Women's Lacrosse: Seniors' hat tricks pace Tigers in win

Coming off a close win against Brown this past weekend, the Tigers played better in all phases of the game. From the start, it was clear that Princeton was determined to set the tone for the match. Though Loyola got on the board first when midfielder Cara Filippelli scored a goal with 28 minutes, 20 seconds left in the half, the Tigers quickly rebutted with a goal from senior midfielder Christine Casaceli less than one minute later. Casaceli, who is one of the team’s top four scorers with 25 goals this year, continued her run with another goal with 23:03 remaining.

The Greyhounds, however, came back on a goal by attack Bridget O’Keefe with a little more than 20 minutes left in the half.

Princeton was able to gain control of the next draw and took the lead when Casaceli assisted on a perfect shot from McGarvie that gave the Tigers a 3-2 lead with 17:31 left in the half. It was McGarvie’s first goal of the day, but it would be far from her last. Both teams then traded goals, with McGarvie netting one and Loyola midfielder Grace Gavin tallying her first of the game.

Princeton’s offense was just too much for the Greyhounds to contain. The Tigers went on a three-point run before the end of the half, with a goal from McGarvie and two from Schwab. Schwab leads the team in goals scored with 32, while McGarvie has accumulated a respectable 29 goals and set up her teammates well enough to notch 17 assists.

At the start of the second half, Loyola’s Gavin netted a goal in the first two minutes. McGarvie was able to come back with a free-position shot three minutes later, and then Schwab scored her third goal of the game, bringing the score to 8-4 with less than 25 minutes left.

Princeton’s defense struggled to stop Gavin, a roving midfielder who finished the game with four goals. Gavin scored yet another goal to narrow the lead to three, but Drumm tallied her first goal of the game to stretch the Tigers’ lead to four.

Gavin, perhaps frustrated by the Sisyphean task of scoring faster than Princeton’s explosive offense, committed a foul and was given a yellow card with 20:48 remaining. Two minutes later, freshman midfielder Cassie Pyle scored her first goal of the game to push the Tigers into double digits for the 10th time this season.

The Greyhounds then called a timeout with less than 19 minutes left in the hopes of coordinating a set play, but Princeton was able to control the draw after the break. After three minutes, Drumm netted her second score of the game to increase the margin to 11-5. The ball went back and forth for another three minutes before Drumm was able to score yet again, this time with an assist from senior midfielder and tri-captain Katie Cox.

Drumm is the only top scorer for the Tigers who will not be graduating next season. A phenom in her rookie year, Drumm scored 28 goals in 2008 while also tallying six assists. With another year of experience, however, the young midfielder has become an even better player, with 31 goals and nine assists to date.

The nets stayed cold for five minutes before Princeton was able to score another to increase its lead to 13-5. Gavin made her presence known once more on offense, finding the back of the net for the fourth time, and Loyola attack Colleen O’Keefe nailed a good shot with less than three minutes remaining. Their effort was not nearly enough to lessen the Tigers’ lead, however, and the game ended with a score of 13-7.

Princeton and Loyola each controlled the draw 11 times, but the Tigers led in ground balls, picking up 27 in the game. Princeton was able to make 31 shots compared to the Greyhounds’ 17, an indication of how aggressively the Tigers attacked on the offensive end. Sophomore goalie Erin Tochihara made seven saves.

Tochihara is one of several Princeton players whose dramatic improvement has led to such a successful season for the team. Last year, the then-freshmen played in 12 games and accumulated a save percentage of .373.

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This season, Tochihara has smoothly transitioned into a full-time starting role with the Tigers, cutting her goals-against average by roughly three goals a game while boosting her save percentage to .573.

This Saturday, Princeton faces No. 2 Maryland at College Park, Md., in a pivotal matchup of top-10 teams.