No. 12 Princeton (14–4 overall, 4–1 NWPC) went 2–1 over the weekend, defeating MIT (5–10, 1–2) and No. 18 Brown (10–4, 1–2) on Saturday before shockingly falling to unranked Harvard (8–6, 3–0) on Sunday. Notably, senior utility JP Ohl became the program’s all-time leader in assists after he notched his 221st during the Brown game, passing the previous record holder, Ryan Wilson ’19.
Tigers take down Engineers 20–10
To start off a weekend of NWPC play, Princeton handled MIT at home with a decisive 20–10 victory. From the opening whistle, the game was all Princeton, with three quick scores in the first six minutes from sophomore attackers Ádám Peocz and Enrique Nuño, and first-year attacker Taylor Bell.
MIT responded, netting two goals of their own to make it 3–2 with about two and a half minutes to go in the half. However, another flurry of Princeton goals gave the Tigers a commanding 6–2 lead heading into the first break.
The second quarter was more of the same, with the Orange and Black putting the ball in the cage four more times. Nuño continued to grow into his role as a leading scorer on the team, netting a hat trick in the first half alone.
With just under four minutes to go in the second, Ohl fired a cross-pool pass to senior utility Logan McCarroll, who drilled the ball into the back of the goal. With that assist, Ohl officially tied the school record for assists.
Coming out of halftime with the Tigers up 10–4, junior utility Tigran Sennett picked up right where the Tigers left off, reopening the scoring to put his squad up 11–4.
Despite their best efforts, MIT could not stop the bleeding. The Tigers continued to pressure the Engineers on both sides of the pool, unleashing a relentless scoring attack supported by a stout defensive effort.
Junior goalkeeper Kristóf Kovács racked up nine saves while the defense itself kept the MIT scoring per quarter to a minimum. The defensive consistency has been a huge plus for Princeton thus far, with its reliability easing the pressure on the offense.
With time winding down in the third, Nuño fired a missile from the middle of the pool for a career-high fifth goal of the game to give Princeton a 16–7 lead. Aside from Nuño, eight other Tigers were able to score in the victory.
In the fourth quarter, Princeton slowed down. Despite the more relaxed quarter, the Tigers still outscored the Engineers 4–3 to win their first matchup of the day 20–10.
JP Ohl surpasses all-time assists record in Princeton’s 17-12 win over Brown
In their second Saturday home match-up, the Tigers took care of the Brown Bears in a commanding 17-12 win. Moments before half-time, Ohl recorded his 221st assist to become the program’s all-time assists leader.
Brown started the game off hot, scoring three goals in their first three possessions after capitalizing on a couple of early Princeton turnovers.
The Tigers settled down, with Peocz finally putting Princeton on the board. He wasn’t done, scoring the next two goals to complete his first-quarter hat-trick and tie the game at three.
A successful penalty shot before the end of the first quarter put Brown ahead 4-3.
In the second quarter, goals from Bell and first-year utility Luka Franulovic gave Princeton its first lead of the game. Brown responded, and after trading goals with each other for the rest of the quarter, the game was square at 7-7 as the half started to wind down.
From just outside the right post of the cage with under a minute to go to the break, Ohl floated a pass over the middle of the pool, setting up Franulovic for the score to put the Tigers up 8-7.
With this assist, Ohl cemented his place in Princeton water polo history and became the program’s all-time assists leader.
“It was surreal,” JP Ohl said to The Daily Princetonian. “I saw the ball in flight and it fell into [Franulovic’s] hand... I knew he would put it away for me.”
“[Holding the record] means I’m surrounded by a great team of people who put the ball in the back of the net,” Ohl said.
Coming out of the half, the Tigers went on a roll, scoring four straight to extend their lead to five. The Tigers held the Bears to just one goal in the third, taking a comfortable 13-8 lead into the fourth.
“I thought we were more patient on the attack, which helped organize the defense,” Head Men’s Water Polo Coach Dustin Litvak said to the ‘Prince’ after the game.
Within the next few minutes of fourth-quarter gameplay, Princeton tacked on another four goals. A couple of scores in garbage time from Brown took the final score to a decisive 17-12 Princeton win.
Princeton falls short of a comeback versus Harvard, losing 13–12
Coming off two great wins on Saturday, the Tigers ultimately fell short of a perfect weekend with a 13–12 loss to the Crimson.
Both sides saw several runs during the game. Unfortunately for Princeton, they couldn’t quite overcome Harvard’s scoring spurts.
The game started with a quick Harvard goal that Ohl countered to keep it even at 1–1. However, after three Crimson points, it was clear that the momentum was in Harvard’s favor.
Heading into the second, Princeton trailed 5–2. While McCarroll led the offensive charge, netting three first-half goals, his efforts weren’t enough. As soon as the Tigers got within striking distance, the Crimson pulled away, time and time again.
At the end of the half, Princeton was down four and looking for a spark. Defensively, the Orange and Black had a solid showing. Kovács had eight saves, only one fewer than he did against MIT the day prior.
The third quarter was a defensive showing for Princeton, with Kovács and company only allowing two to get by them while the offense worked to close the gap.
In the fourth, the Tigers went on a run of their own, rattling off goals thanks to efforts from players like Nuño, who continued his stellar weekend with another hat trick.
Although Princeton outscored Harvard in the second half – scoring four goals to Harvard’s two in the fourth – the nine saves from Harvard goalkeeper Tanner Furtak were too many for Princeton to finish their comeback.
The Tigers will look to rebound over fall break with a trip to California, taking on high-caliber West Coast opponents like No. 1 UCLA (17–0 , 2–0 Mountain Pacific Sports Federation) and No. 3 USC (13–2, 1–1 MPSF).
Doug Schwartz is an assistant Sports editor for the 'Prince'.
Jordan Halagao is a Sports contributor for the 'Prince'.
Please send any corrections to corrections@dailyprincetonian.com.
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