Field hockey to end regular season after winning title

The field hockey team ends its regular season this Friday at Penn. In a season which ominously began with a new head coach and was initially marked by the absence of seven players lost to graduation, this final game seems somewhat anticlimactic.

The Tigers (11-5 overall, 6-0 Ivy League) clinched their 10th consecutive Ivy League championship last week, so there is not as much on the line in tonight's game against Penn (10-6, 3-3).

On Oct. 25 Princeton beat Harvard, the only other undefeated team in the league at the time, to claim at least a share of the Ivy League title. Harvard lost against Dartmouth in its next game, giving the Tigers the outright championship.

Although tonight's game may not have much impact on the Ivy League race, the Tigers have just come off of a frustrating weekend and need to get back on track with a win.

"There's not that much pressure in terms of needing to win, because we've already won the Ivy League championship," junior midfielder Natalie Martirosian said. "But we want to win because we did not do well last weekend. Since our game plan didn't work out last weekend, it's a time for us to work some things out, some kinks. So it's really important in that respect."

Last weekend Princeton lost twice in Virginia, dropping a 3-2 decision to William & Mary followed by an 8-2 loss to Old Dominion.

Much of the Tigers' problems came on the defensive end, where they are usually very strong. The last time Princeton gave up eight or more goals was in 1999 against, coincidentally, Old Dominion in an 8-2 loss. "I think coach [Kristen Holmes-Winn] would agree that a lot of it had to do with individual defense," Martirosian said. "We changed our defensive game for those two games last week, and it didn't work out that well. It was kind of a domino effect."

The Princeton defense should not have much trouble tonight against the fifth-place Quakers. Penn's offense averages about two goals a game, and is led by Liz Lorelli, who has scored 18 goals on the season, more than half the team's total. The next highest Penn scorer, Cara Calahan, has tallied seven goals.

Penn's defense seems to be its greatest strength, and is probably the reason that it has achieved a rather impressive 10-6 overall record this season. Before this season, the Quakers had finished with a losing record for five consecutive seasons.

The Quaker defense has allowed the fewest total number of goals this season amongst Ivy League teams (23) and is tied with the Tiger defense in the number of goals allowed during the Ivy League season (8).

Penn's goalie, Liz Schlossberg, leads the Ivy League with a goals against average of 1.85. The Quakers' other goalie, Amanda Jacobs, has posted three shutouts.

This season, Penn's defense has had some success in keeping top teams from scoring too many goals, losing only 2-0 to No. 7 Penn State.

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Still, Princeton's offense is known to be the best in the Ivy League. Unlike the Quakers, whose scoring is done by just a few players, Princeton looks to spread the scoring out among its offense. Eight different Tigers have posted four or more goals this season. Leading the way are junior attack Lizzie Black and sophomore attack Maren Ford with seven goals apiece. The Tigers' balanced attack makes it harder to shut down individual players through double-team strategies.

In tonight's game, the Tigers will likely have many chances to score, as the defense will be able to handle Penn's offense and control the ball for most of the game. There may be some question as to whether Princeton will be able to get out of the funk it had gotten into last weekend to play a strong, consistent game tonight against the Quakers, as well as capitalize on its scoring opportunities.

For Penn, a win would be a significant achievement, as it would end a countless stretch in which the Tigers have dominated the Quakers.

For the Tigers, a win would turn things around after a disappointing performance last weekend.

With the NCAA Tournament beginning in a little more than a week, Princeton has a good opportunity to set the right tone with a win tonight against Penn.