Princeton hosts Yale

When Yale's women's lacrosse team visits the Class of 1952 Stadium on Saturday afternoon, they will have Ivy League revenge on their minds. Just one week ago, the Bulldogs lost to Harvard, 11-8 — the Bulldogs' first loss to the Crimson in 12 years.

Not willing to surrender another game to a key league rival in what has been an up-and-down year thus far, Yale (6-5, 1-2 Ivy League) comes ready for a dogfight despite not having history on its side. With the exception of a loss in 2003, Princeton has beaten the Bulldogs in every regular season since 1992.

As was the case in last season's contest, the key match-up will lie in Princeton's offense versus Yale's stubborn defense.

The Bulldogs are coming off an impressive 12-3 win over Holy Cross in which Yale tied its mark for the fewest goals allowed in a game over the past five seasons. The Crusaders entered that game averaging over 12 goals per outing. Yale defense was also successful on 18 of 19 clears, boosting its clear percentage to just shy of 80 percent.

Sitting just one game over .500, Yale has fallen to each team on its schedule ranked in the top-20 nationally. Princeton should prove to be the most talented team the Bulldogs' have faced this season. The highest ranked opponent Yale has faced is No. 14 Vanderbilt, which defeated the Bulldogs, 14-9.

Princeton (5-4, 2-0 Ivy) enters the game after wining a nailbiter in Philadelphia against Temple, 10-9. As of late, the offense has been spurred by freshman standout midfielder Holly McGarvie, who scored another four goals against the Owls.

Aside from her scoring, McGarvie also leads the team in groundballs, with 22, draw controls, with 27 and caused turnovers, with 11. McGarvie was awarded for her stellar play last week by being named the Ivy League Women's Lacrosse Rookie of the Week.

With many Tiger players contributing on offense, Princeton has found itself in a scoring-by-committee system which has averaged over 10 goals per game. The ever-consistent junior Kathleen Miller leads the Tigers with 28 points on 17 goals. What committee will show up on Saturday?

Although some may argue that the Bulldogs' defense is the strength of the team, the Yale offense has been averaging over 9 goals per game. Sophomore midfielder Lauren Taylor is largely responsible for the success of the offense, leading both her team and the Ivy League in goals, wih 34, and points, with 38.

Recently, senior attacker Carli Vogler has taken charge of the Bulldog offense, registering 10 points on seven goals and three assists in the last four games. Scoring a career high five goals against Fairfield, she now ranks sixth on the team in points with 12.

More important, however, is Vogler's ball security, as she is one of three Yale players who have played in all 11 games this season to have fewer than 10 turnovers.

It was turnovers, however, that cost Yale its game against Harvard, as the Bulldogs committed a season-high 23 turnovers. The Crimson forced 12 of those with most coming on clear attempts. Yale failed to clear the ball on 7-of-18 attempts. If Princeton can pressure the ball in Yale's half of the field and create these types of turnovers, this could quickly turn into a one-sided affair in favor of the Tigers.

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The last key for the Tigers is the play of the goaltender, which had gone relatively unnoticed until Wednesday's game at Temple when sophomore goalie Meg Murray opened a few eyes. Allowing just under nine goals on average in her seven starts, Murray made three key saves in the final minute of the game as Princeton was able to hold on for a one-goal victory.

With Yale averaging 27 shots on goal per game, Murray is sure to see her fair share of action on Saturday. And as we witnessed in the Temple game, a few key saves may make all the difference.

As the race for the Ivy League title heats up, Princeton can maintain its position atop the standings with a win on Saturday. A Princeton win would also virtually eliminate Yale from Ivy League contention as they would drop to 1-3. Harvard, the only other undefeated team in the league, looks to keep pace with the Tigers when it travels to face Penn this weekend.