Penn State was an independent varsity lacrosse program from 1913 through 1999 until it joined the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) from 2000-2009.

He played collegiate lacrosse at Hobart, where he ranks among the school's all-time greats after he earned three All-America awards and three national championships resulting in induction into their Hall of Fame.

Penn State has made seven appearances in the NCAA Division I Men's Lacrosse Championship Tournament with a record of 2-5.

They had victories over UMBC 25-10 and Loyola 21-14 to advance to Championship weekend before their season came to an end with a 21-17 loss to Yale in the semifinals.

There are two Nittany Lions in the National Lacrosse Hall of Fame, Glenn "Nick" Thiel, who was instrumental in making lacrosse at Penn State a viable sport, and Tom Hayes, an All-American player and later long time coach at Drexel and Rutgers.

National Football League wide receiver Chris Hogan was a standout lacrosse player for Penn State from 2008 to 2010.