No. 1 Penn State took the field on Saturday afternoon for a non-conference showdown against Cleveland State. The Nittany Lions have been riding high all season, winning their first eight games of the season — which is the best start in program history. Jeff Tambroni’s squad was able to continue its dominance after beating Cleveland State 15-8.

How It Happened

The Nittany Lions struck quick in this one with Mac O’Keefe netting the first goal of the day less than two minutes into play. Just ten seconds later, Nick Aponte found the back of the net for his 11th goal of the year to give Penn State a quick 2-0 lead.

Penn State took a 3-0 lead off the stick of Grant Ament less than a minute later and the Nittany Lions were in control early. Cleveland State’s Jack Frickleton answered with the extra man to get the Vikings on the board. Ament went on to score another in the first period to give Penn State a 4-2 lead after one.

The Nittany Lions remained in control in the second period, scoring the first three goals of the frame to take a commanding 7-2 lead midway through the second. However, the Vikings would not go away quietly. They scored two goals before halftime and netted one to start the third to make it a 7-5 Nittany Lion advantage early in the second half.

Then Penn State went on a run and didn’t look back. Over the rest of the third period, O’Keefe and Ament combined for four goals to give the Nittany Lions an 11-5 lead heading into the final frame. Penn State remained in the driver’s seat for the fourth quarter, outscoring the Vikings 4-3 with Jimmy Nowoswiat burying his first goal of the season for Penn State.

Penn State beat Cleveland State by a final score of 15-8 to give the Nittany Lions their ninth win in a row — extending the team’s best start in program history. The Nittany Lions out shot the Vikings 32-20 in this one while also winning the face-off battle by a 20-6 margin. O’Keefe scored four goals today, giving him 34 on the season, which is No. 1 in the NCAA currently.

Player Of The Game

Grant Ament | Attack | Sophomore

Ament was huge today for the Nittany Lions, scoring four goals against the Vikings to give him 21 for the year. The Doylestown, PA native also tallied two assists in the convincing 15-8 victory over Cleveland State.

What’s Next

The Nittany Lions will stay home for their next game against No. 4 Ohio State. First face off is scheduled for 7 p.m. next Sunday and the action can be seen live on BTN.