Southerns yield new hope

For the men's water polo team, the season has been a rollercoaster ride. As next weekend's Southern Division championships approach, the Tigers (12-13 overall, 3-5 Collegiate Water Polo Association) look to finish the season on the rise.

After getting off to an 8-2 start, including a clean sweep of all preseason non-league opponents, the Tigers began to feel the effects of their tough schedule. Two weekends ago, Princeton traveled to Irvine, Calif., to participate in the SOCAL tournament. The competition was stiff, and the Tigers managed to win just one of four games. Last weekend, Princeton concluded the regular season on a sour note, dropping four of five against a medley of highly ranked East Coast opponents.

Despite the rough finish, the Tigers have secured the No. 4 seed in the coming Southern Division Eastern Region championships, which start Nov. 2 at Navy. Princeton faces seventh-seeded Gannon University and tenth-seeded Salem International University in the first two games of Bracket A and should manage them with relative ease. The bar is raised immediately thereafter, as the Tigers will face top-seeded Navy, the final team in their bracket.

Princeton has struggled in two matchups with Navy this year. A well-executed offense and disciplined defense have led the Midshipmen on a 12-game winning streak, including a clean sweep of all league opponents. The Tigers fell 13-8 against Navy at home on Oct. 6 and lost 14-8 at Navy last weekend.

If Princeton places first in Bracket A, it will have a chance to play for first place in the tournament against the winner of a playoff between the best in Brackets B and C. A second-place finish in Bracket A would allow the Tigers to play for fourth place.

Fifth-seeded George Washington, third-seeded Johns Hopkins and second-seeded Bucknell are all potential opponents for the late round of the tournament. Princeton has dropped many close decisions against these teams.

"We are a talented but young team, and one of the things we really need to work on is playing all four quarters of the game," head coach Luis Nicolao said. "We have lost six games by one goal. We have to learn to finish out our opponents."

The close losses include a 13-12 overtime decision at Bucknell, a 12-11 nail-biter at home against Johns Hopkins and a 10-9 debacle against UC San Diego in which the Tigers led 6-2 early on.

"In the close games we've lost, it seems like we score and then before we know it they're up by one again. We just have to come out at Southerns wanting it more than they do and we should do well," freshman driver Matt Hale said.

Though some have slipped away, the Tigers have had their share of impressive victories. Their resume boasts wins over No. 18 Santa Clara, No. 16 Bucknell and Division III powerhouse Pomona-Pitzer.

"When we play to our full ability, we know we can win," Hale said. "The last couple of games, we haven't been playing the way we want to. We reach our full ability when we play smart, play with intensity and work as a team."

The Tigers' offense has been directed this season by senior utility Zach Beckmann, whose 59 goals lead the team. Sophomore utility Mark Zalewski has added 35 goals and 18 assists, while freshman driver Jeff Cole has chipped in with 25 goals and a team-high 35 ejections drawn. Sophomore utility Gregor Hortsmeyer has effectively involved himself and his teammates, having scored 22 goals while contributing 25 assists.

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Defensively, Hale and Beckmann have bamboozled opponents with 44 and 38 steals, respectively, while Hortsmeyer's fearless defense has notched him nine blocks. In goal, senior Scott Syverson has registered a .510 save percentage, while sophomores Henry Fyfe and Scottie Hvidt have provided solid relief. Freshman goalie Mike Merlone has managed a .559 save percentage on his way to an impressive 5-3 record. When playing in a multiple-game tournament such as Southerns, the contributions of backup goalies are essential.

The most telling stat of the Tigers' season so far is their overall scoring differential by quarter. Princeton has outscored opponents by eight goals in the first quarter and 10 goals in the second but has been outscored by seven goals in the third and three goals in the fourth. While they have scored more total goals than opponents, the trend still reveals that the Tigers have often started fast, only to let the lead slip away.

"Water polo is a simple game and often comes down to execution. I always tell my guys that if we can execute, especially down the stretch, then we can win," Nicolao said.

Princeton's playoff destiny comes down to whether it can play four quarters of solid water polo. If it can, the rest of the Southern Division had better watch out.