No. 12 Men’s Lacrosse Falls 10-6 to No. 8 Penn State in NCAA Tournament

Saturday, May 9

University Park, Pa.

2:30 p.m.

Army West Point

13-4, 6-2

Penn State

10-5, 3-2

Team	1	2	3	4	Final F
Army West Point	1	2	1	2	6
Penn St.	3	3	1	3	10

No. 12 Men’s Lacrosse Falls 10-6 to No. 8 Penn State in NCAA Tournament

May 09, 2026 | Men's Lacrosse

Box Score

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – The No. 12-ranked Army West Point men's lacrosse team (13-4, 6-2 Patriot League) concluded its season with a 10-6 loss to the No. 8 ranked/No. 8 seed Penn State Nittany Lions (9-6, 3-2 Big Ten) in the First Round of the 2026 NCAA Tournament on Saturday.

Senior goalkeeper Sean Byrne tied his career high for saves in a single game with 20 saves in goal for the Black Knights.

Four Black Knights scored in the contest with two goals for Brayden Fountain and one goal each for Evan Plunkett, Hill Plunkett, and Gunnar Fellows.

The Black Knights conclude their season with a 13-4 record, tying for the most wins in a single season in program history.

HOW IT HAPPENED
Army got off to a slow start in the Saturday afternoon showdown, falling behind 3-1 after the first 15 minutes of action.

The two teams danced around each other for the opening minutes of the quarter, searching to find any purchase at Panzer Stadium after a morning of Rain in University Park.

The Nittany Lions struck first a minute and a half into the game, but the Black Knights stayed close, responding with a goal of their own 78 seconds later as Evan Plunkett drove to the goal from the restraining line for his 24^th goal of the season.

Penn State put two more goals past senior goalkeeper Sean Byrne in the waning minutes of the first frame to take a 3-1 lead into the first quarter break.

Army fought to find its footing at Panzer Stadium and the two teams held each other scoreless for the first six minutes of the second quarter.

Penn State extended their lead to three goals seven seconds prior to the nine-minute mark, but the Black Knights buried two goals in the next four minutes to keep the game close.

Brayden Fountain secured his 42^nd goal of the season in a diving effort in front of the Nittany Lions' cage with seven minutes remaining in the first half.

Hill Plunkett brought Army within one goal of Penn State two minutes later as he fired a backhand shot into the back of the net under pressure at the edge of the crease to bring the game to a 4-3 mark.

The home team switched gears to maintain their lead in front of its home crowd, extending their lead back to two with 3:40 remaining on the clock.

The Black Knights struck out on a hot pace to open the third quarter scoring as Gunnar Fellows took advantage of the Penn State defense's attention locking on Hill Plunkett behind the goal to slip around to the edge of the crease where he collected a lobbed pass from Plunkett and buried in in the back of the net to bring the game to a 6-4 score.

Penn State responded in kind, taking advantage of a low pass from Army to snag the ball and put it in the back of the net for a 7-4 lead for the Nittany Lions.

The Black Knights battled hard to cut into the difference, but the two teams locked horns in a stalemate that held through the end of the third quarter.

The home field advantage reared its head in Penn State's favor as the fourth quarter began, and the Nittany Lions expended their lead to six goals in the first six minutes of play in the final quarter of regulation.

Army fought to regain ground as the final minutes ticked down and found purchase with just under five minutes remaining on the clock.

Brayden Fountain scored his second goal of the day with 4:39 left on the clock after he picked up the rebound from a Cal Lambert shot and fired it into the back of the net.

Tyler Mathews netted Army's sixth goal of the day just 26 seconds later with a bounce pass through the five-hole to bring the game to a 10-6 mark.

Army pressed relentlessly to close the gap further as the final four minutes ticked by, but the Nittany Lions locked down on defense to hold their four-goal lead through the final whistle.

BLACK KNIGHT NOTES

The Nittany Lions put up an offensive onslaught, logging 55 shots to Army's 29.
Four Black Knights scored in the contest with two goals for Brayden Fountain and one goal each for Evan Plunkett, Hill Plunkett, and Gunnar Fellows.
Senior goalkeeper Sean Byrne stood tall in goal for the Black Knights against a barrage of shots from the Nittany Lions, tying his career high with 20 saves in goal.
Army moves to a 29-5 all time record against Penn State.