Dominant win for field hockey

After a tough weekend against some stiff competition, the field hockey team found a welcome change when it faced off against the Scarlet Knights of Rutgers last night in Piscataway, NJ. Princeton dominated their inferior opponents to the tune of a 10-1 victory over their intrastate rival.

Rutgers (2-8 overall, 0-2 Big East) never really had a chance against the Tigers.

Princeton (4-3, 3-0 Ivy League) scored their first goal with just 2:26 gone in the first half. Senior attack and tri-captain Rachel Becker scored the first of two goals from just inside the circle.

Rutgers answered right back however, as they scored the tying goal less than two minutes later.

Princeton was not about to let the Scarlet Knights hang around, and immediately went on the offensive. They never let up.

Senior attack and tri-captain Ilvy Friebe scored one minute, 26 seconds after Rutgers had tied the game to give Princeton the lead for good. Friebe struck again just before the 10 minute mark.

The Tigers would add three more goals in the first half, the first by Becker, the second by Friebe, and the last one by junior attack Claire Miller.

Princeton picked up where they left off in the second half. Friebe scored her third and final goal of the game two and a half minutes in. She now has 25 points on the season, tops on the team, with 11 goals and three assists. Friebe scored three goals despite sitting long stretches of the second half.

Sophomore midfielder Natalie Martirosian scored on a stroke at the 44 minute mark and Emily Townsend closed out the scoring with two goals. The last one came with less than three minutes left in the game.

"It was such a fun game," sophomore attack Lauren Quinn said. "Everyone played and everyone contributed. We're really looking forward to Old Dominion on Saturday."

Head coach Beth Bozman decided to use this game to give her starters a bit of a rest, and give playing time to the rest of the team. Only seven minutes into the second half Bozman emptied her bench.

Rutgers has now scored only seven goals in 11 contests this season. To compare, Princeton has scored seven or more goals in a single game three times this season, including a season high 10 last night.

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The Tigers improved their record to 15-3-1 all-time against the Scarlet Knights. Rutgers' last win was in 1995, when they won a 2-1 decision in overtime.

Princeton continues its stretch of games against non-conference opponents this weekend. The Tigers host No. 4 Old Dominion on Saturday. Princeton met Old Dominion twice last year and won both times in very tough matches. The first meeting was a 2-1 win during the regular season, and the second was also a 2-1 win, this time in the second round of the NCAA Championships.

The Tigers will enter the game ranked No. 14 in the nation. They moved up one spot from last week due to their tough games against No. 1 Maryland and No. 5 Michigan St.

The team also plays Delaware, Connecticut, and Boston University before returning to their Ivy League schedule against Brown. Delaware is ranked No. 17 in the nation. The Tigers beat all three teams last season, but all were one-goal games.

However, Princeton refuses to look too far ahead. They are steadfast on taking it one game at a time. Just ask the Scarlet Knights.