Do or die time: Men's lax must win vs. Brown

"If we beat Brown, we're in the [NCAA] tournament," men's lacrosse head coach Bill Tierney said. "If we lose to Brown, God only knows."

When Princeton (9-3 overall, 4-1 Ivy League) squares off against the Bears on Saturday at Class of 1952 Stadium, all the cards are on the table.

A Tiger victory guarantees a share of the Ivy League title and, according to Tierney, a bid to the tournament. He is as good a judge as any on what it takes to get in, seeing as he is one of five members of the Division I selection committee.

Princeton has quality wins over Rutgers, Hofstra, Syracuse and Cornell. These wins, along with a 10-win season, mean Princeton can go for its second title in three years.

A win, coupled with a Dartmouth victory, would mean that for the first time since 1944 there would be tri-champions in the Ivy League and a random drawing would determine the league's automatic bid.

However, a Princeton loss would mean that all of its hard work this year could amount to nothing. A whopping 13 seniors could end their careers without a trip to the tournament. In addition, Cornell would get the automatic bid.

This is similar to last year when Princeton needed to beat Brown in the final game of the regular season in order to make the postseason. The Tigers pulled out a 12-10 win in Providence.

While on paper Brown is not a very formidable foe, based on this season's results for many of the nation's elite teams, nothing can be taken for granted.

Princeton will get back senior attack Sean Hartofilis, who was suspended for the Dartmouth game because of a violation of team rules.

In addition, junior defense Ricky Schultz will get back on the field while the return of senior midfielder Owen Daly is doubtful. Junior midfielder Drew Casino is out indefinitely with a bad shoulder.

To beat Brown, Princeton will need a complete turnaround from last Saturday's abysmal performance. The Tigers' shooting was horrible the entire game and in the end, they hit only six of 33 shots. "At first we thought our offensive execution was horrible," Tierney said. "When we went through the tape though, we saw that we actually did get good scoring opportunities."

Having Hartofilis should help, as he and junior captain and attack Ryan Boyle have become one of the best scoring tandems in college lacrosse.

Get the best of the ‘Prince’ delivered straight to your inbox. Subscribe now »

Sophomore attack Jason Doneger is tied with Hartofilis, each canning 32 shots this year.

On defense, Princeton will need to regroup from the shellacking they suffered. Dartmouth scored almost at will, connecting on 13 of 24 shots.

Dartmouth dissected the Princeton defense by mixing a slow-it-down tempo with a more fast-paced attack. It dodged Tiger defenders with relative ease. In addition, many times the Tigers' slides were either late or altogether nonexistent.

An important aspect of Saturday's game will be the play of senior goalkeeper Julian Gould. Gould is coming off the worst showing of his collegiate career as he made only three saves.

"[We'll] try and get [Gould's] confidence back," Tierney said. "We're not going to abandon ship now."

Even if he wanted to, Tierney has no other options besides Gould. Unlike in past years, the Tigers have not been blowing opponents out and therefore Tierney has rarely been comfortable taking his starters out.

In addition to shooting better and an overall sharpening of the defense, Princeton has two areas which could provide some unexpected lifts. The first is in the faceoff department. With Casino out, senior midfielder Anthony Perna and freshman middie Ryan Shoenig will take over.

Last Saturday, after five of Princeton's six scores, the Big Green responded with a goal less than a minute later.

The other area that is due for a breakout game is the midfield. After a lackluster beginning to the season, the midfield really picked up its scoring in midseason. It seems to be slumping recently, however.

Often, the midfield is what determines how the Tiger attack will fare. Most teams are initially reluctant to slide off Hartofilis, Doneger, and Boyle, so they will allow the middies to make cuts to the net. If the midfielders can capitalize on these opportunities, they can force teams to slide off the attack and open the pathways for the rest of the offense.

Without them, teams can focus more and more on shutting down Boyle and his running mates.

Of all the adjustments that need to be made, however, the most important is forgetting all about the Dartmouth game. If the Tigers come out tight on Saturday, it could mean that Princeton spends Memorial Day weekend at home and not at the Final Four.