Undefeated men's soccer looks to avoid last year's mistakes

Learning from last year's slow start, Princeton survived its first test, beating Dartmouth, 3-0. But this weekend's opponent plays a very different style and the Tigers know that they have not proven anything yet.

Tomorrow, Princeton will open its home Ivy League schedule with Columbia — a big, fast and aggressive team.

Princeton (3-0-1 overall, 1-0 Ivy) has started its season just as it hoped, undefeated and tied for first in the Ivy League. But the entire team remembers last year, when it started undefeated and then had a rough Ivy League season.

"It's great to win the League opener and we feel confident with how we are playing," head coach Jim Barlow said. "At the same time we got off to a great start last year and then became a bit complacent at a crucial time. We need to stay focused on each opponent, and we know Columbia will be very tough."

The Tigers have been playing solid soccer through all four games this season. Two goals by senior attack Mike Nugent propelled the team ahead of Dartmouth early, and earned Nugent Ivy League men's soccer Player of the Week honors.

And now that opposing teams are forced to devote more energy to Nugent, freshmen Adrian Melville and Ryan Rich have consequently been left open — a major component to Melville's three goals this season.

"We have a number of guys playing well right now, but we know it needs to get better. Against Dartmouth, we had some flashes of great soccer, but it needs to be more consistent, especially in terms of putting plays together in the attack," Barlow said.

This is a very different Columbia team than Princeton lost to last year. The Lions graduated several of their top players, including its All-Ivy Captain Tiger Fitzgerald, who led Columbia in goals for the past two years and was a four-year starter. But Columbia has replaced its captain with a strong freshman class.

"They are playing well and have a few freshmen with international experience who are making a big impact," Barlow said. "We expect them to be stronger than last year.

"We have given up early goals the last two years against them, and they are a difficult team to play against once they have a lead."

Another interesting battle during the game will be the contest between the goalies. Princeton's junior Jason White has been spectacular so far this year, allowing only one goal, but Columbia counters with a strong goalie who has one big advantage. Senior goalie Mike Ewers is 6 feet 8 inches tall, which gives him a four-inch height advantage over any Tiger on the field.