Women's Lacrosse: Princeton sneaks by Rutgers

On Tuesday, Yurcak Field in New Brunswick, N.J., was deemed unplayable following the snowstorm that socked the area Sunday night into Monday. The Scarlet Knights instead took the quick trip to Class of 1952 Stadium to face the heavily favored Tigers.

The No. 6 Tigers (2-0) struggled early against Rutgers (1-2) but prevailed 9-8 at the end of a contentious match with the Scarlet Knights.

Just one minute, 22 seconds into the contest, Rutgers midfielder Brooke Cantwell got the Scarlet Knights on the board with a shot that got past junior goalie Kaitlyn Perrelle.

Rattled but resilient, the Tigers bounced back with four straight goals in the next four minutes. Nineteen seconds after Cantwell’s score, senior midfielder and tri-captain Holly McGarvie fed sophomore midfielder Lizzy Drumm for the equalizer.

Senior attack Christine Casaceli put Princeton up 2-1 on a free-position shot only 39 seconds after Drumm’s tally.

The onslaught continued when freshman midfielder Cassie Pyle scored her first collegiate goal by slotting the ball between the legs of goalie Sandra Abel 4:04 in. McGarvie put the Tigers up 4-1 on another free-position shot less than two minutes later.

After scoring like a No. 6-ranked team should, the Tigers began to falter and allowed Rutgers back into the contest.

Rutgers regrouped after a timeout and, continuing the scoring frenzy, pulled the deficit back to two only three minutes after Princeton’s fourth goal.

Within two minutes, the contest was back to a one-goal game, as attack Kristen Anderson capitalized on a spotty Tiger defense to make the score 4-3.

The momentum continued to swing back and forth for the remainder of the first half, as Casaceli set up a goal by senior attack Sarah Steele to give Princeton a 5-3 lead.

Rutgers promptly responded over the next 10 minutes of play, though, by putting two shots past Perrelle, who struggled with the Scarlet Knights’ fast-paced offense.

With the game tied at five and the confidence of the Scarlet Knights surging, the hosts did not lose their composure. Senior midfielder Kristin Schwab scored her first goal of the game with 3:07 left in the half on a free-position shot. She added another free-position goal, her fourth goal of the season, a little more than a minute later, putting the Tigers up 7-5 to end the half.

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After receiving a stern speech from head coach Chris Sailer, the Tigers prepared to stop Rutgers’ suddenly high-powered attackers and planned to intensify their double-teams in the midfield.

Sophomore goalie Erin Tochihara replaced Perrelle in the second, starting the half with four straight saves.

The second half took a distinctly defensive feel, as neither team got on the board for the first 10 minutes.

McGarvie put the Tigers up 8-5 on a free-position goal, the last goal for another eight minutes. Princeton fell into a false sense of security in this time and allowed Rutgers to post another run.

The Scarlet Knights scored three straight goals in a four-minute span to tie the game at eight with 7:54 left in the game.

Refusing to relinquish the position of best lacrosse team in New Jersey, the Tigers immediately fought back. Schwab won the ensuing draw and ran down the field alone. She circled the net and slipped the ball past Rutgers goalie Sandra Abel, putting the Tigers up for good.

Princeton travels to Durham, N.C., to take on No. 4 Duke this Saturday in what is sure to be a hotly contested battle.