As junior, Vance becomes pillar of Tiger 'D'

When junior defender Lauren Vance scored the first goal of her Princeton career Wednesday night in the Tigers' 16-3 rout of Delaware, her reaction was simple: "It's about time."

It wasn't the first occasion this season that Vance has found herself in an unfamiliar role. And just as she "got really excited" when she found the back of the net against the Blue Hens, she has wholeheartedly embraced another new role, one that she's spent the entire season mastering: the Tigers' defensive leader.

"I am definitely playing a different role this year in terms of being responsible for more things and in terms of being the oldest person [on the defense]," she said. "I enjoy bringing the freshmen along ... It's been a new thing, but its been a good thing."

As a relative unknown at the beginning of 2004, Vance played a much different role last season as a part of a senior-led unit that led the nation in scoring defense, allowing fewer than six goals per game. While having an excellent season herself, causing 29 turnovers and picking up 33 groundballs, Vance learned a lot about leadership from first-team All-America Katie Norbury '04 and All-Ivy League player Mary Beth Hogan '04. She remembers them as always being "positive, encouraging and confident."

Vance, who ended the year as a third-team All-America, entered this season with the honor of being named a "Player to Watch" for the Tewaaraton Trophy — women's lacrosse's most prestigious individual award — along with senior teammates Lindsey Biles and Elizabeth Pillion.

Vance also entered the season knowing that she was going to be the lone returning defender. She knew that it was going to take a while to incorporate the new defenders into the system and for the unit to gel.

"It was definitely a lot different being older this year and having a greater responsibility," Vance said. "We start two freshmen defenders right now, and it just takes a lot of time getting them into it. It's a lot of work getting them to know how to play team defense, and they have done really well with it."

Defense is clicking

In recent weeks, this defensive chemistry has begun to show. In Wednesday's win at Delaware, the defense allowed only three goals and caused 25 turnovers, the highest total of the season. Vance led the team with five.

"I am so proud of our defensive effort [Wednesday night]," Vance said. "We played the best team defense of the season."

But for this unit, evaluating team defense does not just come down to holding opponents off the scoreboard. The Tigers take pride in forcing their opponents' hands, trying to keep attackers as far away from the crease as possible, using slides and creating double teams.

"What we have been working on lately is not defending what they do," Vance said, "but dictating what they do. In the beginning of the season, we might have prevented them from scoring, but we did not dominate. [Recently], we have had a lot of caused turnovers."

Personally, Vance enjoys operating in the crease area in front of senior goalkeeper Sarah Kolodner, especially if the opposing team has a very strong "crease girl." Very often, Vance marks the best players on the other team.

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Supporting Kolodner has allowed the two to develop a special bond on the field.

"She's been the one who I have been playing with the most," Vance said. "She's been there since I've been there. She's really loud and talkative, and we are on the same page. I have the utmost confidence in her [abilities]."

And as all those who have played sports know, communication is key, especially on defense. Heading into tournament time, Vance stresses that this will be of the greatest importance.

"We definitely have to keep communication up and make plays," she said. "It's not sufficient enough to keep them out of the net and get it back into the attack end. It is more of an attitude [adjustment]."

If the team can put Vance's words into action, the Tigers will achieve the one goal in Vance's mind come the NCAA tournament in May: revenge.

"I am really excited to get some of these teams back [Virginia, Penn State and Dartmouth] that we have lost to," Vance said. "I am really excited for us to show teams [our] improvement. We want revenge."