Defense remains strong for men's lacrosse without Mollett, Tierney

The men's lacrosse team is being watched.

Not just by wild Tiger fans, but by Hopkins, Virginia, Hofstra and Duke. By Yale, Harvard and Brown. By Syracuse.

All of them are watching for the slightest hole through that impenetrable jungle of orange and black that will let them slip, triumphantly, to the net.

But head coach Bill Tierney and his 2001 National Championship team hope to plug those defensive holes and prevent that from happening.

"The defense has to be ready for multiple looks from the opponents' offenses because most coaches develop a new scheme or two to play against our defense," Tierney said.

One of the holes that this year's team will have to fill defensively is the one left by Ivy Player of the Year Mollett '01.

And it won't be an easy place to fill, as Tierney said, for two main reasons:

"First, [Mollett] really understood the game. Therefore, he could communicate what was going on out there to the others. Second, he had a magic stick. He could pick up ground balls, intercept passes while still knowing where his man was."

With Mollett leading the back line, the Tigers have always been a fast-sliding defensive team, using aggressive double teams and frequent rotations to put pressure on the man with the ball.

But this year, to replace Mollett, the team will have to adjust its strategy a bit.

"We can slide a little less quickly and still be as effective," Tierney said.

Junior Julian Gould has the onerous task of stepping into the shoes of graduated First Team All-America goalie Trevor Tierney (son of coach Tierney).

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"It is hard to replace a First Team All-America whether he is your son or not," Tierney said.

But so far, Gould has been doing well in practice, and the team feels confident in his play.

Also returning to the defensive lineup this year are junior Brian Lieberman and sophomore Rick Schultz, the two players Tierney expects to assume Mollett's leadership role in the back line.

The other members of the defense include starters senior Scott Farrell and junior Damien Davis. Both were named to preseason All-America teams and were key elements of Princeton's defense last season, the nation's best.

The new freshmen are Matt Larkin in goal, Oliver Barry, Tim Sullivan, Eric Chase and Ryan Watson.

In Princeton's first game on March 2, which it lost 8-5 to Hopkins, a big problem with the defense was communication — mostly due to the vacuum left by Mollett's departure.

Nevertheless, Tierney said, "Our defense played pretty well against Hopkins. To give up only eight goals to a good team is a plus. Unfortunately, we only scored five."