On a cool Tuesday night at Roberts Stadium, the Princeton men’s soccer team (3–1) overcame the University of Massachusetts Amherst (4–2–2) by a score of 2–0. After coming off a dominating win over the Villanova Wildcats (2–2–2) last weekend, the Tigers looked to continue their winning form in this midweek matchup.
Coming into the game, the Tigers were hungry for a victory over the Minutemen, who also just fell out of the Top 25 this past week.
The Tigers started the first half slowly as the Minutemen controlled the pace of the game, and the majority of possession was seen in the Tigers’ half. In the first minute of play, junior goalkeeper Andrew Samuels made a save to keep the score level and ease the team’s nerves.
The Minutemen kept their high press and frustrated the Tigers until senior forward Daniel Ittycheria broke through and missed a shot just wide of the post.
The Tigers continued to look out of sorts as they were unable to figure out the Minutemen’s press. In the 34th minute, the Tigers played a dangerous ball in the backline, and Samuels forced a huge save as a one-on-one opportunity against Minutemen forward Matt Cence was parried out by Samuels.
The Tigers continued to play their press, and in the 36th minute, they forced a foul. A beautiful free kick by senior midfielder Jack Jasinski was met by senior defender Stephen Duncan and forced a save by the Minutemen goalkeeper.
However, the Tigers showed some more energy at the end of the half as their offense began to click. In the 44th minute, Ittycheria sprinted past his man on the edge and found senior midfielder Sam Vigilante, who forced a good save by the keeper.
The best chance for the Tigers came at the end of the first half. With seconds left, sophomore defender Roka Tsunehara played a good through ball, which Ittycheria put inches wide of the post.
After a physical, choppy first half, the two sides entered the locker room with blank scores.
“They’re very direct, they love to play everything long, and they are very competitive in the air and look for second balls and relentlessly press,” Head Coach Jim Barlow ’91 told The Daily Princetonian after the game. “We knew we had to be really safe in our half of the field with the ball.”
The intensity picked up after the break. Princeton continued pressing, but struggled to get a chance to break through. Both sides pushed for chances, and the tension on the field was palpable.
With 15 minutes left, senior midfielder Jack Jasinski had a shot blocked in the box, off a Minutemen shoulder. The referee originally gave a penalty kick for a handball but then withdrew it.
The Tigers protested but were forced to settle for a corner. Jasinski sent the ball in, and Ittycheria rose above the defense, heading the ball just a foot to the right of the goalpost for a goal kick.
Jasinski then found himself alone on a breakaway down the right side after a long pass in from junior midfielder Liam Beckwith. He launched a shot right and beat the keeper on the near post to put the Tigers in the lead with just 10 minutes to go.
A change in tactics was the difference for the Tigers, as Jasinski spent the second half playing on the attacking wing instead of his normal position as an outside defensive back.
“In the second half, we had pretty much four center backs on to help with all the aerial duels,” Barlow explained to the ‘Prince.’
Sophomore defender Dash Papez shifted from center back to right back, and first-year defenders Frederik Sadjak and Tyler Vilet were brought into the game.
“Those guys helped us get a little more control in the game in the second half, and that also allowed us to move Jack Jasinski and Roka [Tsunehara] higher, and they got the goal,” Barlow continued.
Jasinski did not expect the positional change at halftime.
“When the coaches came to me at halftime, I was pretty surprised,” he told the ‘Prince’ after the game. “I’m super comfortable playing there, I played there over the summers and growing up but just wasn’t expecting it. Credit to Coach [Barlow] and taking that risk to completely abandon our strategy, and it paid off.”
Consistent offensive pressure from the Orange and Black scattered any offensive chances from the Minutemen in the final minutes, and precise passing throughout the midfield and the backline secured possession for the Tigers.
A late Minutemen throw-in gave the away team a chance as the ball flew high into the 18-yard box. Samuels skied for the catch, and Tiger fans were able to take a breath.
Defensive pressure from the Tigers’ press caught the Minutemen overextended, and junior forward Bardia Hormozi sprinted ahead on a two-on-one breakaway. He drew the defender, then found sophomore defender Tsunehara, who finished with fancy footwork for a 2–0 lead with just a minute left.
Barlow pointed out that the Tigers’ consistent toughness throughout the full 90 minutes proved to be the difference, a marked change from last week’s loss against Hofstra.
“I think the toughness is that we learned Hofstra is not that different from UMass and how they play. And I think we learned a lot from that loss … we had to find a way to get it done, and the toughness was shown there for sure,” he said.
Jasinski also brought up the Hofstra game as a learning experience for the team.
“[In the Hofstra game], we just kept it at 0–0 pretty much the whole game until the end, and we gave up one. So we knew we had to keep fighting and had to play for the full 90 minutes,” he said.
The Tigers play the University at Albany Great Danes (2–3–1 overall) this Saturday at 6 p.m. at Myslik Field at Roberts Stadium. They will look to continue the strong start to the season and build on the learning experience from Hofstra and UMass.
Matthew Yi is an assistant Sports editor for the ‘Prince’.
Harrison Blank is a head Sports editor for the ‘Prince’.
Please send any corrections to corrections[at]dailyprincetonian.com.
Read More
Princeton police step up town Jewish Center patrols after repeated graffiti around town
Leela HenslerIn August, a series of antisemitic graffiti incidents in Princeton parks prompted police investigations and heightened patrols at the town’s Jewish center.
In August a series of antisemitic graffiti incidents in Princeton parks prompted police investigations and heightened patrols at the town's Jewish Center.
Transgender athlete Sadie Schreiner sues Princeton, alleging discrimination at track meet
Maya MukherjeeFormer Rochester Institute of Technology runner Sadie Schreiner has filed a lawsuit claiming Princeton officials removed her from a 2025 track meet for being transgender, while Princeton says it followed NCAA policy, though that policy states state law supersedes it.
Former Rochester Institute of Technology runner Sadie Schreiner has filed a lawsuit claiming Princeton officials removed her from a 2025 track meet for being transgender, while Princeton says it followed NCAA policy, though that policy states state law supersedes it.
University requires anti-hazing course in campus email detailing ‘egregious’ 2023 hazing case
Elisabeth StewartThe University required all undergraduates to complete an anti-hazing course in an email that also revealed new details of a 2023 fraternity hazing case. It later published its biannual hazing report after a delay.
The University required all undergraduates to complete an anti-hazing course in an email that also revealed new details of a 2023 fraternity hazing case. It later published its biannual hazing report after a delay.