PSU coming in at #6 on the inaugural 2024
Terry Foy Pre-Season rankings, he named an O/U for each team, setting PSU's at 8.5 wins and taking the under:
"I’m going under because, like Cornell, just not a lot of cushion in this number for a team that has similar questions in the graduation of Jack Traynor and Jack Posey’s health returning from the injury he sustained vs. Army, as well as breaking in a freshman in Kyle Lehman. The Nittany Lions finished third in defensive efficiency in 2023, up from No. 32 in ’22. Is that degree of improvement sustainable, or is there a reversion to the mean in their future? Even if they slip to 10th, for a team that went 5-3 in one- or two-goal games, that might be enough to slip from 9-3 (which is hat they were last year) to 8-4, which would mean the under."
Personally, I think Lehman won't have any issues adapting to the D1 level, I had the chance to referee a few of his games last season and the kid can flat-out ball, there is a reason he was ranked as a 5-star. However, I do think it a fair point to make to monitor how Posey is coming off his injury and if a regression occurs in defensive efficiency...
Additionally, Matt Traynor was named as the
#1 break-out candidate for Mens D1 ahead of the 2024 season by Inside Lacrosse's Kevin Brown:
"The best example of a potential breakout season has to go to Penn State’s Matt Traynor, who excelled as a go-to option coming out of the box as a freshman and is slated to replace his older brother, Jack, down low at attack. With 32 goals to his name, Traynor had the second-most goals as a midfielder in his very first year. His fearlessness getting to the front of the crease and underhand slingshots make him so difficult to cover."
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