The season started off with a bang, as the No. 5 Tigers knocked off No. 11 Johns Hopkins and No. 6 University of Maryland, Baltimore County in consecutive games. Since then, Princeton has faltered only once, a loss to No. 7 Hofstra. This weekend, the Tigers will have their biggest test of the regular season.
The Tigers head to Giants Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J., on Saturday to take on reigning national champion No. 2 Syracuse in the inaugural Inside Lacrosse Big City Classic. The Princeton-Syracuse game is the third game of a tripleheader that also features a matchup between No. 1 Virginia and No. 10 North Carolina and a game between No. 7 Hofstra vs. Delaware.
Princeton and Syracuse have played a number of memorable games over the years, and this year’s matchup should be no different from the rest. The Orange is a talent-laden, athletic and experienced team fresh off a national championship. Syracuse’s one loss so far this season was a one-goal loss at home on Feb. 27 against undefeated Virginia.
Outside of that game, the Orange has dispatched most of its opponents with ease. Syracuse boasts the top scoring offense in the nation, averaging 14.13 goals per game. The Orange also leads the nation in goal differential, outscoring opponents by an average of 6.75 goals per game.
The Syracuse attack is led by Kenny Nims, a strong candidate for the Tewaaraton Trophy. Nims leads the team with 35 points on 17 goals and 18 assists.
“[Nims] can carry the ball, he can shoot the ball, and he can feed the ball,” Princeton head coach Bill Tierney said. “He’s a dynamic player, and he’s a kid that’s always done well against us.”
Stephen Keogh flanks Nims along the Syracuse attack line and leads the team in goals with 26. Keogh’s Canadian pedigree is evidenced by his astronomical shot percentage of .650, which is only partially inflated by his 10 extra-man goals.
Redshirt freshman Tim Desko — son of Syracuse head coach John Desko — rounds out the starting group.
Desko is solidly built at five feet, 10 inches and 190 pounds, and he brings a dangerous lefthanded shot to the Orange arsenal.
The Orange’s attack unit will be a great test for Princeton’s defense. The Tigers are currently ranked ninth in the nation in scoring defense, surrendering only 7.25 goals per game. Senior defenseman and co-captain Chris Peyser and junior defenseman Jeremy Hirsch have improved from last season, while freshman defenseman Chad Wiedmaier has picked up where fellow Delbarton alumnus and former first-team All-American Dan Cocoziello ’08 left off last season.
Freshman goalie Tyler Fiorito, who ranks 13th in the nation with a .591 save percentage, has established himself as the starter and will likely get the most playing time in front of the pipes.
The freshman was unfazed by the big stage in his second career start at the Konica Minolta Face-Off Classic in Baltimore against Johns Hopkins, and he will look to continue his cool play under pressure this weekend.
The battle in the midfield will be the most exciting to watch. Syracuse might have the most dynamic midfield unit in all of collegiate lacrosse.
“Syracuse’s midfield is extremely athletic, and we have a lot of respect for them,” senior short-stick defensive midfielder and co-captain Brendan Reilly said. “Containing them will be a huge challenge.”
Princeton’s defensive midfield is not too shabby itself. Reilly and fellow senior short-stick defensive midfielder Josh Lesko have played quite well together. ESPN color commentator and Inside Lacrosse columnist Quint Kessenich went as far to suggest in his Division I Top 20 Poll power rankings this week that Lesko and Reilly form the best such tandem in the nation.
If this is in fact the case, Saturday will be the day to prove it.
“[Syracuse] is the only team out there that can run at you with six fantastic midfielders,” Tierney said, emphasizing the fact that Syracuse’s second midfield is as challenging as its first.
The first line is led by three athletic, experienced seniors. Reigning All-America Honorable Mention Dan Hardy is the leading the scorer of the bunch with 13 goals and 11 assists so far this year.
At six feet, four inches and 232 pounds, Hardy brings great size to the group. He has been known to cause serious matchup problems when defended by a short stick, as he was in the national final last year against Johns Hopkins where he scored three goals.
Pat Perritt is the smallest of the three, but at five feet, nine inches and 200 pounds, he still packs a powerful punch. Perritt has 14 points on the season.
The last Orange midfielder is Matt Abbott, a throwback midfielder who plays offense, defense, extra-man, man-down and on the wings of faceoffs. Abbott has 12 points on seven goals and five assists and leads the team with 35 ground balls.
“He’s one of the fastest guys in Division I lacrosse,” Tierney said. “He’s a big strong kid who’s very highly skilled.”
Because he plays both offense and defense, Abbott regularly facilitates fast breaks because he does not need to come off the field when possession changes. This is when he is most dangerous.
His speed and skill are the ruin of unsettled defenses. Before the season started, Kessenich rated Abbott the top Major League Lacrosse prospect in college; Hardy was ranked eighth.
Syracuse’s second midfield consists of Josh Amidon, Scott Kahoe and former attack Greg Niewieroski. Together, the unit has scored 18 goals.
Who senior starting long-stick midfielder Charlie Kolkin and sophomore backup Long Ellis cover will be a difficult decision, and it’s possible that both teams will make strategic adjustments during the game.
Syracuse’s defense is just as talented as its other two units, but it has shown some vulnerability over the course of the season. The Orange are led by All-America Honorable Mention Sid Smith, who leads the defense with 22 ground balls. Smith stands at six feet and 225 pounds, and he quickly established himself as a rock on the Syracuse defense a season ago after transferring from Onandaga Community College.
Matt Tierney and John Lade round out the defense.
“They play together, they play very tight, and they’re big guys,” Tierney said. “They can check, they’re strong, and it’s tough to penetrate on those guys.”
Sophomore long-stick midfielder Joel White is second on the Syracuse squad with 31 ground balls. White was one of the nation’s best freshmen a season ago and mans the wing opposite Abbott on faceoffs.
Goalie John Galloway has a .569 save percentage and a 7.74 goals-against average. While his statistics are solid, his biggest strength is his prowess on clears. It’s unlikely that Galloway will be shaken by the big game atmosphere this weekend, having won the starting job and then a national championship as a freshman a season ago.
Princeton’s attack and offensive midfield this season have both played excellently so far in 2009. Sophomore attack Jack McBride leads the way with 20 goals and five assists. Senior midfielder Mark Kovler, with 16 goals and three assists, and fellow attack Chris McBride, with 11 goals and three assists, have accompanied Jack McBride as finishers.
Senior attack Tommy Davis, senior midfielder Rich Sgalardi and junior midfielder Scott MacKenzie have provided support for the finishers. All have proven the ability to dodge, feed and score this season, as is evidenced by their balanced stat lines. Davis has 13 goals and 10 assists, Sgalardi has 10 goals and 12 assists, and MacKenzie has nine goals and eight assists.
While it’s hard to identify a weakness in Syracuse, there are a number of facets of the game that will prove very telling this weekend. The matchup on the faceoff X will be of huge importance for the Tigers.
Behind the faceoff ability of junior midfielder Paul Barnes and freshman midfielder Peter Smyth, Princeton is now 23rd in the nation in faceoffs with a .519 win percentage. Five players have split time at the faceoff X for Syracuse this season, and collectively they have a .482 win percentage.
It will also be important for Princeton to avoid penalties. Syracuse boasts the best extra-man unit in the country, having converted on 16 of 24 chances.
The game is a winnable one for the Tigers, but it will require a good game plan and even better execution.
“Coach Tierney stressed to us this week the idea of both developing a sound game plan in theory and executing it well on Saturday,” Reilly said. “A good game plan poorly executed won’t get the job done, nor will a bad game plan well-executed. We are going to need to play a complete game against Syracuse.”
The Tigers have already put together a fantastic effort against Johns Hopkins this season in an NFL stadium. But can they do it again?
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