Men's Soccer: Mid-week victory brings needed confidence

Head coach Jim Barlow ’91 noted, however, that it is too early in league play to put too much weight on the standings.

“Every team is still important,” Barlow said. “You don’t know what record’s going to wind up winning the league.”

Saturday night, Princeton (3-8-1 overall, 0-1-1 Ivy League) and Columbia (3-7-1, 1-1-0) will fight each other’s tendency to lose close games. Both have had their share of frustrating disappointments — in overtime games, Columbia is 1-4 this season, while the Tigers are 0-1-2 — and both teams have recently suffered close losses to defending league champion Brown.

Princeton seems to have the momentum, however. Columbia’s midweek game ended in a 2-1 overtime loss to Adelphi, but the Tigers are coming off a solid 3-0 win over in-state rival Rutgers.

“We’re going to try to build on the complete game we played [against Rutgers],” Barlow said. “We finally played 90 minutes in the attack and the defense without a stretch of the game where we struggled.”

Princeton also has recent history on its side. Since the current seniors started playing, the Tigers are 2-0-1 against the Lions, including a 2-0 win at home in Princeton Stadium last year.

Despite this momentum, both teams have their Ivy standings on the line and the rest of their seasons at stake.

“If we win this game, we’re definitely right back in the Ivy hunt,” sophomore defender Josh Walburn said.

The Tigers have a slight statistical advantage. Princeton averages 11 shots per game to Columbia’s nine, and the Lions allow their opponents 15 chances while the Tiger defense only allows 12 on average. Princeton’s scoring average is also slightly higher than Columbia’s.

The Lions’ offense, however, boasts forward Bayo Adafin. Of the 10 goals that Columbia has scored this season, Adafin has snagged five. The other five goals have been distributed among five other players.

“[They] have been pretty effective getting behind teams with their pace up front,” Barlow said.

The Tiger defense will have to keep an eye on Adafin and other attackers, while the offense tries to build on Wednesday night’s three-goal success. In a breakout performance, freshman midfielder Antoine Hoppenot scored two goals and assisted the other. Sophomore forward Brandon Busch leads the team with four goals and three assists, while junior midfielder and captain Devin Muntz has assisted five goals.

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Senior Joe Walter has seen the most time in goal, and he holds a 77 percent save percentage in seven games. Columbia’s goalkeeper Alex Aurrichio boasts an 81 percent save average in 11 games, but, as a sophomore, Aurrichio has less overall experience than the veteran Walter.

Princeton hopes to continue its solid performances on the defensive end while attempting to even out its offensive efforts. Though the Tigers have been much more offensively potent in the second half this season — 10 of their 14 goals have come in the second half — Barlow said he hopes to see Princeton imitate its effort against Rutgers, not its struggle against Brown. Against the Bears last weekend, the Tigers held 1-0 and 2-1 advantages before ultimately losing 3-2.

“It makes a big difference when you can make that first goal and when you can get dangerous off of your possession,” Barlow said.

With Princeton through the toughest section of its schedule — Brown and Dartmouth were the top two Ivy finishers from the 2007 season — Barlow said he hopes this weekend in New York City will mark the start of the Tigers’ climb up the Ivy rankings.

“We kind of approach every game as if it’s the Ivy League championship,” Barlow said. “We have to hope that someone knocks off Brown, but at the same time, all we can worry about is getting ready for the next game.”