Men's Lacrosse: Road to the top continues

Saturday’s showdown with Harvard showed that while there might still be three years before the team’s freshmen are seniors, they’ve definitely started to learn.

Princeton was up 10-8 when Harvard attack Dean Gibbons notched his third goal of the game with one minute, 16 seconds left in the fourth quarter. The Crimson won the ensuing faceoff, and it looked like a repeat of last year’s overtime thriller in Cambridge, Mass., was inevitable.

But with 35 seconds remaining, freshman goalie Tyler Fiorito saved a hard shot from Crimson midfielder Jason Duboe. The ball rolled out of bounds, and though it appeared that the two Princeton players and three Harvard players who all dove for the endline to gain possession landed at the same time, the Crimson was awarded possession.

Twenty-five seconds later, Gibbons found himself one-on-one with freshman defenseman Chad Wiedmaier, who posted Gibbons up and stripped the ball. Senior long-stick midfielder Charlie Kolkin scooped up the loose ball and fired it skyward as time expired.

“I just kept in mind that [for] his first goal of the game, he worked really hard for his left hand, so I just sat on it that time,” Wiedmaier said. “He kept trying to go for it, and eventually I took away the ball.”

The clutch play of Fiorito and Wiedmaier down the stretch highlighted a game that seemed destined from the start to finish in a flurry. By the end of the first half, the game had been tied at one, two, three, four and five. Princeton saw goals from senior midfielder Mark Kovler, senior attack Tommy Davis, sophomore attack Chris McBride and sophomore attack Jack McBride.

The most worrying developments of the first half for the Tigers were the injuries suffered by Kolkin and senior short-stick defensive midfielder and co-captain Brendan Reilly. Kolkin returned later in the game, but Reilly did not return after rolling his ankle just five minutes into the first quarter.

“It doesn’t look very good,” head coach Bill Tierney said.

Reilly was replaced by junior short-stick defensive midfielder Jimmy Davis, the younger brother of Tommy Davis. Jimmy Davis played admirably, notching an assist during a fast break and showing no signs of fatigue despite normally playing only three or four possessions a game.

Sophomore long-stick midfielder Long Ellis also had quite the game. Ellis alternated possessions with Kolkin, playing with a long stick and also brandishing a short stick on a handful of occasions in spot duty for Reilly.

“It’s always good just to have people in the ranks in case of an injury like today,” Ellis said. “You just got to be ready. I played shorty up until ninth grade, and I love fooling around with it, so it’s not that tough of a transition.”

After halftime, Princeton took control of the game. The Tigers shut Harvard out for the entire third quarter and notched three goals of their own to open up an 8-5 lead. Chris McBride scored twice, both times off feeds from Kovler, and senior midfielder Rich Sgalardi notched his first tally of the game on a sneaky shot that had Harvard goalie Joe Pike guessing that the ball would go to his right when it went to his left.

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When Gibbons broke Harvard’s 22-minute scoreless drought at the 12:10 mark in the fourth quarter, it appeared that the Crimson might have found another gear.

But on Harvard’s next possession, Fiorito made a save and ran to a fast break himself. Fiorito actually attempted a shot that got past Pike but bounced wide. Though he did not score, Fiorito drew a penalty when Harvard defenseman Paul Pate was called for a slash on the play. It was the second consecutive weekend in which Fiorito drew a flag on the offensive end.

The Tigers picked up another extra-man opportunity on an interference call after the slashing penalty expired. Princeton did not score on either extra-man chance, but it cashed in mere seconds after the second extra-man chance ended when Kovler notched his second goal and fourth point of the game. The goal made Kovler the 22nd player in Princeton lacrosse history to score 100 points in collegiate competition.

“Working with a lot of great guys for four years, it’s really just a credit to them,” Kovler said.

Tierney, who has never been big on statistical accomplishments, used the achievement as a good time for jest.

“With the number of shots he’s taken, he should have 150 by now,” Tierney said. “He got two assists. That’s awesome.”

Kovler’s ability to feed was vital, as the Crimson slid to him quickly. Both of Kovler’s assists went to Chris McBride, who finished with three goals and an assist. The four-point day was a boon for McBride, who had been in a slump recently.

“We needed that so bad, and he needed that almost as bad as we needed it,” Tierney said. “I’m really happy for Chris. He’s been really struggling as of late. He keeps working hard, and we’re really happy that he could break out like that.”

Kovler’s accomplishment didn’t faze the Crimson. In fact, it incited a Harvard comeback that gave the Tigers all they could handle. The Crimson got two quick goals, both of which came on beautifully executed plays.

First, Duboe spun Jimmy Davis around with a crisp roll dodge and then rocketed a shot past Fiorito. Then Crimson attack Kevin Vaughan leapt through Fiorito’s crease, caught a pass from attack Jesse Fehr in midair and launched a shot past Fiorito. With a little less than five minutes left, Princeton’s advantage was cut to one.

Jack McBride scored his second goal of the day with 1:58 remaining on a looping run around the cage, ending with a hard bounce shot that beat Pike wide. Harvard won the ensuing faceoff and scored before the exciting final possession, which ended with Wiedmaier’s clutch forced turnover.

Harvard outshot Princeton 38-35 and picked up 30 ground balls to Princeton’s 25. The Crimson won 12 of 23 faceoffs, edging the Tigers by one. Neither team had much trouble on clears — Princeton finished 16 of 19 and Harvard 16 of 17 — and neither team was particularly effective on extra-man chances, with Harvard converting once in three opportunities and Princeton converting once in five. Harvard finished with 14 turnovers, while Princeton finished with 11.

Chris McBride, Kovler and Tommy Davis led the Tigers offense. Davis finished with two goals and two assists, while Jack McBride finished with two goals and Sgalardi ended up with one. The Crimson offense was led by Gibbons, who finished with three goals, and midfielder Max Motschwiller, who finished with two. Vaughan finished with a goal and an assist.

Fiorito made 15 saves for the second straight week, while Pike stopped 11 shots. Wiedmaier led all players with three forced turnovers, none more important than his final one.

Princeton’s victory became even more interesting in light of No. 8 Duke’s 15-10 thrashing of No. 1 Virginia. The Tigers will head to Ithaca, N.Y., for a matchup with Cornell next Saturday, potentially as the top-ranked team in the nation.