Tigers drop season opener to Hawks

After a dismal shooting performance in the first half of the women's basketball team's game against St. Joseph's on Saturday, even a flurry of baskets late in the second half couldn't pull the Tigers back into contention. Princeton (0-1 overall) fell in its season opener, 58-46, starting off the season on a less-than-desirable note.

The Hawks (1-0), also playing their opening game, were dominant from the very beginning, going up by a 9-0 score before sophomore forward Meagan Cowher made two free throws to put the Tigers on the board with 13:33 on the clock. St. Joseph's then made full use of a 11-0 run late in the first half to end the stanza with a comfortable 30-17 advantage, a lead that ultimately proved to be insurmountable.

Not that the Tigers didn't try to make a comeback. Princeton was able to improve on offense, outscoring the Hawks 29-28 in the second half and narrowing St. Joseph's lead to just eight points with eight minutes left on a pair of free throws by senior center Becky Brown. The Hawks, however, were unwilling to let the Tigers come any closer. Guard Ayahna Cornish responded by notching back-to-back breakaway layups, pushing St. Joseph's lead back into the double digits. As the Hawks held on for the win, Princeton would be unable to narrow the gap to less than nine the rest of the game.

This was still a marked improvement over the first half, when the Tigers shot just 19 percent to St. Joseph's 34.6 percent, though Princeton did manage to come to within two points following a 9-2 run to reach 11-9 midway through the opening half. That was the closest the Tigers would get: the rest of the half was all St. Joseph's, as the Hawks opened up a 15-point lead that saw them through until the end.

Nonetheless, Princeton's mood during halftime was optimistic.

"The fact that we had kept the game within reach while shooting 19 percent from field goals in the first half inspired us to make a comeback," junior forward Casey Lockwood said.

"The mood in the locker room during halftime was positive," freshman guard Jessica Berry said. "We knew our shots were going to start falling in the second half."

The Tigers duly improved to 31 percent overall for the game, but it would be insufficient as St. Joseph's was able to increase its mark to 37 percent.

The Hawks' Cornish led the field with a game-high 16 points. Brown came in a close second with 15 points and added seven rebounds to Princeton's overall total of 36. Berry, playing her first game with the Tigers, also recorded seven rebounds along with 10 points for Princeton's second-highest game score.

Overall, the Tigers' biggest weakness was on offense — for example, they were unable to score off 12 three-point attempts and made just nine of 16 free throw attempts to St Joseph's 11-for-14 mark.

"I think the fact that many of the shots we were missing were layups and free throws is indicative of the fact that despite our efforts, a little first-game nerves crept in," Lockwood said.

This loss marks the third time in head coach Richard Barron's five-year tenure that Princeton has opened the season with a loss. Last year was the Tigers' best under Barron, as Princeton amassed a 13-14 overall record.

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Looking forward to their next game against Lehigh at home Tuesday night, both Lockwood and Berry focused on the need to remain aggressive, especially on offense. With that in place, as well as with home court advantage, the Tigers should be able to turn their momentum around.