Slow second half proves fatal in loss

Princeton (12-4 overall, 5-2 Ivy League) faced off against the No. 7 Hoyas (12-6) in its regular-season finale, in which the Hoyas outplayed the Tigers in a suspenseful 9-8 match. This is the second-straight season Princeton and Georgetown have met for their regular-season finale, and last year the Tigers played a similar back-and-forth match, winning 12-11.

The Hoyas hit the turf with a vengeance, responding to each Princeton goal with two of their own and taking a 4-2 lead 11 minutes, 30 seconds into the first half. The game went back and forth for the next 10 minutes, with neither team able to find the back of the net.

It was freshman midfielder Lizzy Drumm who got the Tigers out of their dry spell and took control of the game when she scored an unassisted goal with 10:56 remaining. Drumm’s score started a streak of four unanswered goals for Princeton. Junior midfielder Holly McGarvie followed Drumm’s goal with one of her own when she streaked down the left wing of the field and fired one past Georgetown goalie Caitlin Formby to tie the game at four only four minutes later. Just 21 seconds after McGarvie’s goal, sophomore midfielder Jenna Washabaugh won the draw control, ran straight past the Hoya defense and scored. McGarvie would score the final goal of the half with 2:58 remaining on a one-to-one drive, giving the Tigers a two-point lead heading into halftime.

“Our offense started to get into a rhythm in the middle of the first half,” junior attack Christine Casaceli said. “We really started to read the game and had many different attackers score. This pushed us through the first half to come out with a two-goal lead.”

Despite the early turnaround, Princeton was unable to maintain its momentum heading into the second period. The Hoyas ended the Tigers’ scoring run just nine seconds into the half and found the back of the net again a mere two minutes later to tie the game at six. Though Princeton’s defense managed to fight off Georgetown’s attack for the next 15 minutes, Hoya midfielder Ashby Kaestner slipped past and scored a goal to give Georgetown the lead and end her team’s scoreless stretch.

The game outlook worsened for the Tigers when McGarvie, the team’s leading scorer in the match, was forced to leave the field due to an injury. Despite the bad luck, junior attack Sarah Steele, who came in for McGarvie, added some much-needed momentum to Princeton’s attack when she swept around the left side of the crease and rifled a shot past Formby, once again tying the match. Both teams managed to find the back of the net once more to bring the game to 8-8.

As the second half entered its final minutes, time was quickly running out for the Tigers. Princeton failed to make an aggressive offensive move, however, and Georgetown took advantage of the opportunity. Hoya midfielder Patty Piotrowicz streaked down the left wing and bombarded the goal to score the game-winning shot with 7:11 remaining. Though the Tigers still had time to turn the match around, the offense was unable to get aggressive and create any opportunities, and Georgetown succeeded in stalling away the rest of the game.

“In the second half, we started to slip in little ways,” Casaceli said. “We had a few more turnovers, they had a couple fast break goals, and we didn’t do enough to counteract this to pull out the win. There was a lack of game management, especially by the attack, that really hurt us in the end.”

Despite the close final score, the Hoyas dominated several crucial statistical categories, outshooting Princeton 25-17 and taking a 28-13 advantage in ground balls. Though the attack seemed to have faltered on those two fronts, freshman goaltender Erin Tochihara had a stupendous game during her first career start, making eight saves, including seven in the second half.