Princeton seeks lost momentum

The season is still young, but if men's soccer (2-1-1 overall) can put together a strong performance at this weekend's Penn Invitational, it will certainly be among the top contenders vying for the Ivy League crown heading into the start of league play.

In the two-day Philadelphia event, the Tigers will be squaring off against a very strong Duquesne team (3-1-1) tonight and a faltering St. Joseph's squad (0-5) on Sunday. Wins against these two teams would propel Princeton to its strongest start in several seasons.

Heading into the weekend, the men's team has already demonstrated significant promise with wins over perennial rivals Loyola and American and an impressive tie against Stanford. In these games, the Tigers have been buoyed by the many new starters taking the field so far this season.

Short learning curve

In the Tigers' first win of the season against Loyola, six Princeton starters had never before seen their names listed on the team's starting roster. Two new first stringers in particular have proved that they belong in their spots — senior goaltender Justin Oppenheimer and junior Dan Cummins.

Though both players only saw limited game time prior to this season, both have made immediate impacts. Cummins has already racked up two goals for the season — a tally made even more impressive by the fact that he only recorded three shots during all of the 2005 season. Oppenheimer joins the first string for the first time in his career with the graduation of Bobby Guelich, who guarded the net for all of last season's 17 games. Guelich, an all-Ivy selection, left big shoes to fill with his .825 save percentage. In the first three games, Oppenheimer rose to the challenge, allowing just one goal.

The team's first and only hiccup of the year came against Farleigh Dickinson (3-1-2), a team that entered the match ranked No. 17 team in the nation. The Tigers fell behind early against the Knights and were forced to play catchup for most of the game.

Looking to recover

How the relatively inexperienced Tigers bounce back from their first loss and perform against a hot Duquesne team may provide a glimpse into the remainder of the season.

Duquesne will also be entering the game with only one loss, a 4-3 overtime loss to Rider. Princeton has not faced the Dukes in recent years, so it is difficult to predict how the teams will match up. Duquesne, however, has proved it can put up big offensive numbers, scoring six goals in its last two games. The Tigers will be counting on Oppenheimer and the defense to break the Duke's recent scoring trend.

St. Joe's down, not out

Whereas Duquesne is surging, St. Joseph's is reeling and has yet to win a game in five chances. The team's most recent loss was particularly devastating.

The Hawks hung tough for 89 minutes, holding Manhattan to just one goal while scoring the game-tying goal with under ten minutes remaining in regulation.

But in the closing seconds before overtime, Manhattan netted a second goal to continue the Hawks' winless streak. The Tigers will be confident heading into their second match of the weekend, but do not expect them to take any chances against the Hawks.

Though league play does not start for just over a week, you can be certain that Princeton's Ivy League rivals will be watching closely to see just how difficult this young Tiger team will be later in the season.