COLLEGE PARK, Md. — Just 57 seconds into its NCAA national quarterfinal game against Maryland, the defending national champion, the field hockey team found itself down a goal. But Princeton fought back, and though the Tigers came up short in the end, they proved that they deserved to be considered one of the nation's elite teams.
The NCAA Tournament for the field hockey team was much like the regular season. Princeton proved it was on the cusp of national prominence, but the Tigers could not take the next step and beat the very best.
Princeton beat Penn State Saturday in its first round matchup, 4-2, but fell to Maryland, 3-1, in the national quarterfinal yesterday. The Tigers had played both teams in the regular season at 1952 Stadium, with very similar results. Princeton had lost to the Terrapins, 2-0, and beaten the Nittany Lions, 3-1.
Against Maryland, the Tigers fell behind early and never caught up. The Terps' Keli Smith beat sophomore goaltender Kelly Baril just 57 seconds into the game with a blast to the upper right corner of the net.
"It was tough to fall behind early, but we thought we could come back," head coach Beth Bozman said.
Princeton improved its game after the first goal, picking up a couple of penalty corners and controlling the ball. But the Tigers could not convert scoring chances, and Maryland struck again, pushing the margin to 2-0. After the second goal, Princeton completely dominated the middle of the field, but an errant pass was intercepted by Rachel Hiskins, who quickly shot the ball into the back of the cage.
"I think my goal was all instinct," Hiskins said.
Falling behind 3-0, Princeton might have been expected to give up, but the Tigers continued to fight. The effort paid off when sophomore midfielder Ilvy Friebe drew a penalty after stealing a pass at midfield with five minutes remaining in the half.
On the ensuing corner, freshman defender Cory Picketts scored, and seniors Hilary Matson and Kellie Maul were credited with the assist.
Neither team could score for the remainder of the game. The Terrapins had better opportunities to score than Princeton, but Baril was stellar for the Tigers.
'Glowing example'
"Kelly Baril is the best goalkeeper in the country," Bozman said, "and today was a glowing example of the kind of goalkeeper she is."
The rest of the team struggled against Maryland, including Matson and senior attack Melanie Meerschwam.
"They have a great defense," Matson said. "They contained our attack today."
"Princeton has probably the two most dangerous forwards in the nation," Maryland head coach Missy Meharg said. "But we played strong defense and were opportunistic around their goal."
The Tigers had a much easier time against Penn State. In the first meeting between the two teams, the Nittany Lions were missing two of their top players to injury. Both returned for Saturday's matchup, but Princeton — led by its seniors — was still too strong.
Penn State struck first, 4:53 into the game, as Maegan Galie drew Baril to the left side of the net and shot past her into the open right corner. But the Tigers responded about 10 minutes later when Friebe took the ball upfield and hit an open Matson who had just come in after a substitution. The senior finished on the chance.
At 8:42, freshman attack Claire Miller's shot was stopped by Penn State's goalie Heidi Leuchte, but senior attack Kellie Maul slapped the rebound into the cage. Matson and Meerschwam added second-half goals for Princeton. Seniors accounted for all four of the Tigers' scores on the afternoon.
Finale
"The seniors especially know that today can be the last 70 [minutes] they play," Matson said after the Penn State win.
Unfortunately for Princeton and its seniors, the Maryland game was the season's ending. But the Tigers significantly improved from their first game against the Terrapins, when it seemed that they simply could not compete on the same field. This time, Maryland got a few breaks and was more efficient, but Princeton, if nothing else, proved that it belonged on the same field as the defending national champions.
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