No. 18 Penn

2020 Record: 2-3
Pre-COVID Ranking: 19th

When Adam Goldner told Penn head coach Mike Murphy that he was returning for a fifth year, Murphy’s initial reaction was, rightfully, excitement. While the attackman from Allentown (Pa.) shattered the program’s single-season goals record in 2019 when Penn won the Ivy League championship, Murphy was more elated just to have Goldner’s presence around the program for one more spring.

“It’s just so gratifying to coach kids like that because they work so hard and you trust them so much, it becomes collaborative more quickly,” he said.

That trust was on full display this fall, though mostly through a computer screen. Murphy considers himself and his coaching staff fortunate despite the fact they haven’t seen the team together in person since March 11 when they broke the news of the season’s cancellation. For a program that prides itself on its people, the last nine months have demonstrated the entire team’s commitment and initiative. 

“It’s been challenging for everybody at Penn and everybody in college athletics, really,” Murphy said. “But these guys have stayed upbeat and done their workouts in some resourceful and creative ways.”

The sophomores built a de facto gym in the basement of their off-campus home on Locust Street. Others followed the body weight circuits provided by the team’s strength and conditioning coach. Almost all of the team spent the fall in Philadelphia, even though Penn announced a couple weeks before the semester started that on-campus activities would be prohibited. To fill the void, they hosted Zoom film sessions and small groups even carpooled out to the suburbs to practice on local high school fields. 

Goldner, who along with attackman JoJo Biddle are the only two fifth-years on the team, called the team’s approach “entrepreneurial.” 

“For a while, I was thinking I was going to be an alumni and not a player, so I have a unique perspective,” Goldner said back in October. “But the guys who are back and are here have a chip on their shoulders that the work that’s going in now is not just for them, but the classes that came before them.” 

Faced with one of the most robust non-conference schedules in the country, Penn started last year 2-3, highlighted by a win over then-No. 10 Duke. That win came without first-team All-American midfielder Sam Handley, who suffered a spleen injury in a 17-15 loss to Maryland that required emergency surgery.  

Handley’s absence was the first in a rash of injuries that left the Quakers without four to five offensive contributors throughout 2020. Sean Lulley most noticeably stepped up his production, tallying 30 points through five games. But like most things within the Quakers’ system, it was a group effort.

“He’s really kind of a sophomore, because he's only played in 17 college games,” Murphy said of Handley. “We’re excited to see what he’s ready to do and play within the flow of the offense. He's got a lot of good pieces around him, so if an opponent starts to spend too much time and energy focusing on Sam, the five guys will be capable of picking up the slack.”

While there are no shortage of questions of what the upcoming season will look like in terms of scheduling, the Quakers' on-field questions revolve around the faceoff X and the defensive end. Kyle Gallagher and Kyle Thornton had hoped to finish out their collegiate lacrosse careers at Penn but will do so instead at Notre Dame.

Gallagher took every faceoff for the Quakers in 2020 and led the country in ground balls per game, but the team does have several options in what Murphy called an “open competition” at the position. There’s senior Anthony Guiliani, junior Jamie Zusi and sophomore Matt Pallazzi, plus freshmen Chris Arceri and Matthew Wang. 

Still, you could hear the relief in Murphy’s voice when he looked ahead to Feb. 1, which will be the team’s first practice in 327 days. He can see the field of the historic venue from his office right off 33rd street. 

“Finally knowing that we're going to be out there practicing together and doing everything,” he said, “it can't come soon enough.”