Huskies looking for second helping

There was a steely note in head coach Kristen Holmes-Winn's voice as she reflected on the last matchup between the field hockey team and Connecticut. The Tigers and Huskies clashed in the second round of the NCAA tournament last November, but even home-field advantage could not help an exhausted Princeton squad, as it fell to Connecticut, 3-0, to end its season.

"Our first-round game against Old Dominion was just a war for regulation and then went into overtime," Holmes-Winn said. "We were certainly not as fresh as [Connecticut] was going into that second game."

When the No. 3 Huskies (11-1-0 overall) return to Class of 1952 Stadium for a rematch tomorrow at noon, the Tigers (5-4-0, 3-1-0 Ivy League) aren't planning to take a walk down memory lane. On the contrary, Princeton fans can expect their team to take the field against Connecticut with a newfound spark.

For one, the Tigers' playing schedule has finally settled down. Last Sunday's game against Richmond was Princeton's fifth in eight days, but now the team has had the entire week to practice going into the game.

The team can also boast some additional firepower in the form of fresh faces from the bench. Against the Spiders on Sunday, freshman goalkeeper Jennifer King, sophomore midfielder Katherine Cape and sophomore striker Kaitlin Donovan were all key contributors to Princeton's 5-1 victory. Donovan scored two of the Tigers' five goals.

The Huskies, meanwhile, retain two of their strongest players from last season, midfielder Lizzy Peijs and sweeper Jennifer Kleinhans. Peijs leads UConn in scoring with eight goals over 12 games, and Kleinhans poses a considerable threat thanks to her signature defensive technique — lofting the ball from her sweeper position to send it 45 to 50 yards downfield through the air.

So what are the Tigers doing to prepare for these challenges? Actually, they're emulating a favorite Princeton pastime — studying. Viewing gametape from Princeton's recent match against No. 2 Maryland proved particularly informative in getting ready to play the Huskies.

"Maryland plays similar to [Connecticut]," Holmes-Winn said. "So it's been helpful to pull some clips from that game to help us see movement patterns."

Not that Princeton won't be bringing its own strengths to the table. The Tigers have already proven to be a formidable force on offense, out-shooting every one of their opponents this season. Now Princeton's focus is on finishing those drives and converting scoring opportunities into goals.

"We've been focusing lately on trying to get the midfield and the strikers to connect with each other," Donovan said.

Defensively, Holmes-Winn emphasized the importance of playing smart inside the 25-yard line to prevent fouls that would give Connecticut opportunities to score. She has also trained the Tiger defenders how to respond to Kleinhan's lift so that they will not be caught unawares.

The Tigers must also be mentally prepared for the weekend's game, an area that the team has struggled with recently. Princeton's devastating 4-3 loss on Saturday to Ivy rival Cornell is still painfully real to each player. Junior midfielder Sarah Reinprecht admitted that the team learned a hard lesson about overconfidence that day.

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"I have never lost an Ivy League game, and [that loss] just put our whole season in jeopardy," Reinprecht said. "It reminded us how much every game matters, no matter who we're playing."

With their sense of entitlement shaken, the Tigers look even more eagerly toward tomorrow's game as a chance to prove their mettle against a ranked team. They have the energy, the strategy, the inspiration — now there is only the wait before the game begins.