Women's Ice Hockey: Streaking Tigers look for more victories

After a big win against Harvard on Jan. 2, the Tigers were attempting to break their .500 record and move to 9-8-1 on the season at Dartmouth. A slow first period had put the team behind 1-0, and things weren’t looking good against a huge crowd at Dartmouth’s Thompson Arena.

Princeton seized the game’s momentum in the second period, outshooting Dartmouth 20-6 in the frame and putting three goals into the Big Green net. The Tigers held on to their lead in the third, keeping Dartmouth scoreless and winning the game, 4-1.

“We were pretty determined during the Dartmouth game, and we had worked hard for the first period,” junior defenseman Maddie Endicott said. “But coming into the second and third periods, we really developed a killer instinct and really learned how to finish a team.”

Two wins later, Princeton sits in third place in the ECAC standings, four points behind first-place Dartmouth, with three big games during Intersession.

The Tigers will first travel to Quinnipiac (3-18-4, 2-7-4). Then they will head home to face Yale (7-9-0, 3-6-0) and Brown (3-12-1, 2-7-0) in a weekend doubleheader.

On Princeton’s side will be a newfound sense of urgency and resolve to keep its winning ways.

“We are really starting to gain consistency in our playing and general attitude, something that’s much different from the first half of our season, where we just had a hard time keeping that up,” Endicott said.

Quinnipiac, currently tied for eighth in the ECAC standings, has been unpredictable all season. After an impressive 1-1 tie against Dartmouth, the Bobcats tied last-place Union in another 1-1 matchup. Their last game, a 3-3 tie against RPI, was a last-minute affair, as they tied the game with three minutes left in the third. The Bobcats went three-for-six on the power play against RPI, but they will face a Princeton team that has allowed only 19 goals on 104 power-play attempts this season.

The Bulldogs come into their matchup against Princeton on a three-game losing streak, failing to score in two of their last three games. They are currently ranked 10th in the ECAC standings and have met the Tigers in a preseason game.

Brown has lost two straight, with its most recent game against Dartmouth ending in a 9-1 rout. The Bears are last in the league in shots on goal and goals-against average.

The Tigers are currently in training mode, fitting in workouts and lifts in between exams and studying. Nevertheless, they understand the importance of the games to come.

“We’re preparing the way we would for any other team,” Endicott said. “But these are especially big because now we’re in a position to compete for an Ivy League title.”

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The team, which returned to campus in late December and played games up until the start of finals, has had its fair share of working under pressure.

“After finals and after break is one of the best times of the season, since we don’t have to worry about school and academics, and we can just focus on hockey,” Endicott said.

Not only are the upcoming games a big deal for ECAC hockey, they are also important on the NCAA level. The Tigers have a chance to move up in the national rankings with wins over the break, establishing their talent as well as their consistency.

“It’s exciting that we’ve proven that we are competitive in our league, but also in the country,” Endicott said. “Now we have the chance to make a lot of noise going down the stretch and into the playoffs.”