Field Hockey: Tigers aim for Ivy title

As the No. 4 field hockey team warms up for its last home game of the season tonight against Cornell, the song “Unstoppable” by Kat Deluca featuring Lil Wayne will blast from loudspeakers at the Class of 1952 Stadium: “You can talk all you want but my skin is really thick / I’m the leader of the crowd, and my game is really slick / I’m unstoppable, unstoppable, unstoppable, unstoppable.”

The Tigers (12-2 overall, 5-0 Ivy League) do appear unstoppable, but don’t take it from their pump-up mix. They are the only team this season to take undefeated No. 1 Maryland into overtime, as well as the only team to lose to the Terps by only one goal. In Ivy League competition, the Tigers have beaten each of their opponents by a margin of at least three goals.

Last weekend, league-leading Princeton obliterated Harvard, 9-0, in Cambridge, Mass. Cornell, which is tied with Dartmouth for third place in the standings, lost at home to Harvard, 1-0, two weeks ago.

When the Tigers face off with the Big Red tonight, they hope to showcase their offensive prowess.

“Our game plan against Cornell is to dominate every aspect of the game and make a strong statement … We are hoping to have a really aggressive press and finish all our scoring opportunities,” said senior midfielder Kaitlin Donovan, who earned Ivy League Player of the Week honors for her stellar three-goal performance against Harvard.

After four games on the road, Princeton’s return home this weekend will be special in many ways. Not only will the Tigers honor their seniors’ last regular-season game at Class of 1952 Stadium, they will also be hosting their Play for the Cure game. The Tigers’ game against Virginia Commonwealth, originally scheduled for this Sunday, has been cancelled.

When the seniors suit up tonight, they will not be dwelling on what is ending. Instead, they will be concentrating on the NCAA tournament aspirations and doing everything they can to ensure their team is in the best position possible heading into it.

“It’s hard to believe that we are nearing the end of the regular season,” senior striker and co-captain Christina Bortz said. “We’ve really picked up our intensity over the last two weeks at practice, knowing that we wouldn’t play another ranked team until postseason.”

“We’re all really excited for the NCAA tournament,” she added, “but realize that we have to concentrate on finishing out these last couple of games really strong, especially since the scores could be factored into our current national ranking.”

The postseason has been in the back of Princeton’s mind all year, and soon the Tigers will have the chance to see how far their skills, speed and determination can take them. And the Tigers are aiming for the top.

“We hope to be playing for the national championship … We’ve proven we have the potential,” Bortz said. “Now it’s just about winning the crucial games coming up to get there.”