William Penn Rolls Past St. Ambrose to Complete Heart Sweep

Oskaloosa--The No. 10-ranked William Penn men's lacrosse team captured the Heart of America Athletic Conference tournament title Saturday with an 11-4 victory over St. Ambrose.

The top-seeded Statesmen (12-3) became the first team in Heart history to sweep both the regular season and tournament championships. WPU had previously edged St. Ambrose (8-8) to claim the regular season crown. With Saturday's win, the Statesmen secured an automatic berth to the upcoming NAIA National Championship.

The final began as a tight, defensive battle, with both teams trading early blows. SAU struck first, but Nate Blasingame (Sr., Portland, Ore., Business Management) quickly responded with WPU's opening goal. After the Fighting Bees retook the lead, Garrett Katrana (Fr., Parker, Colo., Industrial Technology) tied the score off a setup from Breck Putzier (Sr., Minneapolis, Minn., Exercise Science), who assisted both first-quarter goals. The period ended deadlocked at 2-2.

William Penn pulled ahead in the second quarter. Everett Breniser (Fr., Centennial, Colo., Entrepreneurship) broke the tie at 14:26 off a Blasingame assist. Katrana added another, and after SAU briefly closed the gap, Blasingame struck again to give the Statesmen a 5-3 halftime lead.

The third quarter was all WPU. Blasingame netted an unassisted goal before Katrana added another, and Daniel McQuade (Sr., Tucson, Ariz., Political Science) capped the frame with a goal from a Breniser feed.

The Statesmen kept their foot on the gas in the fourth. Katrana scored again just over two minutes in, then Putzier added a goal of his own off a Katrana assist. St. Ambrose managed one more tally, but Breniser answered to seal the 11-4 final.

Katrana led the offense with four goals and one assist, while Blasingame recorded three goals and one assist. Breniser chipped in two goals and an assist, and Putzier finished with three assists and a goal.

William Penn dominated across the board, outshooting SAU 61-29. Katrana fired a team-high 13 shots, while Putzier and Blasingame added 12 each.

The Statesmen also controlled the ground game with a 39-19 advantage in ground balls. Max Standage (Sr., Gilbert, Ariz., Business Management) picked up eight, while Kenny Bohney (Jr., Moorhead, Minn., Exercise Science) grabbed five. Putzier, Bryce Campbell (Jr., Boise, Idaho), and Katrana each recorded four.

Campbell excelled at the X, winning 9 of 12 faceoffs, while WPU was perfect in transition, clearing on all 16 attempts. Meanwhile, St. Ambrose struggled, converting just 16 of 33 clear opportunities.

Connor Russell (Jr., Grand Haven, Mich., Applied Computer Science) stood tall in goal, making nine saves with a .692 save percentage.

"It's great. I get to spend more time with my friends here, and that's what it's all about," Russell said. "I'm just glad I get one more week with them — and hopefully we can make a run at nationals."

"The consistency was great — being able to beat the same team twice, not a lot of people can do that," Putzier added. "Taking both the regular season and tournament titles for the first time means a lot. It sets the tone for years to come."

"Proud of the guys for finishing the job sweeping the conference," said Head Coach Luke Christiansen. "Now it's time to take our next step as a program at nationals."

The Statesmen will await their national tournament draw, which will be announced during the NAIA Selection Show next Monday at 4 p.m. Fans can watch live at https://www.youtube.com/@PlayNAIA.