National powerhouse Maryland to give women's lax stern test

If history has ever been against a team in a single game, it has to be the women's lacrosse team when they play Maryland. Princeton first went up against the Terrapins during the 1979 season, recording the Tigers' first victory against what would become the bane of each Princeton team's existence thereafter. The Tigers played them each season until 1984, finishing with a record of 1-6 against Maryland.

From 1985 to 1992, Maryland was off the Princeton schedule. The teams did not meet a single time in those eight years, not even in the NCAA tournament. In 1993, under the guidance of head coach Chris Sailer, the Tigers met the Terrapins in the semifinals of the NCAA tournament and prevailed, 7-6. They lost in the championship to Virginia that year.

The following year, Maryland was added to Princeton's regular season schedule, and a rivalry was rekindled.

In their regular season match-up, Maryland pulled a victory out of the Tigers' paws, 12-10, in Princeton. The teams met later that season in the NCAA tournament. Now, some may remember that Princeton's 1994 season was one of destiny, as it went on to win its first and only national championship. And whom did they beat 10-7 to win the big one?

You guessed it. Maryland.

Since then, the Tigers have not been able to make the Terrapins curl up in their shells. They have lost to them nine times in a row, including both regular season and tournament games. As a matter of fact, Princeton has only been close three times — and lost by one goal each of those times. So what do the Tigers have to look forward to this season? A lot of the same?

The Terrapins are undefeated. The only games in which teams have played Maryland close have been in ACC conference games against top-10 foes North Carolina and Virginia. They have been ranked No. 1 in the nation all season long. In fact, out of the seven No. 1 votes possible, Maryland received all of them in the poll. The Terrapins just won their fourth ACC championship in five years this weekend by beating No. 4 Duke, 15-12.

"Maryland's offense is the best we'll face all season," junior attack Lauren Simone said.

She is absolutely right. The Terrapin offense leads the nation in several categories. Maryland has the nation's No. 1 scoring offense and the highest scoring margin. Leading its offense is two-time national Player of the Year Jen Adams, who was just named ACC Player of the Year for the second consecutive year.

Adams ranks first in the nation in points per game, with 6.87. She ranks just behind LaSalle's Jami Wilus in goals per game with 4.27 and just behind Mercyhurst's Amy Perry in assists per game with 2.60. Adams is the best Maryland has to offer, and her best is definitely good enough. In the ACC championship game against Duke, she became the second player in NCAA history to reach 400 points in her career.

She has come up big in tough situations for the Terrapins, scoring the game-winning goal against Virginia in the ACC semifinals and leading her team in offense against top-10 opponents. So how is Princeton going to keep from getting caged by Maryland?

"Maryland's attacking unit is lethal," senior defender Dayna Federici said. "So our goal is to control the tempo of the game and make good decisions on both ends of the field."

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The Tigers have been able to do exactly that for most of the season. Ranked No. 3 for long stretches this year, they have been able to manhandle several top-notch teams and build up confidence in their game. That is, until they played Dartmouth last Saturday. Princeton's 13-5 loss to the Big Green shocked the team. Their focus and confidence was shot, just in time for what could be one of the biggest games of the season.

"The biggest improvement our game needs right now is a stronger, more confident mentality, knowing that our best game is unstoppable and then bringing that game to the field each and everyday," Federici said.

Perhaps what the Tigers really need is to break history. With a record of 3-15 against Maryland, and the season playing itself out much like last season, a Princeton win could do wonders for a team losing its confidence in the face of the NCAA tournament.