Tomorrow will be March. Somehow, it doesn't feel that way. Snow blankets the ground, with the only reprieve coming from the ugly paved walkways that endlessly adorn our campus. The temperature has not risen above forty in as long as Al Roker can remember, and you sometimes wish that your nose and ears would just fall off rather than endure another second of the biting cold.
Still, tomorrow is March. And while March may not necessarily bring sunshine and sun dresses, it brings with it the opening of lacrosse season.
For the 14th straight year, the men's lacrosse team will kick off the year by playing Johns Hopkins. In last season's opener, the Blue Jays topped the visiting Tigers, 8-5. But Princeton exacted its revenge later in the season by downing Hopkins, 11-9, in the NCAA semifinals. Tomorrow, the Blue Jays travel to Old Nassau for a 1:05 start time at 1952 Stadium.
Princeton returns an experienced, senior-laden team from last year's squad that made it to the National Championship before falling to Syracuse. With so much talent, the squad will not rest on its laurels with eight straight Ivy League titles and six national crowns in the last 11 years.
"This is a good year for us to win it," senior and preseason First Team All-American Damien Davis said. "We have the talent and we've gotten our stuff together early. We just have to keep working and practicing hard, and keep our goals in mind."
Davis will anchor the back line, playing with classmate and preseason Honorable Mention All-American Brian Lieberman and junior Ricky Schultz. Though Schultz has played significant minutes throughout his career, this season will give him his first opportunity to start.
Schultz replaces departed defenseman Scott Farrell '02, a man who leaves big shoes to fill.
Princeton also lost standout attackman B.J. Prager '02 an gritty midfielder Kyle Baugher '02.
This year's midfield, minus Baugher, will look eerily similar to the explosive unit that ran the show for the Tigers last year.
The first midfield will have the trio of seniors Brad Dumont, Matt Trevenen and Owen Daly. Dumont was named preseason Second Team All-America, while Daly made the Third Team. Dumont was also the third leading scorer from last year.
The second midfield loses very little to the first. Seniors Josh White and Will MacColl will play alongside last year's faceoff specialist Drew Casino. White was named preseason Honorable Mention All-America. MacColl, who came out of his shell to shine late in his sophomore year, returns to the starting lineup after missing all of last season with a knee injury.
The attack line boasts a player that many think is the most exciting player in the collegiate ranks. Junior Ryan Boyle, last year's Ivy League Player of the Year, has scored a point in every game of his college career. Last year, he led the team with 54 points on 21 goals and 33 assists. Already named to the preseason First Team All-America, over the summer Boyle registered 14 goals and nine assists in helping lead the U.S. to the championship in the World Lacrosse Championships in Australia.
Joining him on the front line will be senior and preseason Second Team All-America Sean Hartofilis as well as sophomore Jason Doneger.
Senior Julian Gould returns for his last year between the pipes after a successful season in 2002, his first year of major playing time.
This star-studded lineup will face an eager, talented and vengeful Hopkins squad tomorrow. With lingering memories of last year's semifinal meeting, Hopkins returns nearly all of its young team from last year, including six players who received preseason All-America recognition.
Leading the way for the Blue Jays will be senior attackman Bobby Benson and senior midfielder Adam Doneger, the older brother of Princeton's starting attackman Jason Doneger.
After Hopkins, the road will not get any smoother for Princeton. In its first four weeks, the team will play Hopkins, Virginia and Syracuse — all of the schools from last year's final four.
"When you play the best teams early, you find out where you are and where you need to improve," Davis said. "If you play easy teams, you won't be as good as you think you are. We're just gonna take it one game at a time."
Game one tomorrow. Let's play ball.
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