Primed for playoffs, men's water polo opens ECACs against Minutemen

An interesting pattern has developed in the progress of the men's water polo team this season. Early in the season, coming off the high expectations set by last year's 22-3 record and first-place division finish, Princeton felt ready to compete with the best of the East right from the start.

Three weekends into their 2000 campaign, however, the Tigers found themselves languishing behind the incredible pace of last year's team, amassing a respectable — but by no means great — 8-5 record. They had suffered two tough losses to rivals St.Francis and Navy.

Fast forward three weekends. The Tigers have bolted back to the top of the Southern division, completing their season by winning nine of their last 10 games and, more importantly, earning revenge by defeating St. Francis and Navy in rematches.

"Last year, we pulled out all the games [early in the season], which made us not really look at what we were doing wrong," sophomore driver Rob Urquhart said. "But this year, because we lost, it helped us to see what the little problems were and what we needed as a team to work on in practice and adapt to other teams' strategies.

"I think it has made us the better team [going into the playoffs]."

Finishing its regular season with an impressive 17-6 record and a first-place finish in the Southern division, Princeton finds itself with confidence and momentum entering ECACs this weekend — the first of its three playoff tournaments. Spending the last two weeks perfecting their game and building up endurance, the Tigers enter competition hoping for vindication once again against UMass, which handed the Tigers their most humbling defeat of the season — a 10-4 blowout at DeNunzio Pool.

Winners of the ECAC championship last year, the Minutemen match up well against Princeton. Both teams possess considerable quickness, decent size, strong endurance and deep benches, which adds up to a closely contested match.

"We know [our poor play] last time against them was a fluke and they know it too," Urquhart said. "We just have to play a strong game, make minimal mistakes and capitalize on whatever mistakes they make."

Plagued by inefficient passing and rushed opportunities in the last game against UMass on Oct. 1, the Tigers spent their two-week rest refining their counterattack and fast-break play. They will depend on their consistently tight defense to open up these opportunities. When this works, Princeton has its best games, keeping its opponents on their heels and distributing the wealth of goals evenly among the Tiger players.

"We know that when we play our best game, we are the best total team out there, and we need that attitude [throughout the playoffs]," Urquhart said.

But essential to the team's success in the playoffs will also be the goaltending of junior Jon Pharris. Nursing a back injury for the first half of the season, Pharris has returned to form as of late, making a whopping 13 saves and a crucial penalty shot block in the Tigers' final match of the season against Queens.

"Pharris is just a big-time performer," Urquhart said. "He always plays his best in the big games — he knows when he needs to perform."

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If they can record victories against the Minutemen and Bucknell — a team Princeton has beaten handily in all three of its regular-season matchups — the Tigers will probably face either St. Francis or Navy. If the regular season is any indication, this would be guaranteed to be a grueling match.