Women's Ice Hockey: Fourth in conference with four left to play

After posting a convincing 3-1 victory over Colgate on Friday and the 2-2 tie against the Big Red on Saturday, Princeton (14-9-2 overall, 11-6-1 ECAC Hockey) moved into a tie for fourth place in the ECAC standings.

Though Princeton didn’t come away with the victory, head coach Jeff Kampersal ’92 was satisfied with the way his team played.

“We’d rather win,” Kampersal ’92 said. “But that was one of the better hockey games we’ve played all season.”

Those words ring true, as the first two periods of the game against Cornell were two of the most exciting periods of the year for the team. Both Princeton and Cornell played extremely well, and the play was fast-paced.

The Big Red scored five minutes, 43 seconds into the game, when Princeton gave up a crucial turnover right in front of its own goal. Unfortunately for the Tigers, that turnover was scooped up by Cornell forward Chelsea Karpenko and sent straight into the back of the Princeton net, giving Cornell a 1-0 lead.

The Tigers, however, would not let the Big Red extend its lead, though Cornell had several chances to do so. Princeton came back on offense soon after, as freshman forward Charissa Stadnyk scored on an impressive goal 9:22 into the period. Stadnyk was standing in front of the Cornell net when a shot from freshman forward Paula Romanchuk was blocked by Big Red goalie Amanda Mazzotta, and Stadnyk easily knocked the rebound into an open net, tying the score at one.

Cornell responded with a goal on an odd-man rush. Big Red forward Rebecca Johnston, who also plays on Canada’s Olympic women’s hockey team, passed the puck to forward Catherine White, who dumped it over the shoulder of senior goalie Kristen Young.

The 2-1 score stood until late in the second period, when senior forward Christine Foster found senior forward Annie Greenwood in front of the goal. Greenwood buried the puck in the top left corner of the net to tie the game at two.

Greenwood noted that, though her goal came at an opportune time, the Tigers wished they could have capitalized again.

“It felt great to score the goal,” Greenwood said. “I wish we could have put another one in.”

There would be no further scoring through the rest of the game. While Princeton played well in the third period, it could not find the back of the net, and overtime proceeded similarly. The Tigers’ problems on the power play stymied their efforts to break the tie, though Cornell’s excellent penalty-kill unit also helped to keep the score knotted at two.

Kampersal said that the Big Red’s penalty-killing unit was effective during the game.

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“Cornell has two kids who are scary on the penalty kill,” Kampersal said. “We try to work it low, but we’ll get it going.”

On Friday night, the Tigers defeated Colgate (16-10-3, 10-5-3) by a score of 3-1, marking Kampersal’s 200th game as Princeton’s head coach. The Tigers took control of the game early with two goals in the first period. Romanchuk got Princeton going off an assist from sophomore defender Sasha Sherry only 4:35 into the game.

Foster netted Princeton’s second goal only five minutes later to make the score 2-0. A Colgate power-play goal with 20 seconds left in the first period looked as if it might give the Red Raiders some momentum, but the Tigers bounced back in the second period. Freshman forward Heather Landry pushed the score to 3-1, and several clutch third-period saves from Young secured the win for the Tigers.

“[The Colgate game] was a huge win for us,” Kampersal said. “It was good for getting a morale boost.”

Princeton has four games left in its season, and it hopes to secure the fourth seed in the ECAC playoffs, which would ensure it home-ice advantage in the quarterfinals.

The Tigers will hit the road for the final two weekends of their regular season. They will first face Clarkson and St. Lawrence, who will provide esspecially tough tests for the Tigers. In past years, Princeton has not performed well at St. Lawrence, and this year it will not be any easier, as the Saints currently sit in first place in the conference.

Clarkson is also battling for the fourth seed in the playoffs, so it could present a tough challenge for the Tigers. While the playoffs do not start for another three weeks, Princeton’s last four regular-season matchups will have the feel of playoff games.