Women's hockey faces home-and-home with Yale in critical ECAC weekend

A conflicted women's hockey team will enter the locker room this weekend torn in two directions.

Last Saturday, Princeton (1-1-2 Eastern College Athletic Confer-ence) suffered a disappointing 3-2 loss to No. 1 Dartmouth. Des-pite sitting back on their heels for much of the game, the Tigers proved to themselves that they can contend with the nation's best.

That confidence took a nose dive in the final minutes of Sunday's game against Boston College when junior forward Melissa Deland slammed into the boards and tore her medial collateral ligament in her knee.

Princeton hopes to put this behind it tomorrow when it heads to New Haven, Conn., to play the first of two games against Yale (0-4 ECAC). Follow-ing Saturday's game, the Tigers will hit the road once more, returning home to Baker Rink Sunday afternoon where they will face the Elis for a second time.

"Yale will definitely be a tougher team this season," sophomore forward Nikola Holmes said. "Every team seems to be getting a lot stronger every year. But I think we have a really good team this season, and if all goes well, we have a real chance at the Ivies."

Boasting a talented line of underclassmen, the Tigers have managed to keep up with the competition. Holmes, a starting forward, leads the team with three goals and two assists while freshman forward Gretchen Anderson has tallied three assists.

On the defensive end, Princeton has been alternating between sophomore Sarah Alquist and freshman Megan Van Beusekom in goal. Alquist started against Northeastern and Boston College and has recorded a total of 31 saves while allowing only four goals. In her first two games at the collegiate level, Van Beusekom has registered 33 saves.

"This season is different from the past in that we have a lot more depth, more players to depend upon and so we're more of a threat now," Holmes said.

A reliable list of veterans, including junior forward Andrea Kilbourne and senior forward Abbey Fox, will also be key in providing the team with experience. Their expertise will be extremely helpful for the Tigers this weekend against the Elis.

"Playing two consecutive games against the same team is mentally challenging," Holmes said. "The second game always seems like an extension of the first game. It's almost harder because you have to be more creative and change it up more since your opponent will be more aware of your playing strategies."

The Tigers will have to look deeper on their bench this weekend as they will be shorthanded two players. Deland will be out for two to three weeks, while freshman forward Susan Hobson has been ill and will also be sitting out the game.

"The situation is not ideal," head coach Jeff Kampersal '92 said. "We're going to have to move some people around and rework some lines. It's going to be a matter of our people playing more minutes."

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"We're definitely going to feel the losses out on the ice this weekend," Holmes said. "But we're just going to take it one game at a time."

The Tigers hope that their newfound depth will aid them as they try to compensate for their undermanned squad as well as a more challenging Yale team. While last weekend may have been a roller coaster of emotions, Princeton hopes this weekend will be an easier ride.

"Ultimately, though, we have to worry about our own execution. We're going to try and pack it low and get in on goal," Kampersal said. "We played well against Dart-mouth, we weren't far behind in that game and our goal this season is to contend with them."