Field Hockey: Terps top Tigers 5-0

Princeton (9-2 overall, 3-0 Ivy League) came out rather flat in the first half, as might have been expected after a nine-day hiatus. Maryland, on the other hand, started the game with energy and put the Tigers down 2-0 early. At the end of the first frame, the Tigers appeared to be running low on gas, with the ball remaining on their end of the field for several minutes. Maryland was attacking the Tigers’ goal relentlessly, but junior goalkeeper Cynthia Wray and the rest of the Princeton defense were able to keep the Terps from converting again before halftime.

The second half began with a flurry of offense from Princeton. A few aggressive plays in front of the goal allowed the defense to push up and earned the Tigers a few good chances to score. A promising but just-wide penalty corner at the beginning of the half seemed to give Princeton some new life, as three-consecutive shots on goal followed.

“In the second half, we stepped up well,” head coach Kristen Holmes-Winn said. “We had good pressure and we opened things up, but we had no answer for their defense. They gave us no second or third opportunities.”

After Princeton’s early moments of brilliance in the second-half, the offense stagnated. With slightly less than 19 minutes left in the game, the Tigers earned their next good chance to score in the form of another penalty corner. Princeton skillfully chose its shot, which, unluckily for the Orange and Black, ricocheted off Maryland goalie Alicia Grater and bounced wide to the right.

Maryland was able to generate a counter-attack with a full-length pass that split the Tiger defense. The long pass gave Maryland’s Nicole Muracco a one-on-one look at the goal that she successfully converted, her second of four goals in the game. This score put the Terrapins up 3-0 and took the game out of reach for Princeton.

“The third goal was the difference-maker,” Holmes-Winn said. “You want to see returns for hard work, and that just didn’t happen for us.”

The Tigers didn’t give up, however, and responded with 12 minutes left in the game on another penalty corner attempt. While Princeton didn’t score on the penalty corner, the attempt interrupted Maryland’s heavy presence in front of Wray’s net. A little more than a minute later, the Tigers earned another penalty corner but were denied by Grater’s outstretched arm for the Terrapin goalie’s seventh of nine saves on the night.

Maryland firmly closed and locked the door on Princeton with five minutes left in the game when the Terps scored their fourth and fifth goals about a minute apart. The disheartened Tigers made a few defensive errors in a game where details made all the difference and led to goals against a team of Maryland’s caliber.

The Tigers’ problem in this game was not with opportunities to score. They outshot the Terrapins 12-6 in the second half, the difference being that Maryland converted three of its shots. Princeton had plenty of solid looks at the goal, too, winning the penalty corners battle 5-1 in the second half.

“Maryland is a classy team,” Holmes-Winn said. “They were opportunistic. I expected them to be good, and they did the little things well.”

The game also marked the first time in a while that the whole team was present for a game. Against Providence on Sunday, Oct. 5, freshman attack Kathleen Sharkey, freshman midfielder Katie Reinprecht and junior defender Kaitlyn Perrelle were playing in the Junior Pan-Am games. In addition, senior defender and tri-captain Holly McGarvie, currently tied for the team lead in goals, missed practice this weekend due to lacrosse commitments.

“It was great to finally have everyone back,” Holmes-Winn said. “It was a tough loss, but we have to play at that level to know that level. I wish we had more teams like Maryland on our schedule.”

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With the loss, Princeton falls to 2-2 against ranked opponents, which is disappointing for the Tigers, as a win would have solidified hopes for a postseason run.