That was not as much the case last night, and while the 13-6 defeat at the hands of No. 3 Maryland did not change the outlook for the year, the Tigers (5-7 overall, 3-1 Ivy League) said the game was a learning experience.
“It’s great to play the top competition,” senior tri-captain and attacker Kristin Morrison said. “It helps to learn about ourselves as a team and prepare for the Ivy league.”
Morrison led the Tigers with two goals and an assist on the night.
Princeton lost to the Terrapins (13-1) after having fewer total shots, ground balls and draw controls.
The Tigers never led during the game, but they kept it close through halftime, when the score was 6-3 in Maryland’s favor.
Maryland grabbed a 4-1 lead within 13 minutes, but Princeton scored two goals in the span of 14 seconds to narrow the score to 4-3 with 10 minutes left in the first half.
Unfortunately for the Tigers, that was as close as they would get.
Maryland’s physical defense was able to limit the Tigers’ offensive attack to just 21 shots, but it also led to 24 fouls in the very physical game.
“In the beginning of the year, that [physicality] would have taken us out of our game plan, but we didn’t give up and kept going,” sophomore midfielder Cassie Pyle said.
Maryland scored two more goals before halftime and widened the score to 10-3, as the Tigers’ offense was kept off the scoreboard for much of the second half.
Despite the number of goals allowed, head coach Chris Sailer said that she felt the defense gave a solid performance.
A late three-goal charge by the Tigers excited the crowd, but it proved to be too little too late.
“I thought we competed well,” Sailer said. “The defense was under a lot of pressure all game.”
Indeed, junior goalie Erin Tochihara was under constant bombardment, and she ended the game with a season-high 14 saves.
Sophomore defender Cathy Bachur led the team with three caused turnovers, and senior tri-captain and defender Sarah Vance added two ground balls to the effort.
Princeton played much of the game without junior tri-captain and attack Lizzy Drumm, who injured her right leg with seven minutes left in the first half and did not return. After taking a pass from Pyle, Drumm was sandwiched between several Maryland defenders and took a hard knee to her right thigh, the same leg that has been nagging her since early in the year. She was sorely missed offensively, but she said she expects to be ready for Saturday’s game against Harvard.
“[Drumm] missed the Columbia game earlier in the year, and that taught us she was not the only player on attack,” Pyle said. “But it’s hard to play the best teams without her.”
Maryland was led by their top offensive players, including attackers Karri Ellen Johnson and Sarah Mollison.
Johnson scored six goals and added an assist, while Mollison netted three goals and three assists.
The biggest games of the season lie ahead of the Tigers, as League competition heats up and a tough matchup against No. 6 Penn awaits.
Still, team members said they hope learning experiences like last night’s game would aid them down the stretch.
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