No. 5 Syracuse outshoots No. 6 Princeton

The No. 6 field hockey team (4-2 overall, 1-0 Ivy League) suffered a loss that broke a 17-game winning streak two Sundays ago against then-No. 13 Penn State (5-3, 0-0 Big Ten). With a 3-1 record, the defending national champions managed to rebound from the loss, dismantling their first league opponent of the year by a margin of 7-1. They tasted defeat again, however, on Sunday, when the No. 5 Syracuse Orange (7-1, 0-1 ACC) overran Princeton’s defense, defeating the Tigers 4-0.

Striking early and refusing to let up, Princeton demonstrated consistent control of Dartmouth (1-3, 0-1), much as it did last year as part of its 7-0 run around the Ivy League.

“I think we played really well as a team, and we had the mentality that a few goals weren’t enough,” junior striker Allison Evans said. “We wanted to make a statement with a big win, and I think we did just that.”

Princeton got up quickly on the Big Green. Sophomore midfielder Teresa Benvenuti increased her scoring tally this year to four, turning a cross from freshman back Annabeth Donovan into a goal with just under two minutes on the clock. Halfway through the first period another impact freshman, midfielder Cat Caro, offered an assist to Evans — last week’s Ivy League Player of the Week — who put the Tigers up 2-0.

The Big Green responded shortly thereafter, converting an attack penalty corner for what would be its only goal.

Though it was by no means a career day for Dartmouth goalie Ellen Meyer, she notched a commendable six saves in the first half in an attempt to stave off the Princeton barrage. However, Benvenuti redirected a corner shot from Evans into the back of the goal, putting the Tigers up 3-1. Her third goal of the game and sixth of the season came just three minutes later off a penalty stroke.

Two more goals by sophomore striker Maddie Copeland and Donovan put the game well out of reach for Dartmouth. Princeton outshot its opponent 24-5 and held a 13-3 penalty corner advantage.

Part two of the Tigers’ weekend road series saw Syracuse — the only team to defeat Princeton during last year’s title run — outmatch the defending national champions.

Four Orange goals in the first half — Princeton had no shots on goal when the halftime buzzer sounded — proved too much for the Orange and Black to overcome. The 7-4 shot advantage for the Tigers in the second half was not enough.

Toward the end of the first period, Princeton managed to find some offensive rhythm, which it carried forward into the next half. Donovan earned her team’s first penalty corner with two-and-a-half minutes left in the first. Benvenuti, the offensive hero of the previous game, fired a shot deflected over the goal by a Syracuse defender.

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With just 15 minutes left in the contest, Syracuse goalkeeper Jess Jecko was called upon to make her first save off a shot from Caro. Princeton could not convert off the deflection, with Jecko and her back line consistently smothering the Tigers’ offense.

“Losses are always hard, but they definitely teach you things,” Evans explained. “You’re not going to be perfect all the time. We can definitely learn a lot from this. A few things we’re going to be working on in the future is having fewer turnovers and [being] a little bit better connecting from line to line.”

Recent history has seen Syracuse dominate at home: Sunday’s win marked its 39th consecutive victory at Coyne Stadium. The last defeat the Orange suffered there was at the hands of Princeton in 2009.

The Tigers’ next game is Friday, when they will host rival Yale at Bedford Field.