No. 9 Tigers to play four over fall break

Though the members of the women's hockey team will be taking a break from the classroom in the coming week, they'll still be putting in their time on the ice with a full schedule featuring games against No. 3 St. Lawrence, Clarkson, Yale and Brown.

No. 9 Princeton began its season with an impressive opening weekend. After skating to a 2-2 deadlock against Boston College — a result identical to the start of the 2005 campaign — the Tigers soundly defeated Quinnipiac, 6-3, in their Eastern College Athletic Conference Hockey League (ECACHL) opener. Princeton (1-0-1 overall, 1-0-0 ECACHL) displayed its offense's talent and balance as six different players recorded two points each in the win.

The Tigers look to carry this momentum into fall break and plan to add a few more tallies to the win column.

"We can definitely come in and win every single game," senior co-captain Kim Pearce said.

The puck drops this Friday evening at 7 p.m. at Baker Rink as Princeton takes on St. Lawrence in its home opener. The Saints boasts a spotless 6-0-0 overall record upon entering Friday's contest and will surely provide the Tigers with some excellent competition. One of the team's biggest weapons is junior goalkeeper Meaghan Guckian, who was recently named ECACHL's Goaltender of the Week for the second week in a row.

In a mid-November match last year between Princeton and St. Lawrence, neither team was able to gain an advantage and the game ended in a 1-1 draw. Later in the season, the Tigers fell 3-1 to the Saints and will be looking to avenge that loss.

The Tigers won't have much time to rest after Friday evening's game, for they will face off against ECACHL rival Clarkson at 4 p.m. Saturday afternoon. The Golden Knights (2-3-1, 0-2-0) recently suffered tough back-to-back losses to St. Lawrence and will come to Baker Rink in hopes of notching their first league win.

Princeton came out on top twice against Clarkson last year. Current captains senior Laura Watt and Pearce — last year's Ivy League Player of the Year — tallied goals in last season's Nov. 18 match-up and look to lead the Tigers to another win over the Golden Knights this Saturday.

The following week of practice will be devoted to preparing for games against Ivy League rivals Brown and Yale. Princeton will look to its seniors for leadership and experience.

"We know what it means to play against the Browns and the Yales whom we've battled against for the past three years," Pearce said.

The Tigers' schedule resumes on Saturday, Nov. 4 when the team travels to Providence to square off against Brown (0-1-0, 0-0-0). The Bears suffered a loss to No. 2 New Hampshire last weekend in the only game of their season.

Both Princeton and Brown claimed a victory during last year's regular season match-ups, but the Bears ended Princeton's championship dreams in March when they defeated the Tigers, 1-0, in the ECACHL Semifinals.

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Princeton controlled play throughout the entire game and forced the Brown net minder to make 42 saves. Yet despite their best efforts, the Tigers failed to convert their opportunities into a win. The memory of this undeserved loss will surely provide the Orange and Black with incentive for a victory next weekend.

The Tigers round out their fall break schedule with an away game against Yale at 2 p.m. on Saturday, Nov 5. Princeton faced the Bulldogs (0-1-0) in mid-October in a preseason scrimmage and came out on top, 2-0. The Tigers will aim for a similar result when they play for keeps next weekend.

Last year, Princeton and Yale skated to a 5-5 stalemate in early January. Yet Princeton conducted a fantastic 7-0 run at the end of its regular season, and Yale proved to be no match for the Tigers in their final home game. Princeton soundly defeated Yale 3-0 on Senior Night to clinch the 2005-2006 Ivy League championship.