Tough test awaits Tigers in No. 12 Cornell squad

To say that the No. 8 women's lacrosse team owns No. 12 Cornell may be a bit of an understatement. Heading into Saturday's home game at the Class of '52 Stadium, the Tigers have beaten Cornell in 18 consecutive games, including 17 straight regular season meetings.

Though winning by an average margin of just over seven goals per game over that stretch, Princeton had to eke out a 9-8 sudden death victory in last year's match-up with the Big Red.

The bad news for Princeton (3-4 overall, 1-0 Ivy League) is that Cornell (7-1, 2-0) returns most of the offensive firepower that helped the Big Red come within one goal of defeating the Tigers last season. Junior midfielder Margaux Viola, recently added to the Tewaaraton Trophy Watch List for National Player of the Year, is regarded as one of the top midfielders in the league. She leads Cornell in goals with 21, and draw controls with 18. Her 24 points are also the second-best mark on the team.

The Big Red's other offensive weapon is sophomore attack Courtney Farrell, who last week was named the Ivy League Offensive Player of the Week after tallying eight points in wins over Vanderbilt and Penn. Farrell leads Cornell in points, with 26, and assists, with 8.

These two stars have helped the Big Red offense score at least 13 goals in each of its seven games this season. Cornell scored an astounding 26 combined goals in its two league contests against Penn and Columbia.

But, as these numbers indicate, the scoring load has been handled by more than Viola and Farrell alone. In fact, at least six Cornell players have scored in each game thus far and 12 different players on the roster have scored in all.

The Big Red defense, after allowing over 20 goals in its first two games, has rebounded to allow just 21 goals in its last five games. Cornell's defensive unit has also had a tendency to hold its opponents scoreless for long stretches during a game. Colgate, California, Hofstra, Columbia and Vanderbilt were all held off the scoreboard in their games against the Big Red for a stretch of at least 20 minutes at one point or another. Princeton must not get lulled into a lack of offensive productivity.

Cornell's combination of offensive prowess and defensive toughness has led the team to a five-game winning streak and its best start since the 2003 ECAC championship team, which also began the season 7-1.

Princeton, on the other hand, has not gotten off to the kind of start it has in years past. The team's struggles, however, can be partially attributed to a schedule which has featured four teams that are currently ranked in the top six in the nation. The Tigers' final ten games will provide a little relief, though, as only one of their ten remaining opponents is ranked in the top 10 nationally.

More importantly, five of Princeton's next six games are Ivy League games, which some argue are the only ones that matter. This weekend against Cornell, the Tigers will look to improve to 2-0 in the league in only their second game at home this season.

In order to escape with a win, Princeton will have to get yet another solid performance from its freshmen standouts. Just under half of the Tiger's goals this season have come from the sticks of freshmen, with midfielder Kristin Schwab's 13 goals leading the way. In fact, freshmen lead the team in both goals and draw controls. Midfielder Holly McGarvie is the team leader in draw controls with 13 and recently had a four-goal effort at Columbia.

Like Cornell, however, Princeton's scoring has not depended on a select few offensive threats, as it has in previous seasons. Instead, 17 different Tigers have found the back of the net thus far. Also owing to the depth of the team, 25 of the 29 players on the roster have seen the field this season.

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Though it is early in the Ivy League schedule, this matchup features the only two undefeated teams in the league and will serve as a measuring stick for both programs.

In the past 12 seasons, the Tigers have lost just one Ivy League game to a team other than Dartmouth, losing to Yale in 2003.

Princeton will look to avoid adding another Ivy League foe to that list on Saturday.