Women's lacrosse opens Ivy slate with blowout of Columbia

Coming off an ugly win against Penn State on Sunday, the women's lacrosse team burst into Ivy League action, making a big statement against Columbia yesterday by crushing them 18-3. The Tigers exhibited a total team effort in the win, with big play coming from the bench.

Princeton dominated the first half. Not even 20 seconds into the game, freshman midfielder Theresa Sherry put the ball into the cage. That score sparked a flurry of goals, and before the first minute of the game had passed, Princeton led 3-0. Junior midfielder Mimi Hammerberg added another goal for the Tigers before the three minute mark.

Only then did the Lions get their first possession in the offensive zone due to a penalty following the faceoff from Hammerberg's goal. Columbia would only have the ball there four more times in the half.

Princeton answered that first possession with a goal spree started by sophomore attack Whitney Miller. Miller drove through the crease, spun and put the ball past Lion goalkeeper Jessica Valadez. The Tigers would score the next six goals, including two from freshman attack Tara Hardiman and sophomore attack Kelly Quayle, the first collegiate goal for both players.

Columbia managed a single goal with less than a minute left in the half, when Meredith Corkery passed to Maureen Koons who squeezed the ball past freshman goalkeeper Meghan McInnes.

"Our focus for today was just to maintain our really intense level of play," junior tri-captain Lauren Simone said. "So we really focused on ourselves and our team play."

The Lions jumped out early in the second half during senior goalkeeper Julia Beaver's first appearance with a goal from Liz Malikal. Princeton controlled the rest of the game thereafter. Through patience on offense and strong defense, the Tigers had the Lions by the throat, and there was nothing the visitors could do about it.

Immediately after Malikal's goal, Princeton ripped through their defense as Simone assisted freshman midfielder Mary Beth Hogan to her first collegiate goal.

"I was standing there waiting for someone to pass it to me, and I put it low," Hogan said.

The Tigers scored two more — one from Hammerberg and one from Simone — before Columbia's Corkery put the visitors' last goal past Beaver. The Tigers would continue with their attack, however, scoring four more times, including one from first-time scorer sophomore midfielder Alex Fiore.

Four players cashed in last night with their first collegiate goals, the fruits of a big win and proof of the Tigers' depth.

"Scoring is not always the most important thing," Hogan said. "There are other ways to contribute, but it definitely feels good to put in a goal."

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Statistically, Princeton dominated Columbia in nearly every category. Out of the 27 possible draw controls, the Tigers won 23. They controlled the field, recovering 30 groundballs to the Lions' 11. As for shots on goal, Princeton took 24 to Columbia's nine, finishing the night shooting 75 percent.

The only stat category in which the Lions outdid the Tigers was in turnovers, which they led 18-11. Four players each scored two goals: Senior tri-captain Julie Shaner, junior attack Nina Carbone, Hammerberg and Simone, who also had three assists.

"We got good contributions from everybody, off the bench, which was nice," head coach Chris Sailer said. "Overall, it was a strong team performance."