Murray holds on for win

Making three key saves in the final 66 seconds of play, sophomore goalie Meg Murray helped the women's lacrosse team secure a victory Tuesday evening. Increasing its winning streak to three games, No. 8 Princeton (5-4 overall, 2-0 Ivy League) defeated Temple (4-5) by a score of 10-9 on the Owls' home field in Philadelphia.

With the win, the Tigers, who sit alone at the top of the Ivy League as the only undefeated team, showed that their recent success is not limited to their Ancient Eight opponents. It took excellent goaltending from Murray, who ended the game with nine total saves, to help Princeton get the 'W.'

The Temple offense kept Murray on her toes until the final whistle sounded. With the Tigers up by one, a close call came with one minute, six seconds left in the game. Owl midfielder Casey Cech, who ended the game with four goals, was robbed of her fifth when Murray stopped the shot. Crisis averted? Not yet.

With 46 seconds left in the game, Temple attack Corey Leader, who had already recorded a hat trick, knocked the ball out of Murray's stick and attempted to score. But Murray's reflexes were too quick for Leader, and she prevented the Owls from tying the game for the second time. Game over? Think again.

After Princeton committed a turnover with 20 seconds to go, Temple midfielder Allison Frengs raced down the field and launched a free-position shot at the goal. But for the third time in the final minute and six seconds, Murray thwarted the Owls' hopes of a comeback. Senior defender Lauren Vance ran out the clock and the Tigers emerged unscathed from the thrilling finale.

"Although the final minutes of the game were hectic, I had confidence in my teammates and I knew that they had confidence in me. I did not doubt our ability to pull out the win," Murray said. "As the goalie, I had to remain poised and not be influenced by the chaos of the final minutes."

In the first half, the Tigers came out on fire. Senior attack Jamie Sundheim and freshman midfielder Holly McGarvie combined for the first five goals of the matchup and both ended the game with four goals apiece.

After Temple got on the board early with a goal from Cech, Sundheim and McGarvie began their attack. Sundheim scored first off an assist from junior attack Kathleen Miller. Feeding off the momentum from Sundheim, McGarvie scored three times in a span of five minutes. After that, Sundheim scored again to make the score 5-1 in favor of the Orange and Black. The goal was assisted by none other than McGarvie.

The Owls, showing they would not go down without a fight, responded with a scoring streak of their own. In a spree that lasted just two minutes, Temple scored three goals — two from Cech and one from Leader — to pull within one goal.

The Tigers then tallied two more scores, one from Sundheim and one from Miller, to make the game 7-4. The Owls, however, would not let Princeton sit with a comfortable lead for long. They answered with another three-goal stretch to knot the game at seven before the end of the first half.

Recharged from the halftime break, Sundheim and McGarvie recommenced their scoring show. Sundheim drew first blood in the second half on an unassisted goal. McGarvie responded with an unaided score of her own two minutes later to increase the lead to two. Sophomore midfielder Katie Lewis-Lamonica added to the offensive productivity with a goal, giving her team a 10-7 lead.

But Temple still refused to give the Tigers any breathing room. Cech scored her fourth goal of the game on a solo attempt with 17 minutes remaining to cut the Princeton lead to two. Then, for the second time in the game, Leader got her team within one goal. The Owl effort would end there, as Murray closed the game with her MVP-worthy performance.

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Even though this game was a little too close for comfort, it gives the Tigers more experience in tight games, something that will be beneficial to them down the line.

"Being able to pull out the win against a formidable opponent such as Temple speaks to the team's still untapped potential and heart to get the job done, despite how ugly the actual play may be," Murray said.

Princeton will try to tap into this potential when it competes against Yale at home on Saturday.