No. 20 field hockey aims to correct after rocky start

It had been a slow start for No. 20 Princeton field hockey (2-4), their most frustrating in years. Four straight losses came at the beginning of the season, including a pair of 1-0 defeats. Two years removed from an NCAA championship, the Tigers could find neither the requisite scoring touch nor the defensive stability to earn a win. After managing just 1.5 goals per game while allowing 3.25 through four contests, head coach Kristen Holmes-Winn and her side have begun to right the ship. Two strong wins came this past weekend against Dartmouth, 4-0 the score line, and American University, 2-1 at full time.

After outscoring their seven 2013 Ivy League opponents by an insurmountable margin of 32-6, the Tigers went on to the NCAA championships in College Park, Md. Their first game pitted Princeton against Penn State, a rematch of an early season 4-3 Nittany Lion victory. Holding a lead for all but the first four minutes of play, the Tigers reversed the previous result with a 5-4 win and earned a shot at the tournament’s hosts. Maryland’s Jill Witmer scored two to give her side a 3-2 comeback win and bounce the defending champions.

Almost the default Ivy League champions at this point, the Tigers remain one of Princeton’s most consistently competitive teams. When asked what has differentiated her side from their conference opponents, Holmes-Winn pointed to a “carpe diem” attitude which pervades the locker room.

“I can’t really say what the other teams do or don’t do,” she began. “But in terms of us, we focus really intently on the moment. We don’t look beyond what’s in front of us on a given day and try to make choices to help us be at our best. We try to create a very demanding training environment that puts enough stress on our players so that when we come to an opponent, certainly looking to beat teams of equal value and crushing teams of lesser value. How hard we push on a daily basis has given us an edge and even allows us to compete with teams who are simply better than us.”

It’s difficult to ask for much more than an NCAA semifinal appearance after a championship season. Princeton can certainly expect to find success similar to years past in their 2014 campaign.

The Class of 2013’s graduation over a year ago left a number of vacancies in terms of leadership and ability. The Reinprecht dynasty— Olympian sisters Katie ’12 and Julia ’14, both defensive coordinators on the field, partook in and were a great part of Princeton field hockey’s greatest era— came to an end with Julia’s graduation. With the younger Reinprecht was offensive star Michelle Cesan ’14, last season’s Ivy League Offensive Player of the Year.

Coach Holmes-Winn, noting that her team still misses the leadership provided by Reinprecht and her classmates, finds a great deal to be optimistic about in this current squad.

“In a lot of ways, we’re young,” she explained. “So it will take us some time to get our footing. And we know that. There have been some very strong senior classes the past few years. So we’re finding our way to being aggressive and attacking, playing with the mindset which we like to play with, without leaving ourselves vulnerable. But we see loads of promise in terms of what happens in our training environment.”

Holmes-Winn especially noted the strong early-season performance of sophomore defender Annabeth Donovan, who has led a suffocating backline in recent games. The second-year athlete came away from her 2013 campaign with Ivy League Co-Rookie of the Year honors.

Winner of 2012’s Rookie of the Year honors, junior midfielder Teresa Benvenuti will remain one of those capable of replacing Cesan’s productivity. The Morristown, N.J., native was a virtual Gatling gun last season, firing 78 shots, including 46 on target, which accounted for 20 percent of her team’s attempts.

Other offensive standouts include her classmate, striker Maddie Copeland, who has displayed a strong finishing touch this season, sophomore midfielder/striker Cat Caro, skilled senior striker Allison Evans and freshman striker Ryan McCarthy. Princeton gave their finest attacking display versus Dartmouth, during which the Tigers managed to outshoot the Big Green 15-1 through one half and 22-6 through two.

In addition to McCarthy, who has two goals and an assist on the year, a number of rookies have made strong statements early.

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“Our freshmen have been unbelievable,” said Holmes-Winn. “In a lot of ways, they set the tone with their work rate. They are bringing loads of leadership just with their work, which has been great to see. Our five freshmen will be five of the hardest workers.”

Freshman back Danielle Duseau, Holmes-Winn noted, immediately displayed the capability to start and play a full game. Duseau has started all six games thus far.

Senior midfielder Sydney Kirby, currently second on the team in shots attempted with 16, stands as a strong presence on offense and defense.

“Sydney Kirby, Alison Evans, Cat Caro, Teresa Benvenuti, Kate Ferrara. All of those guys should be driving the ship at different moments,” explained Holmes-Winn. “We need each one of them to step up in their own way and figure out how to take ownership on the field. It’s happened for each of them in patches. But they have to reflect on it and figure out how to put themselves in the game in practice so it’s there for them on the weekend.”

Thanks to the players’ drive and coaches’ expertise, Princeton remains a team geared for progressive improvement throughout the season. Three of their scheduled opponents— No. 2 Maryland, No. 4 Syracuse and No. 5 Connecticut— are currently ranked inside the top five of the National Field Hockey Coaches Association poll.

When asked if, despite the 0-4 start, her team remains self-assured in their ability to make an NCAA tournament run, Holmes-Winn offered a strong affirmative.

“We’re absolutely confident,” she said. “In these early phases, the games, while they matter, really don’t. It’s about testing ourselves and creating stress so we can build resiliency. The setbacks that we’ve had and how we’ve challenged ourselves early on is only going to help us meet future challenges.”

“Our theme for this season is work,” Coach Holmes-Winn said. “It’s the idea of accounting for all the variables that are going to help or hurt performance. They’re working really hard to make sure that they’re living right. I know that all the choices we’re making on a daily basis will add up. That will make the difference for them as individual and us as a group whether we realize our potential. What that potential is, I don’t really know yet, because it’s based on a lot of factors which we don’t have control over. But I think that they’re willing to do whatever it takes to make this team as successful as it can be. That gives me a lot of comfort. They’re going to sacrifice and do whatever is necessary to get there.”