“Both games down in Virginia were close,” senior midfielder and tri-captain Holly McGarvie said. “What we’re most proud of is our ability to be able to come out and win.”
On March 18, the No. 9 Tigers beat No. 16 JMU in Harrisonburg, Va., by a score of 13-11. Princeton started the first half strong, jumping to a 4-0 lead 10 minutes into the game, with goals by senior attack Christine Casaceli, junior attack Kristin Morrison, freshman midfielder Cassie Pyle and senior attack Sarah Steele. The Dukes came back with a 3-0 run to bring the score to 4-3 at the 10:51 mark. Both teams traded goals until Casaceli scored to gain a 8-6 lead for the Tigers at the end of the first half.
“In the JMU game, we had a strong start,” McGarvie said. “Going up by four goals early on, it was one of our best starts yet.”
The second half began well for the Tigers: Sophomore attack Lizzy Drumm found the back of the net, giving Princeton a three-goal cushion. But JMU quickly responded with three unanswered goals to knot the game at nine with less than 20 minutes left in the matchup.
Senior midfielder Kristen Schwab gave the Tigers a lead again, scoring with a little more than 18 minutes left. Then Casaceli and Morrison put two more on the board, bringing the score to 12-9 with 12 minutes, 39 seconds left in the game.
With less than five minutes left, the Dukes scored twice, making the score 12-11. But sophomore goalie Erin Tochihara, recently named Ivy League Player of the Week, was solid down the stretch and did not let JMU score again. Tochihara made 12 saves in the matchup.
Casaceli netted her fourth goal of the game with just 12 seconds remaining to secure the win for the Tigers. JMU made one more attempt to score, but Tochihara came up with the save.
McGarvie was satisfied that her team eventually came away with the victory.
“In JMU, we didn’t play our best, but we still finished with a win,” McGarvie said. “In both the JMU and U.Va. games, we let them come back with two- and three-goal runs. In our coming practices and games, we will continue to work on controlling the game and handling game time situations.”
On March 21, the Tigers prevailed by an 8-7 margin over No. 7 Virginia in Charlottesville, Va. The Cavaliers opened the game with a goal from attack Whitaker Hagerman, but Princeton came back with a vengeance and went on a three-goal run over five minutes to bring the score to 3-1.
Virigina responded with a goal at the 13:59 mark, but McGarvie and Schwab scored two goals to make the score 5-2. The Cavaliers then made a 2-0 run, making the score 5-4 with less than four minutes left in the half. Virginia won the next draw and quickly maneuvered the ball down the field, but Tochihara made a huge save. McGarvie netted her third goal of the game off a free-position shot with less than two minutes left in the half, but Virginia went on another two-goal run to tie the game at six before the teams headed into the locker room.
“We played a much stronger game [against Virginia], and even though U.Va. put up a strong fight, we won the game,” McGarvie said. “Each game was different, but it showed that our team is able to do whatever it takes to get the win.”
The second half was successful for the Tigers, who won the ensuing three draws to gain a lead against the Cavaliers. Morrison scored at the 26:40 mark, and Casaceli put another one away with 24:40 remaining, giving Princeton a two-goal lead.
The game would remain 8-6 for the next 15 minutes, until Virginia notched its seventh goal with slightly more than 10 minutes remaining in the game. Down the stretch, Tochihara came up with two key saves to give Princeton the 8-7 victory.
“In U.Va., we stuck to our game plan, and that really helped us win,” McGarvie said. “We had much longer offensive possessions than we’ve had in previous games, and our defense played extremely well. We played some of the best team defense we’ve played all year against U.Va., and it was exciting to see.”
Princeton will host Temple at home this Wednesday before beginning Ivy League competition this Saturday.
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