Expectations are high this season for women's lacrosse, ranked No. 1 in the preseason for the second consecutive year. Yet the team appears unfazed.
"We've got high goals," head coach Chris Sailer said. "But there's no more pressure on us than in any other year."
Those goals include competing once again for the Ivy League and NCAA championships. The Tigers shared the former a year ago with Dartmouth and Yale and won the latter outright in an overtime contest against Virginia for their second national title in as many years.
Eight starters from that game return as part of this year's roster. Senior attack Theresa Sherry, who scored the game-winning goal to give Princeton the victory over Virginia, will front her team's offense again this year. Sherry led the team last year with 46 goals and 52 total points. Junior Lindsey Biles, a starter in all but three of the Tigers' 20 games last season, adds more depth to the Princeton front line.
At midfield, the Tigers return junior Elizabeth Pillion, a quick player who was second on the team in goals scored last year. She leads a young and promising group of players at this position.
Seniors Mary Beth Hogan and Katie Norbury head up the defense. They will likely be joined by sophomore Lauren Vance. Despite the loss of the 2003 Ivy League Player of the Year, Rachael Becker, Sailer counts the defense as one of Princeton's early strengths.
The strong freshman class will provide several players who should begin contributing immediately. Midfielder Kathleen Miller, one of the top recruits in the country, is already back in action after an earlier injury and should make her presence felt on the field. Caitlin Reimers, who can step in either on defense or in the midfield, is an aggressive and versatile player.
The team has been plagued by injuries during the preseason, but most players have already recovered and are ready for regular season play.
Along with Miller, junior goalkeeper Sarah Kolodner has also dealt with a preseason injury. Kolodner, who last year finished second nationally in goals against average (6.23), should be healthy for the start of the season.
Freshman midfielder Christine Dobrosky has also been injured. She is one of the few Tigers still on the road to recovery, but she should be on the field soon to display her stick-handling ability.
Because the latter half of the Tigers' season is mostly reserved for Ivy League play, Princeton must pack top non-conference teams at the beginning of its schedule — a possible disadvantage, since each of these teams has practiced together longer.
Princeton's ambitious schedule begins tonight with a game in Easton, Pa., against Lafayette. After that contest, the Tigers immediately face three teams ranked during the preseason in the nation's top five — Loyola, Virginia and Duke.
These first four games mirror last year's schedule to start the season, when Princeton got off to an inauspicious 1-3 start. Although even humble beginnings didn't keep the Tigers from the national title, they will try to avoid digging themselves into a hole this time around.
Those early challenges will provide Princeton with the experience it needs in its quest for the Ivy crown. Sailer listed No. 7 Dartmouth, No. 15 Cornell and No. 18 Yale as the teams to beat in the league.
Since a scrimmage the Tigers hosted two weeks ago, the team has been working on several aspects of its game to prepare for the season.
"We made a few more errors in execution than we would've liked, and we were a little shaky in our passing," Sailer said.
So is there a three-peat in store for this season? It's too early to tell, but it is certainly a possibility if all goes well for Princeton.
For now, though, "we're just excited to get out and play, and we're focusing on being the best team we can be," Sailer said.
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