On a rainy night on Myslik Field at Roberts Stadium, the men’s soccer team (9-6-3 overall, 4-2-1 Ivy League) ended its season with a 1-0 loss to Bucknell (17-5-0) in the first round of the NCAA tournament.
“It’s a frustrating result for us,” head coach Jim Barlow ’91 said. “I didn’t think we were as sharp tonight as we’ve been in the past games. Having said that, I feel like we did create enough chances to get a goal.”
The teams competed in front of a huge crowd of students, Tiger faithfuls and a contingent of Bucknell fans. Princeton was crippled by the absence of sophomore forward Antoine Hoppenot, the team’s leading scorer, who was ineligible to play because he collected five yellow cards in the regular season. The second leading scorer, junior defender Josh Walburn, returned from the midfield to his defensive role, which also didn’t bode well for the Tiger attack.
“One thing that helps our team a lot is that [Hoppenot’s] always a threat to get behind you,” Barlow said. “Defenses can’t push up as high, and we have more room to play. Today we didn’t have that much room to play.”
The Tigers started out even with Bucknell, trading mediocre shots and failing to string together a threat. Senior midfielder and captain Devin Muntz created one of the first real chances for Princeton on a free kick, but Bucknell goalie Tommy Caso bumped the ball over the crossbar as several Princeton players dove in to attempt the finish.
Bucknell responded with several shots of its own, but a big throw-in by freshman defender Mark Linnville initiated the closest shot of the first half with less than 10 minutes to go. Walburn received the throw, but his shot slid right of the goal. With seconds left before the halftime buzzer, Princeton attempted a last-ditch effort, as freshman midfielder Lester Nare took the ball down the sideline and sent a cross to junior forward Max Hare. Hare took the cross with his head, but Caso made an easy save.
The Tigers dominated during the final minutes of the first frame. Princeton earned three shots on goal, while Bucknell managed only one. The two teams drew even with shots, 6-6, in the first 45 minutes.
After halftime, the Tigers started strong with a cross from Sanner to Hare, who barely regained control before losing the ball over the endline. A few minutes later, freshman forward Matt Sanner received a pass with a touch and a spin move in the penalty box but could not organize the shot. With 24 minutes, 27 seconds on the clock, lightning flashed across the sky and the referees called a 30-minute delay of game.
After this delay, both teams seemed flat. Princeton strung together a pair of shots before Bison standout rookie forward Brendan Burgdorf beat Linnville in the box and slid a shot past junior goalkeeper Sean Lynch into the back of the net. This put Bucknell up 1-0, a score that the Tigers would not be able to change.
“The second half started to feel like we were starting to get a hold of things, and the crowd was getting into it,” Barlow said. “I thought for sure some goals were going to come, but then the break came, and it felt kind of dead after for a little while. I didn’t think we started off from the break as well as we’d finished before it.”
After the goal, Princeton changed its formation: Barlow took junior defender Ben Burton out of the game and replaced him with Hare, pushing more players to pressure the Bison goal. Though the change may have created more shots for the Tigers, Princeton could not string together clean passes or create truly threatening situations. The game ended after junior forward Brendan Busch sent a corner kick into the Bison box, and Nare headed it over the crossbar.
The Tigers doubled the Bison in shots, 22-11, but both sides struggled with shots on goal. Princeton recorded six, while Bucknell capitalized on one of its measly three. Despite heckling from the home crowd and constant pressure from the Tigers, Caso put forth a solid performance in the net with six saves. Lynch recorded two.
This was a particularly disappointing loss for the Tigers, a team that picked itself up from a seven-game winless streak in the middle of the fall to finish the regular season on an eight-game unbeaten tear.
“There was a time when we were even below .500, and it didn’t look good for us,” Muntz said. “We fought back, and I’m thankful for [the team putting itself] in position to be in the tournament. I just wish it had gone a little differently tonight.”
Barlow echoed that sentiment.
“We just wanted to keep playing,” Barlow said. “Every day became so fun once we started getting it going. We felt like in the last few weeks, we could beat anybody. Definitely the attitude on the team was that we weren’t just happy to get in the tournament but we really felt like we could win this game.”
Muntz has received All-Ivy recognition every year and has started all but two games in four seasons. The lone team captain these past two years, his graduation will leave a hole in the Tiger lineup.
“Devin in particular has been a warrior,” Barlow said. “He never leaves the field. He runs the team; he’s the engine that keeps us going when we have the ball and when we don’t have the ball. He gets so many plays right … A lot of the success that our forwards had started with Devin winning the ball in the midfield and shoving it forward to someone in a good spot to make the play.”
Bucknell advances to face second-seeded Virginia in Charlottesville, Va., on Sunday afternoon, while the Tigers will hang up their cleats until next season.
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