W. lacrosse faces Le Moyne in first round of NCAA tourney

Four games and 11 days are all that separate this year's NCAA women's lacrosse champions from their trophy. Princeton (15-1, 7-0 Ivy) has been ranked No. 1 in the coaches' poll for most of the season and easily secured the regular-season Ivy championship.

But in its quest for a national title — which would be the second in program history and first since 1994 — it is these four games and 11 days, and nothing else, that matter.

The Tigers earned the No. 2 seed in the tournament bracket and will host Le Moyne at 1952 Stadium in first-round action tomorrow at 3 p.m.

Georgetown, the only team to have beaten Princeton this season and ranked second in the polls, was seeded first, and will host Lafayette tomorrow. No. 3 North Carolina was seeded third, followed by Cornell — No. 6 in the final coaches' poll.

The NCAA does not officially seed teams after the top four in the women's lacrosse bracket, but other top contenders include Virginia, ranked No. 4 nationally; No. 5 Loyola, which would have the home-field advantage in the national final; and defending champion No. 8 Maryland.

Even among this talented field, Princeton has a lot going for it. The Tigers are riding the momentum of a wildly successful regular season, and haven't lost a game since their season opener against the Hoyas.

"We are all very excited and confident about beginning the tournament," senior attack Lauren Simone said.

"If we play our best, there is no doubt that we could go all the way this year."

If Princeton does go all the way, it could end up playing four games against teams it hasn't yet played this season. In the likely event that the Tigers beat Le Moyne tomorrow, they will go on to face the winner of tomorrow's Notre Dame-Ohio State game. The 11-4 Buckeyes, ranked No. 12 in the final poll of the season, are the underdog against the No. 7 Fighting Irish (12-4, 5-1 Big East), but Princeton could probably handle either of the two teams.

Barring an upset, Princeton's most likely semifinal opponent would be North Carolina (15-2, 2-1 ACC), the only top-ten team the Tigers didn't play in the regular season.

Notably, the Tar Heels are also the only team to have beaten Georgetown this year, and the Hoyas are in turn the only team to have beaten Princeton.

So, if any team is to trip up the Tigers before the final game, it could be the Tar Heels. North Carolina is also riding a momentum wave — it hasn't lost since March 23. But UNC could run into problems getting past the winner of the first round Virginia-Temple matchup — it was the Cavaliers who beat the Tar Heels March 23.

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But of course, every team, the Tar Heels and the Tigers included, must take things one step at a time. And the first step towards Princeton's goal of a national championship is tomorrow's game against Le Moyne.

The Tigers shouldn't have too much trouble with the Dolphins (10-7, 5-1 MAAC), who are this year's Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference champions and therefore earned an automatic tournament bid. Le Moyne, a small Jesuit college in Syracuse, N.Y., has not played a rigorous schedule, and Princeton will be its first nationally-ranked opponent this season.

The Tigers will need to keep an eye on the Dolphins' junior midfielder Amanda Daniels, who leads the team in scoring with 47 goals on the season.

"No matter who we play," Simone said, "we just have to stay focused on ourselves and our goal for this tournament."

With a win tomorrow against Le Moyne, the Tigers will be one step closer to their goal.