Men's Lacrosse: Keeping the fire burning

Sitting comfortably atop the rankings at No. 2 in the national coaches’ poll, the Tigers (9-1 overall, 2-0 Ivy League) will take on No. 17 Harvard (5-3, 1-1) on Saturday in the second game of a lacrosse doubleheader at Class of 1952 Stadium.

Fresh off a huge win over then-No. 2 Syracuse in Giants Stadium last weekend and a closely contested victory against Penn on Tuesday, the Tigers appear to have shaken off the effects of the 9-7 loss to Hofstra nearly a month ago. The Hofstra game remains Princeton’s only loss of the 2009 season, a season that has also witnessed three wins against top-10 teams.

Being second in the nation and catching fire late in the season has its down side.

“We went into [the Penn game] thinking it would just happen for us because we’re coming off such a big win, but obviously that wasn’t the case,” freshman defenseman Chad Wiedmaier said. “Now we know that we just can’t assume anything. Being No. 2 in the nation is a big responsibility, and you have to come into every game ready to prove that you deserve that ranking.”

The next opportunity for the Tigers to defend their ranking comes this weekend. Fresh off a knuckle-biting 13-12 loss to No. 3 Cornell last weekend, Harvard will find itself facing one of the youngest and most talented defenses in the nation. Anchored by freshman goalie Tyler Fiorito, the reigning Ivy League Rookie of the Week, the Tiger defense has stopped individual stars cold in their tracks and has held opponents well below their scoring averages. The Crimson attack will have its work cut out to reach its average of 11.2 goals per game against head coach Bill Tierney’s vaunted defense. Needless to say, the Tigers’ goals-allowed average of 7.48 will present a tougher challenge than the likes of Presbyterian, which Harvard beat 17-2, or Stony Brook, which fell 12-4 to the Crimson.

A commonly disregarded factor that may influence this weekend’s contest is penalties. Harvard has committed just a shade more than two penalties per game this season. Princeton, on the other hand, has incited 48 penalties from its opponents behind the Tigers’ aggressive and fast-paced style of play. The average of nearly five penalties per game coupled with Princeton’s 35.6 percent conversion percentage on man-up opportunities could provide rapid momentum swings during Saturday’s contest.

An even more interesting aspect of the game should be Harvard’s style of play. An analysis of Harvard’s performance in its eight games this season reveals that the squad is very much an “adrenaline performer.” The Crimson has scored an average of 29 goals in both the first and third quarters this season, but has only combined for an average of 32 goals during the other two periods. This statistic seems to highlight Harvard’s propensity to tire as the halves progress and as weary legs lose the bursts of speed necessary to tear through opposing defenses. Harvard’s opponents seem also to have capitalized on this trend, scoring more goals in each successive period.

Princeton, known for its second-half bursts could have located its perfect target. It will be up to Crimson goalie Joe Pike to put a plug on the Tigers’ explosive firepower and keep Harvard in striking distance.

The Harvard attack will be led by a trio of young stars. The Crimson’s three leading scorers have combined for 44 goals and 13 assists on the season. Rookie attackJeff Cohen leads the team with 17 scores.

“I know they’ve got a bunch of really good offensive players, and clearly they’ve had a very strong defense. But we’ll be ready for them by Saturday,” Wiedmaier said.

On the other side of the field, the Tigers will be rallying behind the red-hot sticks of senior midfielders Rich Sgalardi and Mark Kovler. The pair has combined for 25 goals and 12 assists over the past five games and provided key momentum plays in all those victories. Sophomore attack Jack McBride has also started hitting his stride. The reigning Ivy League Rookie of the Year has scored 25 times on the season, including nine points in the last three games, and shows no sign of slowing down.

To put together a historic run following a disappointing 7-6 season is a challenge for any program. With that in mind, Princeton’s dramatic turnaround this year behind a host of young talents and veteran stars seems almost too incredible to believe. For the first time since the program’s inaugural season in 1881, Princeton has knocked off Johns Hopkins and Syracuse, two of the sport’s inveterate powerhouses, in the same regular season. But another win is needed to keep this dream season alive. And though Princeton may appear much stronger than Harvard on paper, Saturday’s game should be just as tough and unpredictable as a game on any other day.

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“It’s basically all mental,” junior defenseman Jeremy Hirsch said. “We just have to play with intensity the whole time. Every team has good players, and it’s important that we focus and stay focused throughout the whole game. We have a whole lot of respect for them, and it’s just going to be about playing good solid defense for 60 minutes.”