Big Red next for Tigers

If the men's lacrosse team is going to beat Cornell this weekend, Princeton and its opening face-off man, junior Ryan Schoenig, will have to lunge at the Big Red — quite literally.

"Cornell's always been notorious for being a fast-starting team — their coaches do a great job of getting them emotionally and physically ready for games," head coach Bill Tierney said. "What would be perfect is to win the first face-off, have a twoor three-minute possession and score a goal before they got the ball."

The Tigers (3-6 overall, 2-1 Ivy League) meet Cornell (7-2, 4-0) this weekend in what is sure to be a true test of last weekend's promise. Princeton must defeat the Big Red — and its two subsequent Ivy opponents — in order to win at least a share of the Ivy League title and advance to the NCAA Tournament in May.

Indeed, with a fast-starting, high-octane team like Cornell, the Tigers' best hope will be to prevent the team from running up a big early lead as it did against Dartmouth last weekend, when the Big Red went up 4-0 before the Big Green could respond. Though Dartmouth attempted a comeback, Cornell's momentum early in the game proved to be insurmountable.

Princeton's momentum from last weekend's wins pales in comparison to what the Big Red will bring to the field on Saturday. Cornell is coming off a five-game winning streak that includes four Ivy League wins and a 16-14 defeat of Syracuse at the Orangemen's home field in the intimidating Carrier Dome.

Tierney emphasized that a key to Saturday's game will be to stop the Big Red's momentum, but that will be a difficult task at best. Cornell wields a tremendous arsenal of offensive weapons. Tierney described midfielder Joe Boulukos as one of the best midfielders in the country. Boulukos is Inside Lacrosse's reigning Player of the Week, a deserving honor after he scored seven goals against Syracuse.

Another Big Red midfielder, Justin Redd, will look to frustrate the Tigers as he did last year when he scored in overtime to defeat Princeton.

It remains to be seen how the Tigers' offense, which after an entire season of morbidity now seems to be showing signs of life, will fare against Cornell's well-disciplined defensive squad.

"They play a great team defense. They've got a bunch of unselfish defensive guys — you don't see them [going for] takeaway checks and stuff like that," Tierney said.

It was the Big Red's defense that pulled the team through the Dartmouth game when the Big Green was able to stifle the Big Red's offense.

The matchup between Princeton and Cornell will prove all the more interesting in light of the Tigers' offensive performances against Harvard and Butler last weekend.

In both games, Princeton consistently found the back of the net, often feeding senior attack Jason Doneger right in front of the goal — one of his specialties.

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At other times, a player would successfully dodge near midfield, creating opportunities that resulted in goals with only a pass or two. Both tactics had not been well executed by the Tigers in earlier games this season.

Moreover, Princeton's general offensive scheme seems to have shifted, with the Tigers of last weekend exhibiting a somewhat faster and more aggressive offense than the typical Princeton control game.

It is hard to say how all of these factors will play out on Saturday, but it is fair to assume that the Tigers will come ready to play because, if nothing else, they absolutely have to.

With no chance to snag an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament, Princeton must win the rest of its Ivy League games to capture at least a share of the league title and to advance to play in May. Tierney is trying to take things one game at a time, though.

"I'd be lying to you if I said I haven't thought of that stuff ... but that stuff doesn't matter right now," he said.

Judging by the strength of the Big Red team, Tierney is right to focus on this game before thinking of what's ahead. Cornell has traditionally been the Tigers' biggest obstacle in the Ivy League.

"They're in the league with Virginia and Hopkins and those kinds of teams," Tierney said. "But I like the kids, and they're going hard, and I think their confidence is high."

For a skilled Princeton team that did not show much confidence early in the season, Tierney's comments are reassuring. If the Tigers can use that confidence well early in the game, they will have a good shot at keeping their season's hopes alive.