Women's hockey perfect at Baker this season

You have not lived until you have been called for obstruction-hooking.

Yes, it is hockey season again, and hat tricks and one-timers are afoot in Baker Rink as women's hockey has turned Princeton's cozy little ice rink into its personal slaughterhouse, outscoring their first four opponents of the season 17-1 en route to a 4-0 start in the friendly confines.

Already riding high after a pair of non-conference shutout wins a week ago, the Tigers (4-0-0 overall, 2-0-0 Eastern College Athletic Conference) greeted their first two ECAC opponents rudely this weekend, topping Colgate (4-4-0, 1-1-0) 4-1 on Friday and ripping Cornell (0-2-0, 0-2-0) 6-0 Saturday.

A pair of new faces sparked the attack on Colgate. Freshman forward Heather Jackson cut the ribbon on the ECAC season, scoring with six minutes, 32 seconds remaining in the first period to give Princeton the first goal for the third straight game.

This lead did not last, however, as the Red Raiders evened the score with a goal from Amanda Barre in the final two minutes.

The other fresh face was senior forward Andrea Kilbourne, who is returning to the ice this season after taking last year off from Princeton to play for the silver-medal winning U.S. Olympic Team. Kilbourne recorded a hat trick in her first ECAC game since March 2001, scoring twice in the second period and once in the third to finish off the toothpaste team.

Freshman goalie Roxanne Gaudiel, named ECAC Rookie of the Week yesterday, made 21 saves for Princeton in the winning effort.

Cornell came into Baker Rink the next night hoping to sneak away with an early conference win while the Tigers were still polishing their skills, but Kilbourne and crew promptly gave the Big Red the big boot.

Junior defender Angela Gooldy scored once in each of the first two periods before the Tigers went insane in the third, blasting four goals past whiplashed Cornell goalie Liz Connelly for a 6-0 final.

Gooldy added her third of the game, and sophomore defender Katharine Maglione, Jackson, and senior defense Annamarie Holmes all found the back of the net in the final period.

Junior goalie Megan Van Beusekom made 18 saves in the win for the Tigers.

Perhaps a factor in the Tigers' early success is their newfound depth. With only 14 skaters last season, Princeton had trouble hanging with the opposition for three periods.

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"Last year we focused on not getting too tired, trapping the opponent and conserving our energy," senior forward Nikola Holmes said. "This year we play four lines, so we can be much more aggressive and use much more energy.

"Having more people will help us rack up more points. Last year if one player had an off-game, it affected the entire team."

Junior forward Gretchen Anderson, who was the team's top scorer a year ago and is currently recovering from a broken wrist, agrees.

"The big difference between our team this year and our team last year is depth," Anderson said. "We were simply stronger, faster, and better conditioned than both Colgate and Cornell, which made it hard for them to stay with us for the full 60 minutes. We have a lot of different players who can and will step up for us when we need it, which is something we have lacked in years past."

Princeton heads out on the road for the next two weeks with four tough non-conference games — two each against eighth-ranked New Hampshire (7-1-1) and tenth-ranked Mercyhurst (10-2-0).

The Tigers finished just shy of the Top 10 voting, but with a 4-0-0 record, a potent offense, a stifling defense, and refreshing depth, the team is poised to stake its claim as one of hockey's elite.