Women's Hockey: Three-year win streak on the line

Following their first tie of the season, the Tigers (4-6-1 overall, 2-4-0 ECAC Hockey) have a chance to start a new trend when they host conference rival Quinnipiac (2-15-1, 1-4-1) tonight. With three home games in the next five days, Princeton is well positioned to craft its longest winning streak of the season.

In the first matchup of its homestand, Princeton takes aim at the Bobcats, who have not defeated the Tigers in recent memory. In fact, the current crop of seniors has a 6-0 record against Quinnipiac going into tonight’s contest.

The Bobcats have suffered through a rough season so far, opening with 10-0 and 7-3 losses to No. 1 Wisconsin. The team has surprised some of its opponents, however, even upsetting Colgate, the team that beat Princeton on Nov. 8. Despite their unremarkable record, the Tigers have shown flashes of brilliance as well, matching No. 8 Boston College goal-for-goal in a 3-3 tie last Friday. Princeton will carry that confidence into its game against the Bobcats.

“We had a lot of good pressure [against Boston College], and we got shots on net,” senior forward and tri-captain Christine Foster said. “We just need to be playing from the drop of the puck on … We need to play our own game, for the whole game.”

Head coach Jeff Kampersal ’92 echoed Foster’s sentiments.

“Our team played hard for the last 40 minutes, [showing] heart and grit in the last two periods,” Kampersal said. “We want to play hard and pressure Quinnipiac for 60 minutes.”

Though the numbers are in Princeton’s favor, the team is approaching tonight’s matchup with caution. The last time the Tigers slugged it out with a top-10 opponent, beating then-No. 4 St. Lawrence, they lost to an unranked opponent their next time out on the ice. The Bobcats, meanwhile, come into the game at a low point in their season and will likely fight tooth and nail to break their current losing streak. Quinnipiac’s two wins on the season have come in low-scoring, physical games: The Bobcats defeated Syracuse 4-2 on Oct. 17 and beat Colgate 3-2 on Nov. 7 but have not won since.

Princeton hung tight with BC but relinquished its lead in the waning minutes. Senior defender Katherine Dineen singled out strong play at the end of the game as crucial to defeating Quinnipiac.

“They are a team that has lost a lot of close games,” Dineen said. “It’s going to be hard to get a lot of shots on them, so our main focus should be getting shots to the net and picking up rebounds, then getting the lead and holding it.”

Dineen noted the importance of the game to Princeton’s playoff hopes.

“It’s really important that we get these two points, because they’re league points,” she said. “We’re having trouble getting points in the league.”

Much of Princeton’s success this season has rested on the shoulders of senior goaltender and tri-captain Kristin Young, who boasts an impressive .905 save percentage. To pick up the win against Quinnipiac, though, the Tigers will also lean heavily on their underclassmen scorers. Sophomore defender Sasha Sherry and freshman forwards Paula Romanchuk and Danielle DiCesare each have five goals on the season.

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“Quinnipiac is well coached, and they play stingy [defense],” Kampersal said. “Our goal will be to wear down their d[efensive]-zone coverage. It will not be easy. We want to break out well, move the puck and skate through the middle of the rink quickly and get good quality scoring chances in our offensive zone.”

Princeton will also need to look out for the Bobcats’ power-play unit. The Tigers’ penalty kill is right around the league average, and Bobcats forward Elyse Cole has scored five goals on the power play this season.

Foster, however, is confident about Princeton’s chances.

“If we play defensively like we normally do, we should come out ahead,” Foster said.