Nine days. Four games. Three nationally ranked opponents. The last week and a half has been a tough and tiring stretch for the women's ice hockey team.
After beating No. 4 Dartmouth, 3-1, on Jan. 5, the No. 10 Tigers (10-6-2, 6-3-0 Eastern College Athletic Conference-North) returned home this weekend to take on No. 9 Harvard (9-7-1, 4-2-1) and No. 12 Brown (9-6-1, 4-2-1).
Princeton earned a split in the games, but dropped from first to a tie with the Bears for second in the ECAC-North. Dartmouth took over sole possession of first place with two wins over the weekend.
In Friday night's matchup with the Crimson, senior forward Jessica Fedderly scored on a feed from sophomore forward Lisa Rasmussen 38 seconds into overtime to give Princeton a 4-3 win over the Crimson. The Tigers fell 3-2 the next night against the Bears.
Against Harvard, Princeton came out on top in a hard-fought contest that was marked by opportunistic play, clutch goaltending and a devastating injury to senior defender Aviva Grumet-Morris.
Minutes after Ras-mussen gave Princeton a 1-0 lead early in the first period, Grumet-Morris went down with a high ankle sprain. Though the gritty captain tried to fight through the pain, head coach Jeff Kampersal '92 took her off the ice as a precaution.
After Harvard knotted the game at one, Princeton took over in the beginning of the second period. Senior forward and captain Melissa Deland forced a turnover in the neutral zone and sprinted forward on a breakaway. She came up the right wing and put a wrist shot by Crimson netminder Alison Kuusisto.
Less than three minutes later, junior forward Nikola Holmes knocked in a rebound off a Gretchen Anderson shot to give the Tigers a 3-1 lead.
...Harvard, however, came out fired up in the third, scoring two early goals to tie the game. The Crimson kept up the pressure, firing 10 shots in the period, but sophomore goalie Megan Van Beusekom turned the rest of the shots away and time expired with the score tied.
As overtime began, Harvard committed a turnover in its own zone and Rasmussen found herself with the puck. She let a shot go that Fedderly stopped and redirected into the net.
"We were forechecking and Lisa ended up with the puck," Fedderly said. "I haven't seen the play on tape yet, but I just got my stick on it and put it in."
The win was big for Tigers in several ways.
"It was a huge game for us," Deland said. "It was competitive the whole time and could've gone either way. We capitalized on their mistakes and pulled it out."
"I remember a few years ago when Harvard won the Ivy title on our ice," Fedderly said. "We seniors haven't forgotten it and it means so much to beat them at home."
On Saturday, the absence of Grumet-Morris caught up to Princeton.
Brown jumped out to an early lead, but freshman defender Katherine Maglione deadlocked the game later in the first. Brown took another one-goal lead in the second and held it through the period. Early in the third, Anderson tied the game again on a breakaway goal.
"We thought Gretchen's goal would change the game," Deland said. "We thought we had it. To lose the game after that was surprising and disappointing."
With just over seven minutes left in the game, Brown forward Courtney Johnson scored her second goal of the game to provide the final cushion.
After two physically and emotionally draining weekends, the Tigers will look forward to their two-week layoff before hosting Yale on Jan. 27.
"I think we're all in need of a break," Deland said. "We've had a couple intense weeks. We also have some injuries on the team and the break will give us a chance to recoup."
With Grumet-Morris out, Princeton has only three defenders on the roster. The senior is expected to be back in time to meet the Elis.
"This is a good time for a break for us," Fedderly added. "Some girls are sick and some girls are hurt. We'll come back strong after exams."
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