Tigers defeat Dartmouth in highest-scoring Princeton game ever

This past weekend, the men’s lacrosse team (6–5, 1–3 Ivy League) hosted Dartmouth (2–9, 0–4) in its second-to-last home Ivy League game of the season. Princeton took an early lead on a goal from sophomore midfield Connor McCarthy about five minutes in to the game. From then on, the Tigers never looked back as they built a 13–3 lead by halftime, similar to their game last week against Stony Brook. Princeton would go on to win 24–13 behind big days from sophomore attack Phillip Robertson, sophomore attack Michael Sowers, senior midfield Austin Sims, and senior midfield Riley Thompson. Sowers had 10 points on the day (three goals, seven assists), Thompson and Sims each had seven points, and Robertson tallied six goals. Sowers and Brown both continued their career streaks of two points per game and a goal per game respectively. Both are also the only two current players to have started every game of their careers at Princeton. Lastly, both Sims and Thompson reached the 100-point career mark and now sit at 103 and 101 respectively.

Earlier in the week, the Tigers traveled to Loudonville, N.Y., to take on Siena were there were able to leave with their first road win, 17–11. Robertson and Sowers were again key contributors for Princeton. Robertson tallied seven goals, a career high, and Sowers had eight points (three goals and five assists). Senior goalie Tyler Blaisdell was also a key contributor for the Tigers on Tuesday, as he was vital in keeping Princeton in the game after it was outshot 50–35. Blaisdell had 16 saves and allowed only eight goals, the other three allowed by sophomore goalie Jon Levine in the last eight minutes that he played.

Coming in to the game, the Tigers needed a win to have a chance at the Ivy League tournament. While they will definitely need some help, Princeton has a chance to boost their record as they prepare for their upcoming games against Harvard and Cornell, two of the current top-four teams. Princeton must win these two games and hope that Penn loses its last game against Dartmouth in order to have a good shot at the tournament. In addition, the Tigers need for Brown to lose its last two games against Cornell and Dartmouth or for Harvard to lose Yale as well as Princeton.

This weekend, the Tigers will travel to Cambridge, Mass., to take on Harvard in their last road game of the season. The game will certainly be a prime opportunity to gauge what Princeton has been able to learn over the past few weeks against Stony Brook, Siena, and Dartmouth. Harvard, which received votes to get ranked in Inside Lacrosse Top 20 Rankings on April 16, will be great competition. The game will be available to watch online on the Ivy League Network, and it will be available to listen to live on TuneIn.com digital radio.