No. 2 Maryland handles Princeton

Princeton is a feared name in the world of Ivy League field hockey, but once outside that world and thrust into all of NCAA Division I, it loses a bit of the fear factor.

The Tigers (4-3 overall, 3-0 Ivy League) may be undefeated in their own domain, but they just couldn't handle non-conference Maryland (10-0), falling to the No. 2 Terps 4-1 Wednesday night in College Park.

Of course, Maryland is anything but a pushover, having won its previous 13 games and seeking its third consecutive national championship. Princeton knew it was in for a challenge.

"Heading into the game, our team had the mentality that we were going to be right with Maryland," junior midfielder Candice Arner said. "We knew that if we executed our game plan as well as on our opportunities, we would have a chance to take down the number two team in the country."

The Tigers held their own with the Terps through the first half, matching them in shots and drawing three penalty corners to Maryland's one. Nevertheless, the Terps led, 2-1, at halftime.

"The difference was that Maryland finished all of their opportunities, and we were not able to convert all of ours," sophomore midfielder Kaitlin Donovan said.

The Terps got on the board first nearly nine minutes in when they converted on a penalty corner. About 15 minutes later, the Tigers fell behind by two when Maryland's Kim Ziegler sent a shot past sophomore goalkeeper Cynthia Wray.

"Maryland's offensive attack was very disciplined, very skilled and very fast," Wray said. "They are difficult to defend because although they may have one or two stars on their team, every player is extremely capable of being dangerous."

Late in the first half, Donovan scored her first goal of the season to bring the Orange and Black within one. Junior attack Leah Hoagland slung a shot at the cage that was stopped by Terrapin goalkeeper Kathryn Masson, but the rebound came to Donovan, who fired it in past a Maryland defender.

Donovan had another glorious scoring opportunity midway through the second half. With the score still 2-1, she came within inches of tying it up.

"[A rebound] came right to me, and I was able to control the ball and pull it around the goalie and a defender, but unfortunately my shot was blocked by another Maryland defender on the goal line," Donovan said.

The Terps responded by scoring with about 15 minutes left to add an insurance goal and steepen Princeton's climb.

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"After scoring their third goal, Maryland was able to play more defensively and conservatively, while we really worked on taking every chance and going for every scoring opportunity," Donovan said.

The Tigers managed six shots in the second half but ultimately couldn't muster another goal. Meanwhile, the Terrapins added one more of their own in the final minutes, putting the game away. This might suggest a lopsided defeat, but Arner was confident that she and her teammates played better than the scoreboard reflected.

"The outcome of the game was obviously disappointing. It is very frustrating to play against such a good team and be statistically equal and have an outcome that suggests otherwise," Arner said.

According to Wray, Princeton's chances of securing a top-20 ranking are slim, so the team will "really have to take care of business in the Ivy League" to ensure the automatic bid into the NCAA tournament that comes from winning the Ivy League Championship.

In that vein, the Tigers' next order of business will be Cornell (5-2, 2-1) on Saturday at home, followed by Richmond (1-8) on Sunday. Donovan said her team's strong showing Wednesday, though disappointing, will be beneficial in the long run.

"Maryland is a quality opponent, and the fact that we gave them such an intense game and made them work for the win is a really good sign for our team," Donovan said. "We have very high expectations on this team that we feel we are very capable of achieving."