Farrell's overtime goal vaults w. soccer past Brown

What's even more satisfying than a Wawa hoagie at 3 a.m. after a long night on the Street? For women's soccer, a golden goal — especially one with so much riding on it.

Maybe it is a little early in the season to be talking about the league championship, but it is already on the Tigers' minds. To keep its chances alive, Princeton needed this game. Against Brown, it did not disappoint.

On Saturday evening, the Tigers (7-1-2 overall, 2-1-0 Ivy League) left Providence, R.I., one win closer to an Ivy title.

It was by no means an easy victory, however. Princeton and the Bears (7-3-2, 1-2-0) played 90 minutes of scoreless soccer before an overtime goal clinched it for the Tigers.

The Princeton defense did a good job keeping Brown away from the Tiger goal. The Bears did not have too many chances to convert.

In fact, Princeton dominated possession for much of the game. But when halftime rolled around, the team had little to show for it. Again, at the end of regulation, nothing.

"We had a lot of chances, and they had a few, but we just didn't finish," freshman midfielder Meghan Farrell said.

Farrell must have become tired with her team's inability to convert. Finally, she'd had enough. After a cross from sophomore midfielder Emily Behncke, she found the left corner of the goal.

"Emily passed it to me in the box, and I just turned and shot," Farrell said.

And with that shot, she put the ball past a former Ivy League Player of the Week, Brown goalie Sarah Gervais. Notoriously stingy in goal, Gervais was trying for her seventh shutout this season. But in this battle between promising rookie and tried-and-true veteran, the young Tiger came out on top.

Farrell makes it sound so simple. But with that goal — her third of the year in only six shot attempts — she did what a usually prolific Princeton had not been able to do that day: score.

Behncke, whose assist was her fifth on the season, described the team's aggravation at not being able to find the net.

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"It was very frustrating," she said. "[Head] coach [Julie Shackford] was nervous the entire game, but the rest of the team was just frustrated at not being able to finish."

With only one goal between the two teams, it was the Tigers' lowest-scoring game of the season. Only in one other game, a 1-1 tie with then-No. 10 California, were there fewer than three total goals scored.

Still, Princeton managed to keep Brown off the board — not bad when Princeton was facing midfielder Michaela Sewall, Brown's leading scorer with six goals already on the season.

Saturday's win ended a streak for each team. The Bears' loss ruined their three-game winning streak. The Tigers were more than happy to end a winless spell. Before a loss to Dartmouth and a tie with Rutgers, Princeton had not come out on top since a 4-2 contest against Yale on Sept. 27.

With this victory the Tigers kept alive their winning streak against the Bears. It was Princeton's sixth consecutive win over their Ivy League competitors.

The Tigers' next challenge, though not a league event, comes in the form of Boston University. The Terriers are undefeated so far this season. After eight games, they have earned five wins and three ties. One of those ties came against Dartmouth, who defeated the Tigers, 3-2.

Sure, an undefeated record looks impressive, but a home-field advantage for Princeton should balance out any intimidation that record might inspire.

The two teams will play tonight on Lourie-Love Field, where the Tigers are undefeated for the season. While Princeton is 3-1-2 overall away from home, it boasts a 4-0-0 record at home.

"It feels like we've been traveling in buses and sleeping in hotels forever," Behncke said. "It'll be so nice to play here again."

While the Boston game has no effect on the Tigers' Ivy League standing, it could impact their ranking in the National Soccer Coaches Association of America polls. As of Oct. 6, Princeton was ranked 23rd.

"We're looking to keep in the top 25 in the NCAA rankings," Behncke said, revealing another of the Tigers' season goals.

So far, every one of the team's goals is in reach. Farrell's golden goal kept Princeton's hopes alive.