth 7

On fourth and few chain links, Irvin kept the drive alive with a QB keeper, inching up to Penn’s 47. Then on 3rd and 2, Amoo-Achompong picked up the first down on a run up the middle. Penn now calls a timeout with 21 seconds to go — the Quakers have the ball on Dartmouth’s 37 on 3rd and 5 with two timeouts remaining.

2:14 to go in the 2nd, Penn 7, Dartmouth 7

Boring. Another punt. Penn takes over at its own 22. Irvin’s back in.

5:58 to go in the 2nd, Penn 7, Dartmouth 7

Olson has a rough series under center — he nearly threw a pick on third down, and now has to punt away his own three-and-out. He is a good punter, for what it’s worth, pinning Dartmouth back to its own 11.

6:49 to go in the 2nd, Penn 7, Dartmouth 7

Kyle Olson is under center for this drive.

7:41 to go in the 2nd, Penn 7, Dartmouth 7

Dartmouth capitalized on the opportunity, as Hudson Smythe took it in for an easy two-yard score. A bad break for Penn on that call — it really looked as though Blackmon’s progress had been stopped.

11:03 to go in the 2nd, Penn 7, Dartmouth 0

On the first play, Blackmon was stopped at the line, and even though it appeared that his forward progress had been stopped, the ball was stripped at the end of the play and Dartmouth recovered, taking the ball back to Penn’s two yard-line. A livid Al Bagnoli pleaded his case, and he sure had a good one, but the call was not overturned.

8:25 to go in the 2nd, Penn 7, Dartmouth 0

A nice run from Milan Williams gave Dartmouth a first down, but Dartmouth couldn’t move the ball after that, punting it away yet again. Poor Brian Scullin — his leg might fall off before the half is over. Penn takes over at its own 15-yard-line.

11:03 to go in the 2nd, Penn 7, Dartmouth 0

On the first play after the fumble, Irvin rolled right on a play-action fake, selling it beautifully, and found a wide-open DiMaggio streaking down the opposite sideline for an 18-yard touchdown pass. Finally, two drives in a row without a punt, and the Quakers strike first.

One sidenote: it looks like Bradford Blackmon is getting some attention on the trainer’s table down on the sidelines. We’ll keep you posted.

11:11 to go in the 2nd, Penn 0, Dartmouth 0

Dartmouth finally managed to get a first down on a 2nd-and-3 completion. They would have been better off sticking to the three-and-outs. Alex Jenny followed it up by fumbling the snap and lost 15 yards, putting Dartmouth three yards back behind where it started the drive. On the ensuing play, Britton Ertman pounced on a fumble, and Penn will take over at Dartmouth’s 18.

12:40 to go in the 2nd, Penn 0, Dartmouth 0

The pattern continues. Another three-and-out, and another good punt from Olsen. Penn had a third-and-one, but the call was an off-tackle pitch to Blackmon, who was stopped for a loss. I would have given it to DiMaggio to pound it through the middle on a short yardage situation like that, but I’m not the one calling the plays. Dartmouth will take over at its 17.

0:00 to go in the 1st, Penn 0, Dartmouth 0

I bet you can guess what just happened. Another three-and-out. The clock ran out on the quarter just before the Big Green was ready to boot the eighth punt of the quarter. Dartmouth still doesn’t have a first down. That honestly might have been the most boring and poorly-played offensive quarter in the history of football.

1:44 to go in the 1st, Penn 0, Dartmouth 0

Robert Irvin got the Quakers going on 2nd and 15, delivering a strike to Matt Reinert over the middle for a first down. But again, Penn couldn’t keep the momentum going and was forced to punt — Olson pinned Dartmouth back to its own six. In case you’re keeping track, I believe that’s the seventh punt of the quarter. But I’ve lost count.

4:27 to go in the 1st, Penn 0, Dartmouth 0

Three pass attempts by Jenny, three incompletions, and another three-and-out. Can’t you feel the excitement right now? Scullin got off another good punt, and Chris Wynn fumbled the ball on the return, but Penn covered it up and will take over at its own 45.

5:02 to go in the 1st, Penn 0, Dartmouth 0

A deep pass from Irvin to tight end Josh Koontz got Penn into Dartmouth’s territory, but the Quakers couldn’t do anything after that. Another punt from Olsen — this time pinning Dartmouth back to its own 11.

8:20 to go in the 1st, Penn 0, Dartmouth 0

Another three-and-out forced by the Quakers. Two runs were stuffed at the line, and then Jenny’s pass was incomplete on third down. A great punt from Brian Scullin gave the Quakers the ball back at their own 30.

9:35 to go in the 1st, Penn 0, Dartmouth 0

Irvin is trying to get the rapport with Marcus Lawrence back, but he would have been better off looking for Tyler Fisher on 3rd and 3 from Dartmouth’s 43 instead of trying to sneak one into Lawrence. Fisher was wide open over the middle, but Irvin tried to hit Lawrence instead and threw a pass well out of his reach. Kyle Olson then came on and tried to pin Dartmouth deep, but his punt rolled into the endzone for a touchback.

11:47 to go in the 1st, Penn 0, Dartmouth 0

Penn’s defense looks sharp early on, forcing a three-and-out. Jake Lewko knocked down Dartmouth quarterback Alex Jenny on 3rd down, forcing him to get rid of the ball early and throw it away. Penn will come away with decent field position, taking the ball over on its own 41.

12:50 to go in the 1st, Penn 0, Dartmouth 0

On the first play from scrimmage, Robert Irvin rolled right and hit Kyle Derham for a 12-yard first down. The Quakers couldn’t get much going after that. Number one receiver Marcus Lawrence is back on the field for the Quakers after missing the first two weeks with an injury, but he dropped a pass on third down that would have been short of the first down marker anyway, and Kyle Olson punted it away. Dartmouth will take over at its own 29.

Hey, this is Matt Flegenheimer reporting live from Fisher Stadium in Easton, Pa., where the Quakers will take on Lafayette. We’ve got some rain in the forecast, but so far the weather has held up. Check in throughout the game for live updates.

FINAL Penn 17, Lafayette 24

Irvin’s moving the chains quickly, hitting Derham for 11 yards and, after an incompletion, again for 10 more.

A 24-yard first-down pass to Fisher brings the Quakers into Leopards territory. But after getting to their 46, Penn could advance no further. Three straight incompletes set up a must-convert fourth down. Irvin opts for a slant over the middle to Wurst. The defender gets there at the same time, and the ball was tipped — and, ultimately, not caught.

The turnover on downs with 50 seconds left seals the game; Lafayette can just take a knee to run out the clock.

1:35 Q4 Penn 17, Lafayette 24

Penn’s front seven stifles the Leopards, forcing a quick three-and-out and getting the offense the ball back with a chance to tie. Great punt for Lafayette puts the ball at the Penn 9.

3:26 Q4 Penn 17, Lafayette 24

Placekicker Dave Kuncio skies a kick in hopes that a teammate could get under it in time, but the Leopards recover at their own 38.

3:27 Q4 Penn 17, Lafayette 24

Great misdirection play to DiMaggio for six yards–and six points–through the left side of the line. This comes after a sharp set of passes from Irvin, including one spectacular leaping catch by Kyle Derham to get the Quakers into the red zone. Expect an onside kick from Penn here, with only one timeout left.

4:54 Q4 Penn 10, Lafayette 24

Looking to put the game out of reach, the Leopards go for it on fourth and inches, but Curley fumbles the snap. Penn takes over from its own 45.

6:37 Q4 Penn 10, Lafayette 24

After a Lafayette punt, Tyler Fisher gets loose for a first-down on a screen pass, but the drive stalls thereafter, with Irvin under heavy pressure throughout the next set of downs. The Leopards take over inside their own 10 after a stellar Olson punt, but a couple of first downs have drained the clock. Penn just called timeout to stop the clock and get the defense off the field for a quick breather.

13:35 Q4 Penn 10, Lafayette 24

Comeback on hold. The Quakers punt after a short completion to Josh Koontz comes up shy of the marker on third down.

End Q3 Penn 10, Lafayette 24

Drew Goldsmith sacks Curley to help force a three-and-out, and Chris Wynn takes the return out to the 41. DiMaggio picks up four on first down, and the Quakers head to the fourth trailing by 14.

4:46 Q3 Penn 10, Lafayette 24

Bizarre moments in the red zone. On 3rd and goal from the 5, Irvin connects with Matt Tuten in the back left corner of the end zone, but Tuten fails to drag his feet in time, and the pass is ruled incomplete. Andrew Samson knocks the field goal through, but the score is wiped away on a flag. Bagnoli storms the field to confront the zebras, getting close to the hash marks as he pleads his case, and the flag is picked up. Field goal good, and the Quakers trail by two scores.

One more note: Blackmon looks phenomenal today. He’s rushed 11 times for 60 yards–not to mention the TD scamper off the screen pass–and he’s really showed some explosiveness out of the backfield. Most important of all: no fumbles, after two last week.

8:15 Q3 Penn 7, Lafayette 24

After sitting out Lafayette’s last drive with an apparent hand injury, Curley throws a pick to Josh Powers on his first pass of the half. Another shot for the Quakers to get back in the game, this time from their own 48.

9:12 Q3 Penn 7, Lafayette 24

The defense gets it back to Irvin by forcing a Leopards three-and-out, but the Quakers go backwards on their ensuing drive. Olson’s punt goes out of bounds at the Leopards’ 35.

12:33 Q3 Penn 7, Lafayette 24

Signs of life from the Red and Blue offense! Blackmon takes a screen pass up the right sideline, then cuts across the field to outrun the Lafayette secondary to paydirt, a 42-yard pickup in all. Before that, Blackmon had run for a couple nice gains to get the drive going, before Irvin hit fullback Kelms Amoo-Achampong out of the backfield for 23. We’ll see if the defense can give Irvin and Co. a real chance to get back in the game now.

Halftime Penn 0, Lafayette 24

Talk about confidence. After forcing a Quakers punt to their own 15, Lafayette kneels out the clock with a minute and a half left and one timeout. Certainly a surprising move considering how well the offense has been moving the ball.

Halftime stats for Lafayette:

Curley: 9-16, 143 yards, three touchdowns

White: 7 rushes, 38 yards

Adair: 3 catches, 67 yards, two touchdowns

On Penn’s end:

Irvin: 7-18, 56 yards, no touchdowns, one interception (Olson 0-1, interception)

Blackmon: 5 rushes, 18 yards (DiMaggio: 3 for 9)

Tyler Fisher: 3 catches, 31 yards.

4:15 Q2 Penn 0, Lafayette 24

Things just went from ugly to hideous. After a would-be 43-yard completion to Reinert was called back on a holding penalty against Drew Luongo, Irvin throws a pick on 3rd and 20, which Leopards’ corner Marvin Clecidor–who inadvertently touched the punt earlier–returns to the Quakers 23.

Then on the first play of the drive, Curley hits Adair again for a six-point strike. Gotta love a good seven-second scoring drive.

6:47 Q2 Penn 0, Lafayette 17

After finally getting a big play from the defense in the form of a third down sack from Britton Ertman near midfield, the Quakers are backed up inside their own 5 on the Lafayette punt. Blackmon goes nowhere on first, Irvin’s pass falls incomplete, and on 3rd and 9, Olson makes his first appearance of the day behind center…and throws the pass right into the hands of Leopards linebacker Neil Goldsmith. Olson had tried to roll out and hit a receiver on the left sideline, but he missed his mark by a good six yards.

The Quakers’ defense performed admirably thereafter, holding Lafayette to a 22-yard field goal after the Leopards had taken over from Penn’s 5 yard-line.

12:29 Q2 Penn 0, Lafayette 14

Ugly showing from the Quakers on this drive. An Irvin incompletion, a holding penalty, a short DiMaggio run, and a failed screen that lost three. In total, Irvin has completed one of his eight passes for one yard.

14:52 Q2 Penn 0, Lafayette 14

Curley goes over the top of the seconary to wideout Shaun Adair for a 37-yard touchdown on the first play of the second quarter. Lafayette had just moved the chains on 3rd and 7 on a screen to third-down back Tyler Coon. That came after a bullet 26-yarder from Curley to Conte to get into Quakers’ territory.

Curley’s numbers so far: 6-10, 105 yards, 2 touchdowns.

3:44 Q1 Penn 0, Lafayette 7

The Quakers’ D stiffens, forcing the Leopards into a three-and-out. On the opening play of the ensuing drive, Irvin floats a beautiful pass to Reinert’s back shoulder down the left sideline, but the receiver again fails to pull it in. After a two-yard run from Bradford Blackmon and a rabid pass rush on third and long that forces Irvin into an incompletion, the Quakers are forced to punt.

6:00 Q1 Penn 0, Lafayette 7

Wow, talk about momentum swings. The Quakers’ first drive stalls in four plays after , but Kyle Olson’s punt–a wobbler towards the right sideline–touches Leopards’ special teamer Marvin Clecidor and Penn recovers inside the Lafayette 20. Michael DiMaggio uncorks a powerful seven-yard run on first down, but is stoned in the backfield for a loss of four thereafter. On 3rd and 7, Robert Irvin’s pass is dropped by Matt Reinert.

Then, on the chip shot field goal attempt, Leopards lineman Andrew Poulson gets a hand in for the block, and the Leopards retain possession.

10:01 Q1 Penn 0, Lafayette 7

Impressive drive from the Leopards. They go 68 yards on 10 plays, employing a nice balance of air and ground. On 3rd down from the Quaker 10, QB Rob Curley capped it off by eluding an aggressive rush from Joe Goniprow and lofting the ball to a wide open Michael Conte. Running back Maurice White was the workhorse on the drive, carrying four times for 27 yards. A couple of missed tackles in the Red and Blue secondary didn’t help matters any.

15:00 Q1 Penn 0, Lafayette 0

The Quakers will kick off first. One quick note: Wideout Marcus Lawrence will miss his second straight game with an ankle injury. Looks like Kyle Derham and David Wurst will have to pick up the slack at receiver again.

The Quakers open their 2008 season on a hot, sunny afternoon here at Franklin Field, searching for their first win over Villanova since 1911.

FINAL/OT: Villanova 20, Penn 14

Bradford Blackmon gets the ball on first down, runs right, then heads back to his left — and then fumbles the ball about 10 yards forward. Villanova recovers, and the game is over.

First OT Villanova 20, Penn 14

What a run by backup Villanova QB Chris Whitney. On 2nd and 6, Whitney faked the handoff and kept it himself, then did a complete spin to his left to elude Penn defenders and march on in to the endzone.

But the Quakers block the ensuing extra point, meaning that they can win it with a score.

Start of first overtime, Penn 14, Villanova 14

Penn won the toss and will defend first.

End of Regulation, Penn 14, Villanova 14

To overtime we go.

Penn called that final drive quite conservatively, much to the chagrin of booing Franklin Field fans. Bagnoli called a run on first down, let the play clock wind down and then went with another run up the gut to finish out the quarter.

1:28 Q4 Penn 14, Villanova 14 Another Penn interception in the endzone. Sophomore Jonathan Saelinger picks of Young’s offering into single coverage, and the Quakers’ poor fourth-down-conversion attempt doesn’t come back to bite them — yet.

3:19 Q4 Penn 14, Villanova 14

Three yard gain for Blackmon on 1st down. And on second, Irvin lines up as a wideout, setting up a direct snap to Blackmon. That play never really got anywhere (Blackmon wound up running to the sideline without getting positive yardage), and to make things worse, Penn was called for an illegal block in the back.

On 3rd and 14, Irvin drops back and finds Blackmon in the slots. He picks up 12 yards before being forced out of bounds.

Penn goes for it on fourth down — and loses yardage on the play. On an HB draw, Blackmon is forced back, and further back, losing 15 yards.

Nova takes over on Penn’s 45.

5:51 Q4 Penn 14, Villanova 14

The Quakers get great field position for a potential go-ahead drive, starting on their on 48 after Villanova went 3-and-out.

8:22 Q4 Penn 14, Villanova 14

Once again, Penn takes advantage of Olson on 4th and 2 from Villanova’s 42. They line up in shotgun formation, and while Olson again goes for the punt (this time with more success, pinning ‘Nova at its own 7), the Wildcats visibly didn’t know what Penn would throw at them.

Meanwhile, Chris Whitney is in at QB for Villanova.

14,758

10:34 Q4 Penn 14, Villanova 14

Irvin throws a bullet up the middle to David Wurst, threading the Wildcats’ secondary perfectly for a first down just inside Villanova territory.

11:23 Q4 Penn 14, Villanova 14

Another huge Penn interception in its own endzone - this one from Josh Powers, his first career pick. That brought an abrubt end to the Wildcats’ drive, just when it looked like they would score.

On Penn’s first play, Irvin airs one out, throwing from Penn’s 20 to Villanova’s 35. The pass was incomplete thanks to good ‘D,’ but it was right on the money — not bad for the first time Irivn’s gone deep today.

End Q3 Penn 14, Villanova 14

New promotion: two fans get large plastic bags and compete to see who can catch the most toast. Doesn’t look like either man was too successful, however.

1:36 Q3 Penn 14, Villanova 14

On 3rd and 12, another conservative play call. Irvin rolls right and finds a man for a 4 yard gain, but that’s it. Olson forced to punt, and it’s a good one; ‘Nova starts from its own 28.

2:45 Q3 Penn 14, Villanova 14
Halftime stats finally in:

Irvin 9-for-14, 124 yards, 1 TD
Olson 2-for-3, 13 yards

DiMaggio 8 rushes, 45 yards, 1 TD (avg. 5.6)
Blackmon 8 rushes, 37 yards (avg. 4.6)

Derham 4 receptions, 52 yards, 1 TD
Blackmon 3 receptions, 44 yards
Reinert 2 receptions, 12 yards
Koontz 1 reception, 23 yards

Olson 3 punts, 114 yards (avg. 38)

5:04 Q3 Penn 14, Villanova 14

The Wildcats’ 41-yard field goal attempt is wide right, no good. Game remains tied, with Penn taking over from its own 24.

After all the early scoring, things have settled down quite a bit.

6:13 Q3 Penn 14, Villanova 14

And now, a moment reminiscent from last year’s Penn-’Nova game.

Irvin rifles one, all right, and squarely into somebody’s hands. But that somebody would be Villanova’s Martel Moody, who hauls in the interception at Penn’s 30.

7:51 Q3 Penn 14, Villanova 14

Nova lost yardage on that very brief 3-and-out. Penn was well-prepared for a second-down screen, and on a short 3rd-and-long pass, Maugle again provided an instant tackle to force a punt.

Penn takes over on its own 12.

10:00 Q3 Penn 14, Villanova 14

Bagnoli opts for a Blackmon run play on 4th and 15. He gains 4, but that’s the end of a drive that never got going.

Olson’s punt is caught at about midfield, and Nova starts with great field position at Penn’s 43.

11:58 Q3 Penn 14, Villanova 14

Chris Wynn is putting on a defensive clinic out there. In single coverage, Wynn stayed inside Antwon Young’s offering and outjumped the Nova’s receiver for his second outstretched-arms interception of the day.

Wynn’s tackled just inside the endzone, so Penn takes over from its 20.

14:47 Q3 Penn 14, Villanova 14 Villanova set to receive. Beautiful kickoff — deep into the corner, right in front of the endzone. But Penn is called offsides, leading to a 5-yard loss and a re-kick. And this one is anything but beautiful. It’s a floater, and the Wildcats start from their own 40.

Halftime Penn 14, Villanova 14

The internet here at Franklin Field went out for a little while; hopefully it will be OK the rest of the way.

Not much happened in those final minutes of the half. We got our first look at 4th down trickery of sorts; Bagnoli brought out Olson in shotgun formation on 4th and 5 from around Nova’s 45, only to have Olson punt one away. Didn’t work particularly well — the Wildcats took over from their own 16 on that play, barely better than a touchback.

Stats to follow momentarily.

5:20 Q2 Penn 14, Villanova 14

One play later, Penn’s Chris Wynn returns the turnover favor, making a diving interception.

Irvin’s back in and completes his first to tight end Josh Koontz at midfield.

5:28 Q2 Penn 14, Villanova 14

On second down, Blackmon runs to the right side on a draw play, but he fumbles it (forced by ‘Nova’s Terrence Thomas). The Wildcats recover at their own 47.

7:35 Q2 Penn 14, Villanova 14

Irvin had been looking pretty good, but here comes Olson for his first Division 1 snaps.

He completes his first two passed, sandwiching a Blackmon run and setting up a first down.

Then on 1st and 10, Olson is chased out of the pocket down the left side and is forced to throw it away for his first incompletion.

7:56 Q2 Penn 14, Villanova 14

After Young hits Atkinson up the middle for a big Villanova game, the Wildcats fumble it on the next play. But they recover, setting up…

Young lofts one up to the middle to the very pronouncable receiver Matt Szczur, who had one step Penn’s last man back. It lands right in the hands of Sczur, who then has a clear route to the endzone for a 38-yard play and a tie game.

Scoring drive: 4 plays, 68 yards, 1:52.

9:56 Q2 Penn 14, Villanova 7

Draw to DiMaggio was a good enough fake to not only fool plenty in the stands, but also the ‘Nova rushers, who throw Irvin down to the ground for what appeared to be a sack. But just as Irvinwent down, DiMaggio was dusting himself off in the endzone, picking up 12 yards for the score.

Scoring drive: 12 plays, 79 yards, 5:16.

11:20 Q2, Villanova 7, Penn 7

Penn’s slowly and unexcitingly marching downfield, until on 1st down, Irvin rolls out on a play action and finds Blackmon wideopen down the left sideline. Nobody’s within 5 yards of him, and he hauls it in for a 29-yard game.

13:40 Q2 Villanova 7, Penn 7

Some first-quarter stats:

Irvin 5-for-7, 51 yds, 1TD
DiMaggio 3 rushes, 20 yds (6.7 avg)
Blackmon 4 rushes 11 yds (2.8 avg)
Olson 2 punts, 85 yds (42.5 avg)

Penn and Villanova each had 4 first downs; the Wildcats managed 89 total yards to Penn’s 88.

A couple of scores coming in:

No suprise, but Yale crushed Georgetown, 47-7
Fordham defeated Columbia, 29-22

End Q1 Villanova 7, Penn 7 Young’s pass on 3rd and 2 is well out of bounds, so Nova will punt — and punt Zach Ugarte does. Chris Wynn is forced to call for a fair catch at the Penn 21.

DiMaggio runs for 8 yards to end the quarter.

1:45 Q1 Villanova 7, Penn 7 On 3rd and 12 for the Wildcats, Young rolls left and lofts one in the direction of receiver Phil Atkinson, who gets tangled with Tyson Maugle and goes down. It looked inadvertent, but pass intereference is called; Penn coach Al Bagnoli’s not too happy.

3:12 Q1 Villanova 7, Penn 7 First incomplete pass from Irvin. He rolls right and tried to find Derham along the right sideline, but his pass was well out of bounds. A second down run only gets one yard, and on 3rd and 9, Irvin is pressured — he rolls right and ultimately throws it into the dirt (near the feet of a receiver).

Olson has looked good on his two punts so far; ‘Nova takes over on its 27.

4:28 Q1 Villanova 7, Penn 7

‘Nova gets nowhere after that penalty and is forced to punt on 4th and 14. Penn takes over from its own 32.

4:45 Q1 Villanova 7, Penn 7

Villanova nearly found a seam on the kick return; a late tackle prevented the touchdown, but still enabled the Wildcats to start from their own 44.

On 2nd down, ‘Nova exploits a right-side screen pass and takes it all the way to the house. But a flag is down; an illegal block in the back brings it back, to 2nd and 14 from the Wildcats’40.

5:39 Q1 Villanova 7, Penn7

Play action from Irvin on 1^st down – throws up the middle for a nine-yard gain, but the pass didn’t have much zip on it. Michael DiMaggio picks up the first down on a power run up the middle.

Irvin’s now 3-for-3 after his six-yard pass to Matt Reinart on the left-sideline. So far, three passes – one right, one center and one right, all between six and nine yards. Bradford Blackmon, who started, gets the first.

On 1^st down, Irvin finds Kyle Durham up the middle for another seven-yard pass. And then DiMaggio runs to the right side to pick up the first. So far, Penn moving the chains quite effectively – and now it calls timeout.

After the timeout, Irvin rolls right on a play action, lofts a 29-yard pass into the front right corner of the endzone into the hands of Kyle Derham — perfect execution of a single coverage situation.

Scoring drive: 7 plays, 70 yards, 3:50.

9:36 Q1 Villanova 7, Penn 0 Penn sent Villanova backwards, leading to 3rd and 13 from inside ‘Nova’s 15. But the Wildcats aired it out on the next two plays, finding wide-open receivers to march down to the Penn 30. The Quakers’ much-touted secondary has looked quite spacious, while QB Antwon Young has been able to take his sweet time.

Another pass for a first down, before the Wildcats decide to hand it off. On 1st and goal from the Penn 1, Young trots into the endzone untouched for the score.

Scoring drive: 8 plays, 81 yards, 3:24.

13:00 Q1, Villanova 0, Penn 0

The Wildcats won the toss, but opted to delay the decision until the second half. So Penn starts with the Pall. Robert Irvin got the starting under center; he completed his only attempt on the Quakers’ first series, a slant to the right sideline good for about seven yards. But Penn was forced to punt on 4th and 1, a duty that fell to (apparent backup) QB Kyle Olson.

FINAL NORTHWESTERN 10 PENN 6

The game ends with Penn hanging onto the ball for the last six minutes of the game give or take. The dream season is over for the Quakers, but they are the second best team in the nation, still nothing to sneeze out.

NU meanwhile is now the four-time National Champion.

3:31 Penn 6 NU 10
Penn just can’t get the ball. They had a great chance to do so, but they couldn’t come up with the grounball. Instead Nielsen gets the ball, runs around the back of the net, gets hit on the head, yet keeps going and then scores the wrap around. That might clinch it for the Wildcats.
5:22 Penn 6 NU 9

Northwestern calls its last timeout. Can Penn comeback and win? Yes. Will they? It’s not looking too good.

6:43 Penn 6 NU 9

Northwestern is just running out the clock it seems, and a timeout is called. The PA announcer says that tonight’s attendance is 6,125, a new record for an NCAA championship game. In the press box someone just announced that Lanthrop’s 11 saves are a season-high.

8:26 Penn 6 NU 9

One Penn shot sails high, and then another hits off the post. Those two might decide the game.

11:04 Penn 6 NU 9

A Penn goal is called off because of a foul called before the play. Too bad you can’t decline the penalty. Lanthrop saves the ensuing penalty.

11:30 Penn 6 NU 9

Nielsen decides to do some scoring of her own, earning her second goal of the night off a Frank pass.

13:43 Penn 6 NU 8
Lanthrop makes her first mistake of the night. Going for a loose ball, she doesn’t come up with possession, but guess who does? Penn’s Rachel Manson. She shoots it into the empty net, and Penn’s within two.

14:45 Penn 5 NU 8

Manson gets a great stick-check, then she draws a foul, drawing boos from the Northwestern fans. There’s a media timeout, and Penn will get possession once the game get back under way. They really need to score here.

15:20 Penn 5 NU 8
Senior Melissa Lehman gets a free-position for Penn, but the high shot is saved by Lanthrop.

16:00 Penn 5 NU 8

Penn gets that stop.

17:11 Penn 5 NU 8

Penn turns it over after coming close to getting off a shot. A quick defensive stop is their top priority.

18:07 Penn 5 NU 8

DeLuca gets her second goal of the game.

20:21 Penn 4 NU 8

Kocis gets a bouncing goal that’s unassisted.

20:52 Penn 3 NU 8

A media timeout is called, as Penn will have possession from behind the NU goal after the break. Penn hasn’t done any of the things I said it had to do to win. Things just aren’t looking too good.

22:36 Penn 3 NU 8

Before I can even finish writing the previous entry, Kristin Finch scores her second goal of the year for NU. This is Penn’s largest deficit faced all year. They trailed by four twice before this game. Penn coach Karin Brower calls her team’s first timeout.

22:57 Penn 3 NU 7

The nearly-unstoppable combination of Nielsen to Bowen strikes yet again, as Bowen earns the hat trick off yet another bouncing shot. Four goals is going to be a tough margin to overcome with the lack of defensive stops.

24:08 Penn 3 NU 6

Bowen shoots low and Waxman can’t get a save. It’s the Rochester, N.Y. native’s 80th goal of the year. The Wildcats refuse to let the Quakers get within one.

25:25 Penn 3 NU 5

Spiro earns a free-position shot and then scores in the top right corner.

26:08 Penn 2 NU 5

Another save by Lanthrop. She’s got my theoretical vote for MVP.

27:27 Penn 2 NU 5

A crease violation is called against NU, waving off a goal. Penn then does get a clear. About time.

28:40 Penn 2 NU 5
Bowen gets called with a charge, yet Penn can’t get the clear. Uh oh

Halftime Penn 2 NU 5

At least it’s not as bad as it was last year. In last year’s Final Four matchup Penn trailed 8-0 at the half. Well today they’re down only 5-2, and in fact they trailed the Wildcats back on April 27 when Penn eventually won. However, they were only down two at 7-5, and in fact had scored the last goal of the half. Tonight, however, Northwestern is the one with momentum at the break. Lanthrop’s save at the buzzer was critical, as it clearly gave the Wildcats some momentum.

Looking at the stat sheet, Northwestern isn’t quite as dominant as I had thought. Although they are dominating two key stats (they lead in shots 13-7 and draw controls 5-3), they have only one more groundball (7-6), and have equaled Penn in saves (5) and clears (5-7). Furthermore, they have more fouls than Penn (7-5), more turnovers (9-7) and a worse free-position shot percentage (0-1 vs 1-3). Yet the one area that they’re dominating in is time of possession. Unfortunately the NCAA does not track that stat, but I’d venture a guess that Penn has only had the ball for seven minutes out of the first 30.

What must Penn do to win? It’s pretty clear: They must win the draws and keep hammering in shots against Lanthrop. So far the junior goalkeeper has been pretty dominant, but she did give up 11 goals to Penn the first time the two teams played. And on the defensive end, Penn must be consistent at getting clears. Yes they were 5-7 in the first, but both of those bothced clears led to goals. Take those two off the board, and this game clearly could be Penn’s.

That said, Penn can’t give up all hope. In all of Penn’s close games they seem to have a poor half a great one. Considering against NU the first time they were outscored 7-5 in the first, then blanketed the Wildcats 6-0 in the second, Penn clearly could come out here and win (though I doubt they’ll shut out the Wildcats). That said, winning still will be hard. In just 30 (game) minutes we’ll know whether Penn has done this tall task.

:00 Penn 2 NU 5

Here’s another stat Penn has been poor at: groundballs. It seems that any 50-50 ball is going NU’s way, and any that Penn actually comes up with was only after Penn had dropped the ball.

Meredith Frank scores for NU, yet again pushing the NU lead to three.

Penn senior Rachel Manson is fouled as the buzzer sounds, but the refs add a second on. She gets a free position shot. Lanthrop saves it, however. She’s clearly been a top player tonight.
3:41 Penn 2 NU 4

DeLuca shoots but gets shutdown by Lanthrop.

6:08 Penn 2 NU 4
Penn causes another turnover yet can’t capitalize off of a Chelsea Kocis pass that gets broken up.

7:26 Penn 2 NU 4

Penn finally gets a shot off, as sophomore Emma Spiro gets a shot off, but it doesn’t go far, as Sara Harrington hits Spiro’s stick at the release point. After a turnover on either side Penn’s Kaitlyn Lombardo gets a free position shot from directly at the top of the eight meter crease. And she fires a great shot to the top shelf. One-third of Northwestern’s lead is cut.

11:28 Penn 1 NU 4

Penn keeps turning it over/not finishing clears. And this dooms them as Nielsen gets yet another assist by passing to Katrina Dowd. Dowd grabs the pass directly in front of Waxman and rips off a shot. And just like that Penn finds itself down by three.

13:51 Penn 1 NU 3
NU goalkeeper Morgan Lanthrop gets a nice save off an Allison Ambrozy free position shot.

16: 10 Penn 1 NU 3

Bowen gets another goal off a great pass from Nielsen. Immediately following, NU gets yet another draw. Guess what, Penn’s back on defense. They need a stop. Well they get one since there’s an offensive foul on Danielle Spencer.

18:34 Penn 1 NU 2

Nice save by Waxman. Penn’s still playing too much defense. NU’s offensive philosophy has clearly been to shield the Penn defenders by screening a lot of their top options such as Nielsen and Bowen.
20:08 Penn 1 NU 2

Bowen gets a great pass to a wide-open Meghan Plunkett who scorches it straight into the goal. Just like against Duke, Penn has let an early 1-0 lead disappear.

21:36 Penn 1 NU 1 (Media Timeout)

Goalkeeper Waxman makes a great save, but the Quakers can’t get the clear. So far in eight-plus minutes Penn has been on defense for the majority. With the potent NU offense, any more time in the Quakers’ third and the Wildcats are bound to run up the score. Penn must improve on its clears.

25:23 Penn 1 NU 1

NU’s Hilary Bowen gets a free position shot but misses. Good news for Penn, who gave up several free-position goals on Friday. But NU keeps possession. Eventually Hannah Nielsen rips a shot while sprinting around the edge of the crease to avoid Penn’s Tarah Kirnan. Sarah Waxman can’t save it, and Northwestern has now equalized the game.

28:58 left in first half Penn 1 Northwestern 0

Penn got the first draw, which clearly bodes well for this all-important stat. And after turning it over, the Quakers get it back. Sophomore Ali DeLuca sprint down the field and shoot a left-handed shot down low for the game’s opening tally.

Welcome yet again to the 2008 NCAA Division-I Women’s Lacrosse Tournament from Johnny Unitas Stadium in Towson, Md. Today’s final pits the No. 2 Penn Quakers (17-1) against the top-seeded Northwestern Wildcats (20-1). In case you didn’t get a chance to do so already, you can read my preview of tonight’s game right here.

It’s been quite the journey for the women’s lacrosse team, who had a decent 10-6 record in 2006 and then made the Final Four last year with a record of 16-1 before getting demolished by the Wildcats in the national semifinal. This year saw even higher levels of success, as the squad beat the Wildcats 11-7, earned its first ever national No. 1 ranking, and made it to the National Championship game for the first time ever.

In fact they’re the first Penn team to make it to an NCAA final. So this game clearly is one of the biggest games in Penn athletics history. As such the Penn Athletics administration is in full show today. Athletic Director Steve Bilsky shared an elevator with me, even complementing the DP’s coverage of the team. And for the first time this season, all four of the Athletic Communications personnel are in attendance at a Penn sporting event. I’ve also been told that several Penn coaches are in attendance, including volleyball coach Kerry Carr, softball coach Leslie King and women’s track coach Gwen Harris, although I’ll admit I didn’t have time to look for them in the stands.

Of course Penn Athletics representatives aren’t the only ones here. There is quite a crowd, although I’d say Northwestern probably has more fans than Penn does. Even if that’s not actually true, it certainly appears so since Northwestern fans are much better at one thing than Penn: dressing in the same colors. All Northwestern fans are wearing purple, so there’s a sea of purple on one side of the field. Even though the other side of the field is clearly made up of Penn supporters, they’re not wearing a solid blue or red, so it’s not as visually impressive. Regardless, I’m sure it’ll be a loud crowd for both teams.

As I have several times this season, I’ll provide in-game updates of the match, but again I’m limited by NCAA regulations to only six times a half, plus once at halftime. Of course on Friday I was a little lax (no pun intended) about that during the game’s crazy final 10 minutes. So I’ll try to follow the rules better today. But no guarantees, NCAA Media Enforcement Bureau, or whoever it is that monitors blogs.

END OF GAME. DUKE 8 PENN 9
IT’S OVER PENN WINS!!!!! FOR THE FIRST TIME IN PROGRAM HISTORY PENN IS GOING TO THE NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME. THEY’LL PLAY NORTHWESTERN ON SUNDAY FOR THE NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP

:42 Duke 8 Penn 9

:45 a foul is called on Duke, and Giulia Giordano has a free position. SHE PASSES IT OFF TO RACHEL MANSON WHO SCORES!

End of first OT period Duke 8 Penn 8

Waxman gets a great low save at :25, but takes the rest of OT to get it away. That’s her seventh save of the night.

END OF REGULATION Duke 8 Penn 8

Penn had the ball for the last 45 seconds, but its only shot was wide and high.

Here’s how OT works. There are two, three-minute periods. Both are played to their full length regardless of how many goals are or aren’t scored. So it is not sudden death.

I’ve seen over 20 women’s lacrosse games in my two years covering the team, and this game is without a doubt the most nerve-wracking I’ve ever watched. Regardless of the outcome it’ll be a sweet finish. (This isn’t hurt by the fact that “Baba O’Reily” is being played over the PA system.)

1:00 Duke 8 Penn 8

A delayed penalty called on Penn. On the ensuing free position shot Gilbride scores. 60 seconds will determine this final four game.

1:25 Duke 7 Penn 8

A Duke shot goes past goal. But Duke keeps possession. Davis fumbles it, but they regain possession. Kimel takes her last timeout. 85 seconds to go.

3:14 Duke 7 Penn 8

Penn turns it over. Duke will have plenty of time to tie it up.

5:40 Duke 7 Penn 8

Lehman drives down the center of the crease and scores her third of the game. Penn leads for the first time since 2:52 into the first. A stick check was called on Lehman, but the refs hold it up. Four-thirds of the Duke’s lead is cut.

6:57 Duke 7 Penn 7

A media timeout is called. Penn had lost possession of the ball and Duke started charging up the field. But Ambrozy got some payback, causing Duke’s Christina Germinario to turn it over. A foul is then called as Penn now has possession.

10:25 Duke 7 Penn 7

Chelsea Kocis takes it, shoots, but gets blocked by Imbesi. No foul called, though there was contact.

11:38 Duke 7 Penn 7

An Ambrozy shot goes wide. But soon after sophomore Ali DeLuca takes a low-angle shot, tying the game up. Three-thirds of Duke’s lead is cut. Kimel calls her team’s second of three timeouts.

12:56 Duke 7 Penn 6

On the ensuing draw control Ambrozy gets the draw. Penn’s back on offense, taking its time despite the deficit. Lombardo takes another shot, but it’s off the crossbar. Later on Melissa Lehman takes a bounce shot and it hits the back of the net. Two-thirds of the Duke’s lead is cut.

A media timeout is called.

15:08 Duke 7 Penn 5

Kaitlyn Lombardo takes a Giordano pass and rips it into the goal. One-third of Duke’s lead is cut.

18:05 Duke 7 Penn 4

Davis drives around the lower left side of the field, beats her defender, and gets her fifth goal of the game. Yes there’s plenty of time left, but Duke then gets the draw control. Things just aren’t looking good for Penn.

19:34 Duke 6 Penn 4.

Waxman gets a few saves, yet bobbles all of them as she just couldn’t get possession of the ball. The All-Ivy selection just isn’t looking too sharp today. A media timeout is called, which has to be a relief to these Quakers. They haven’t come out looking to hot here, and Duke has been dominating possession this half. The Quakers must get a stop.

22:34 Duke 6 Penn 4
The refs call yet another foul against Penn. Of the free position shot, Davis scores her fourth of the night, her 60th of the season. Brower takes a timeout.

The foul disparity has now reached 14-5 in Duke’s favor.

23:09 Duke 5 Penn 4
Katie Mazer gets a yellow card and must sit for the next three minutes. However Penn can sub.

25:00 Duke 5 Penn 4

Duke scores, as Davis gets another goal — her third — despite the ball trickling past Sarah Waxman. For a second the refs discussed whether it was a legal goal, but they did allow it.

26:03 Duke 4 Penn 4

Giordano scores off a pass from senior Chelsea Kocis. It’s her 20th of the year. It’s the first goal since 18:54 left in the first.

28:16 Duke 4 Penn 3

Great kick save by Imbesi of senior Allison Ambrozy.

HALFTIME: DUKE 4 PENN 3

Well for only the third time this year Penn find itself down going into the second. So far the Quakers are 2-1 in such situations, overcoming a 4-2 deficit at Cornell to win 7-6 and a 7-5 disadvantage to beat Northwestern 11-7. They couldn’t surpass Stanford’s 5-2 halftime lead, falling 10-8. So for them to come back down one at the break is certainly not unthinkable.

But for them to do so they must do a better job containing the Duke offense. Yes they’ve only given up four goals. But considering they average only six goals allowed, they’re not doing as great of a job as they normally do on the defensive end. They gave up 10 shots, while only getting eight of their own. This includes letting Duke go 2-3 on free position shots. In return the Quakers are getting frustrated, as they’ve committed nine fouls vs. Duke’s three. Finally, I know Coach Karin Brower always stresses draw controls. So she’s clearly not happy her squad has been outdrawn 5-3.

This first five minutes of the second could make or break the game. If Penn comes out strong and scores a few quick goals, they might not relinquish the lead again. But if they come out uninspired and Duke scores first, this Penn squad better shape up quickly, or else they’ll see another great season come to a bitter close. In 30 (game) minutes we’ll find out which scenario it is. Stick around.

0:00 Duke 4 Penn 3.

Right at the buzzer Waxman makes a great save off a Jess Adams shot preventing the Blue Devils from increasing their lead. Maybe the Quakers can use this to get some momentum, as they’ll need to come back in the second if they want to advance to the National Championship game Sunday.

1:52 Duke 4 Penn3

Great save by Imbesi on a Manson shot.

4:28 Duke 4 Penn 3

Kaitlyn Lombardo gets decked by two Duke players. But on the free position she runs away from goal.

6:01 Duke 4 Penn 3

Great save by Waxman, although she doesn’t maintain possession. But Penn gets the groundball.

12:06 Duke 4 Penn 3

Senior Melissa Lehman scores off of a scorcher from about eight feet out. Penn’s now within one.

13:55 Duke 4 Penn 2

Waxman gets a key save, maybe getting back some confidence after giving up four early goals.

15:20 Duke 4 Penn 2

Off a free position shot Duke’s Lindsay Gilbride gets her 38th goal of the year. Penn’s strategy of holding onto the ball for as long as possible to get the best possible shot might backfire if they fall behind by too much more. They need to get a stop right here.

17:30 Duke 3 Penn 2

After a timeout, Penn clears, then holds onto the ball for a solid few minutes. This has been Penn’s standard attack: slow and deliberate offense. Penn finally gets off some shots, but freshman Giulia Giordano is stopped by Duke goalie Kim Imbesi twice.

23:31 Duke 3 Penn 2

Yet another goal by Davis, this time a low-angle shot, one that Penn goalkeeper Sarah Waxman seemed surprise she even took.

25:17 Duke 2 Penn 2

Sophomore Emma Spiro gets an unassisted goal to tie it back up.

26:26 Duke 2 Penn 1

Penn’s Ali DeLuca gets beat by Sarah Bullard, giving the Blue Devils their first lead of the game.

27:18 Penn 1 Duke 1

Carolyn Davis gets a goal off of a free position shot after Penn senior Tarah Kirnan fouls her. The game is all square at one.

29:00 left in the first half Penn 1 Duke 0.

The Quakers win the opening draw, and set up their deliberate offense. And at 29:00 mark senior Rachel Manson scores the first goal of the game. Senior Allison Ambrozy earns the assist.

Welcome back to the second leg of the Final Four from Johnny Unitas Stadium at Towson University, as No. 2 Penn (16-1) takes on unseeded Duke (13-7). The winner will get Northwestern, who dominated Syracuse 16-8, including scoring nine unanswered in the second half. (When asked in the postgame press conference “what if it’s Penn?” in the National Championship game, NU coach Kelly Amonte-Hiller refused to answer the question.)

Penn, as the higher seed is wearing its home whites, and Duke is wearing a mix of its black and blue. Unfortunately, I’m limited on how often I can post Buzz updates, so I’ll only post every five minutes give or take.

Final Northwestern 16 Syracuse 8

The Wildcats dominated the second half, scoring nine straight before Syracuse got two late goals. If it’s any solace, the Orange did do better than their previous game against Northwestern, when they lost 19-7.

7:37 left: Northwestern 15 Syracuse 6.

In some ways you could say this is the opposite of NU’s Final Four game last year. In that game they outscored Penn 8-0 in the first half, and 4-2 in the second. Today they went up 7-6 vs. the Orange at half, but have now gone on an incredible 8-0 run to pretty much clinch a spot in Sunday’s national championship game.

There is a plane flying above Johnny Unitas Stadium that has a message attached to its tail: “DUKE WLAX NEVER NEVER NEVER GIVE IN!” Certain words come to mind, but I don’t think I can post them on this blog.

Halftime of the NU-SU semifinal: Northwestern 7 Syracuse 6

This game has been pretty back and forth. It appeared Northwestern had seized the momentum in the last few minutes as it went up by two, but Syracuse junior Megan Mosenson scored a great goal right as she was hit with 1:53 left.

Looking around the stadium, the south half of the stands are near capacity, with the majority of them Northwestern fans. However, the north side of the stadium is only about half-filled, including the Syracuse fan section. Overall I’d say there’s a smaller crowd then there was for last year’s Final Four hosted at Franklin Field.

If you’re into fight songs/college athletics atmosphere, you’d be happy. Despite none of the bands showing up, the PA system does play the scoring school’s fight song after every goal.

Welcome to Johnny Unitas Stadium in Towson, Md., for the Final Four of the Division I Women’s Lacrosse NCAA tournament. No. 2 Penn (16-1) will play unseeded Duke (13-7) in the second semifinal tonight at 8:30 p.m. Right now No.1 Northwestern (19-1) is playing No. 5 Syracuse (18-2) in the first semifinal of the night, a matchup that pits the first- and third-ranked offenses in the nation.

That game started off to a blistering start, as two goals were scored in the first 2:30 minutes. However the next 15 minutes only saw two goals total. After that the scoring picked back up, and now the score stands at 5-4 Orange with 7:43 to go. Northwestern clearly isn’t going to coast to its fourth straight National Championship.

FINAL PENN 16 COLGATE 7

Even though Colgate scored the last goal, the Quakers are the one advancing. Next Saturday the Quakers will face Boston University although the game will be held at Drexel’s stadium due to graduation festivities at Franklin Field.

A full recap will appear later today on the Buzz.

1:03 Penn 16 Colgate 7

Colgate still isn’t giving up, as they now have a higher total than Penn’s average goals allowed per game (6.00).

1:32 Penn 16 Colgate 6

Seaman gets her second off of classmate Meg Smith’s pass. The goal now makes this game Penn’s highest scoring of the season.

3:04 Penn 15 Colgate 6

With the game well in hand, the Quakers are subbing out most of their starters and giving some valuable tournament experience to the underclassmen. However, this lack of the Quakers’ top tier talent leads to a Colgate goal.

10:50 Penn 15 Colgate 5

Penn reextends its lead to 10, causing the clock to keep running due to the mercy rule, as Spiro gets her second goal of the game.

16:54 Penn 14 Colgate 5
Colgate finally answers back, as Colleen Bubnack gets her second of the game.

18:00 Penn 14 Colgate 4

DeLuca get a crisp pass from junior Hannah Rudloff and the sophomore earns her third goal of the game.
20:18 Penn 13 Colgate 4

Less than a minute later sophomore Barb Seaman off of sophomore Courtney Lube’s pass streaks into the crease and fires a shot past Drexler.

20:51 Penn 12 Colgate 4

Spiro gets fouled and then on the ensuing free position shot nails in a goal. Penn also scored around the 22 minute mark.

HALFTIME

The Quakers were definitely in control in the first half, although when Colgate had the ball they did pretty well. In fact, Waxman only got two saves, whereas Drexler got six. Although of course Waxman has let up four goals vs ten.

And the winner of this game will get Boston University. The Terriers beat New Hampshire 16-8. Looking at the other scores, No. 3 Maryland is leading Temple 8-5 at half. North Carolina is half way to an upset, leading No. 4 Virginia 6-3. And finally No. 8 Princeton is tied at six with Vanderbilt.

The crowd here at Franklin Field isn’t as large as it has been this year, as the Northwestern game clearly had a larger and more vocal crowd. In fact the Penn parents, normally quite vocal aren’t too loud today. Maybe that’s because their vocal and emotional leader, Mrs. Kym the security guard only just appeared.

Despite the slightly smaller numbers, there are a couple of Penn Athletics “bigshots” in attendance, including AD Steve Bilsky and women’s basketball coach Pat Knapp. However they’re not sitting next to each other. Interesting…

0:00 Penn 10 Colgate 4

Colgate got a couple of late chances to cut the lead down, but Penn goalkeeper Sarah Waxman made two key saves.

1:20 Penn 10 Colgate 4

Ambrozy gets her first goal of the game as Manson increases her point total with an assist.

7:09 Penn 9 Colgate 4
Penn’s four-goal run ends with Molly Carroll’s first goal for the Raiders.
8:06 Penn 9 Colgate 3

Lehman gets a nice pass from Giordano and rips off a shot. Colgate goalkeeper Sara Drexler knocks it down, but it still trickles into the goal.

12:04 Penn 8 Colgate 3

The Quakers keep increasing its lead off a free position goal by DeLuca. She had picked off a pass around midfield, sprinted to the Raiders’ goal, yet got fouled before she could shoot.

14:22 Penn 7 Colgate 3

Penn takes a four goal lead after some crisp passing from senior Chelsea Kocis allowed Manson to rip a shot to the upper left corner for a hat trick.

17: 25 Penn 6 Colgate 3

But just as Colgate refuses to go away, Penn refuses to let them come back. Freshman Giordano makes sure of that by getting a feed from sophomore Emma Spiro. It came after a Kaitlyn Lombardo shot ricocheted off the post.

20:10 Penn 5 Colgate 3

Colgate gets another tally, as they refuse to be put away. I should add that there is a sizable Colgate crowd here today, many of whom are more vocal than the Penn supporters.

22:24 Penn 5 Colgate 2

Penn increases its lead back to three off of Manson’s second goal.

24:01 Penn 4 Colgate 2

Another minute goes by and Colgate gets its second of the game. Clearly this is going to be a high scoring affair.

25:02 Penn 4 Colgate 1

Penn rebounds from the Colgate goal with a tally of its own from sophomore Ali DeLuca.

26:13 Penn 3 Colgate 1

But then 18 seconds later Colgate takes the ball off the draw, drives down field and scores its first goal. Clearly when the Raiders have the ball they’re still potent.

26:31 Penn 3 Colgate 0

Then thirty seconds later senior Melissa Lehman gets a feed of off classmate Manson and the Quakers are up by three still earlier.

27:00 Penn 2 Colgate 0

Freshman Guilia Giordano gets a feed off of senior Allison Ambrozy for the Quakers’ second goal

First Half 29:30 left Penn 1 Colgate 0

And just like that Penn is already in the lead. The Quakers took the opening draw, and after almost losing possession senior Rachel Manson got the ball, cut across the crease from the left side and ripped a shot that gave the Quakers quite the early lead.

Welcome to Franklin Field on this gray May day. The Colgate Raiders (11-9) come to town to take on the No. 2 seed Quakers (14-1, 7-0 Ivy League) in the first round of the NCAA tournament. I’ll be providing game updates, although as this is an NCAA championship event I’m limited on how often I can blog. So I’ll post my updates roughly every five minutes (written in bold) even though I’ll give the time designation for all the goals.

The Raiders come into this matchup on a four game winning streak, including wins over American to win the Patriot League championship and over MAAC champion Marist in the NCAA play-in game.

The Quakers meanwhile, are on the nation’s second longest win streak at 12 games, having gone undefeated since a March 9 loss@ Stanford. During the streak the Quakers rose to No. 1 in the nation after beating then-undefeated No. 1 Northwestern.

The winner of this game will get the winner of No. 7 Boston University (who owns the nation’s longest win streak) and New Hampshire.

FINAL PENN 15 TEMPLE 2

That was the most dominating game I’ve seen in my two years of covering Penn Women’s Lacrosse. I’ll throw up the postgame quotes later.

2:22 Penn 15 Temple 2

Sophomore Megan Smith gets her first goal of the year.

3:55 Penn 14 Temple 2

Temple scores again. As a friend of mine just mentioned, this is similar to Penn’s loss to Northwestern last year in the final four when they lost 12-2. NU just came out swinging and never looked behind, leading 8-0 at the break. In the sceond they did give up two goals, but they always looked in charge.

8:07 Penn 14 Temple 1

Rudloff scores off a Lombardo pass, although it was an ugly goal that only trickled in.

13:13 Penn 13 Temple 1

Junior Samantha Bird gets her second goal of the year off a Lehman assist.

18:36 Penn 12 Temple 1

Warren gets her second goal, this one off a free position shot. Manson almost got her fifth assist, but it was waved off since the penalty was called before the goal was scored.

20:45 Penn 11 Temple 1

Speaking of Szelest, the first shot she faces go past her to the lower left, as Temple is finally off the board. The scoreless streak is stopped at an astonishing 69:15.

24:52 Penn 11 Temple 0

Sophomore Bethany Warren scores off a Manson pass after the senior streaked down about 50 yards. That’s now Manson’s sixth point as she has four assists and two goals. Aftewards coach Karin Brower takes her out. Has she played her last regular season minutes? Also, Waxman was taken out during that stretch, and replaced by sophomore Emily Szelest.

Halftime Penn 10 Temple 0

The half ends with Penn dominating, scoring .07 below its season average and shutting out the Owls. With the shutout half, Penn has now gone an incredible 62:35 without giving up a goal. That’s more than an entire game!

During the half a friend of mine was in the men’s room and heard the following conversation from two Temple fans:

-”Rough Game”

-”I didn’t think it would be so bad”

-”Well they’re not No. 1 for nothing”

2:19 Penn 10 Temple 0

Well I guess DeLuca liked scoring instead of assisting. She got her second goal of the game off an assist from Manson. With its next goal Penn will have passed its scoring average for the year.

3:44 Penn 9 Temple 0

DeLuca gets her first goal of the game in addition to her two assists.

8:42 Penn 8 Temple 0

Senior Allison Ambrozy off a junior Hannah Rudloff assist gives Penn its eighth unanswered goal, causing Temple coach Bonnie Rosen to sub in the backup goalie.

13:15 Penn 7 Temple 0

Sophomore Courtney Lube has scored two goals over the last seven minutes. A temple shot did go off the crossbar.

20:00 Penn 5 Temple 0

Sophomore Barb Seaman scores off a Manson assist. Although in the last four minutes Temple did get off their first couple of shots, all saves by goalkeeper Waxman or widely off target.

Lube from Manson

23:59 Penn 4 Temple 0
Manson scores, taking the lead over Lehman, this time with an assist from fellow senior Chelsea Kocis. Temple takes a timeout as their save percentage is still 0%.

25:35 Penn 3 Temple 0

Two different people get in yet again, as freshman Giulia Giordano keeps her hot streak going off a pass from junior Kaitlyn Lombardo. It’s now been three shots, three goals for the Quakers, and 0/0 for Temple.

26:28 Penn 2 Temple 0

And before I finished that last update Penn had scored yet again off senior Rachel Manson’s 26th goal with an assist to sophomore Ali DeLuca. Maybe Manson and Lehman will trade off goals to see who’ll lead the team in goals.

28:42 First Half Penn 1 Temple 0

Before I even finished typing the introduction, Penn had already scored off of senior Melissa Lehman’s team-leading 26th goal.

Welcome once again to Franklin Field for the Women’s Lacrosse team’s last regular season game, a non-conference tilt against 13-5 Temple. The No. 1 Quakers (13-1, 7-0 Ivy) are definitely the favorite in the this game, but Temple is no slouch, having won the A-10 Conference tournament, and the automatic bid to the NCAAs that comes with it. Nonetheless, this game is less important than either the win over then No. 1 Northwestern last Sunday, or the win at then No. 2 Princeton in mid April, so I probably won’t update as often as I did for those games. Nonetheless enjoy.

Welcome to Franklin Field where the No. 5 Quakers (12-1, 7-0 Ivy) will take on undefeated No. 1 Northwestern (15-0).

1st Half 23:51 Northwestern 1 Penn 0

The first six minutes are pretty even, but nine seconds into the seventh minute NU’s Meredith Frank gets an unassisted goal. just over

21:53 NU 1 Penn1

Penn ties it up with a shot by freshman Giulia Giordano. It came after a Rachel Manson pass.

21:44 NU 2 Penn 1

But literally 10 seconds later Northwestern goes the length of the field off the draw control and gets its second goal of the year.

18:04 NU 3 Penn 1
Northwestern works the ball around behind the net, and a quick pass from Hannah Nielsen sets up Frank for her second goal of the game.

16:38 NU 3 Penn 2

After Penn finally gets the ball back in NU territory, a few long range passes leads to a Courtney Lube goal off a sharp Kaitlyn Lombardo feed to right in front of the goal.

12:30 NU 3 Penn 2

Not much has happened since the last goal, although Penn’s Sarah Waxman made a couple of nice saves, including one on her knees.

The crowd is pretty big, I would say the largest women’s lacrosse game turnout I’ve seen save the final four. I’d say upwards of 1,000. I guess Penn athletics’ bobblehead promotion worked. Included in the crowd is the Penn Band, making its second W. Lax appearance this year.

Surprisingly there’s a lot of NU fans. Whether bandwagon or actual Wildcat fans it’s hard to tell, but they do have a handful of players from the Md-NY corridor, so it’s not inconceivable some parents would make the trek to West Philly.

10:46 NU 3 Penn 3

A crisp, sharp pass from Lombardo right to the center of the crease (just like the last one) gives senior Rachel Manson the Quakers’ tying goal. So far the biggest positive has been Lombardo’s passes.

9:52 NU 4 Penn 3

Off a free position shot Alex Bowen drives to the goal, feigns running past it, turns around and puts the Wildcats back on top.

9:17 NU 4 Penn 4

Off a free position shot senior Melissa Lehman rips a shot from pretty far out that goes straight to the upper right corner of the goal. And we have another tied game. Let’s see if Penn can finally take a lead.

7:04 NU 4 Penn 4

Yet again Lombardo has a crisp pass to the middle, but the ensuing shot is saved by NU goalkeeper Morgan Lathrop, leading one fan to say “Now that’s a save!”

6:15 NU 5 Penn 4

Northwestern gets yet another goal Frank off a Nielsen assist.

4:30 NU 6 Penn 4

Bowen gets her second goal, after running around the front of the Quakers D and ripping a shot to the upper left corner. NU was very patient on that possession, passing the ball around several times before Bowen’s run in front of the goal.

2:37 NU 7 Penn 4

Penn gets a penalty for decking a Wildcat player right before she’d shoot. On the ensuing free position shot Bowen wings a hard shot right at the goal, and Waxman is unable to save it. Ok I’ll take responsibility for jinxing the Quakers after saying “let’s see if Penn can finally take a lead” when it was 4-4

Something finally goes right for Penn, as Waxman gets a high save. Penn’s charging down the field and with :37 left gets its fifth goal of the game, this time from Lombardo off a Manson assist.

0:00 NU 7 Penn 5

With zeros showing on the clock, the refs huddle to see if there was a foul before the clock expired. They put a second back give a free position shot to NU who then proceeds to… get saved by Waxman.

Well this half was significantly better than either of the ones against NU last year. In the first game, at Evanston, Ill,, March 9, the Quakers were down 6-3 and even worse, it was 8-0 at the break in the last year’s final four at Franklin Field. The number one thing Penn has to do is keep up the offense. While they were able to hang with NU for most of the half, they couldn’t string enough goals together to take the lead. While keeping up the Wildcats certainly is an improvement from last year, they need to do more if they want to finally beat NU for the first time in five tries.

Penn athletics has really gone all out today. The jumbotron on the west scoreboard actually has video (first regular season Lax game I’ve seen that at). They also actually had some halftime entertainment other than the Penn Band as two teams of young girls played lacrosse on the field.

Second half 29:17 NU 7 Penn 5
Melissa Lehman goes the length of the field, but her one-on-one shot hits the crossbar. Manson recovers and Penn’s still on the offensive.

28:32 NU 7 Penn 6

Less than a minute later on the same possession Allison Ambrozy takes a pass and wings it into the goal. And Penn is within one.

27:19 NU 7 Penn 7

A Giordano shot is nicely saved by Lanthrop at 27:39 , but less than 30 seconds later senior Chelsea Kocis ties it up with a goal at 27:19.

26:29 NU 7 Penn 8

Giordano gets her second goal and Penn is leading Northwestern for the first time since their lone win against the Wildcats in 2003.

24:00 NU 7 Penn 9

Kocis scores yet again, this time off a free position shot, and Penn is up by two. I’m surprised NU coach Kelly Amonte Hiller hasn’t taken one of her two timeouts. I know if I was the University of Maryland grad I certainly would take one to stop the Quakers’ increasing momentum and confidence.

21:54 NU 7 Penn 10

In this recent stretch NU has been fouling a lot, clearly a sign the players are frustrated. Well it doesn’t help them, as Giordano sprints around the goal and rips a shot from an awkward angle into the net. Her hat trick goal gives Penn a three goal lead.

This ties NU’s largest deficit of the season, although the other two times they were down by three was either at halftime or in the first. The 10 goals are tied for the fourth highest total the Wildcats have given up this year.

12:36 NU 7 Penn 10

Waxman gets a nice save, just the second shot of the half for NU. And in honor of Waxman the Penn Band is singing a version of “Dayman” from It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia with the lyrics: “Waxman. Fighter of Northwestern. Keeper of the goal.”

The Quakers are being uber patient on offense, trying to waste as much clock a