With the Heptagonal Championships coming up this weekend, the men’s and women’s track and field teams could not have asked for a better weekend. Members of both teams set personal and season records at Saturday’s Elite Meet in Princeton.
The men’s lacrosse team’s attempt to exact revenge on one of its biggest rivals fell just short on Saturday, as No. 7 Princeton (9-4 overall, 4-2 Ivy League) lost to No. 10 Cornell (9-4, 4-2) 10-9. The defeat leaves the Tigers in a historic four-way tie for the Ivy League championship, along with Cornell, Brown and Yale.
Every time the men’s volleyball team played No. 12 Penn State this year, it pushed the Nittany Lions a little further. Despite this, the Tigers (15–10 overall, 5-5 Eastern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association) were unable to overcome the strong Penn State squad (23-7, 10-0) in the EIVA finals on Saturday, dropping the match 3-28, 30-27, 30-13. The win marks the 12th straight EIVA championship title for the Nittany Lions, who will advance with a No. 3 seeding to the NCAA tournament.
With its fate long since sealed, the softball team secured one last win against Cornell to send out the graduating seniors in style.
A season of disappointment came to an end this weekend for the baseball team as it dropped three of four games against Cornell in a series split between Ithaca, N.Y., and Princeton. Just one year removed from last year’s team playing in a playoff to determine the champion of the Gehrig Division, this year’s squad finished eight games off the pace of the Gehrig Division title and at the bottom of the Ivy League overall.
The women’s water polo team kicked off the Eastern Championships with a spectacular first round upset before falling to a talented foe. Princeton (20-10 overall, 5-1 Southern Collegiate Water Polo Association) beat Bucknell (17-10, 5-1) 10-8 to knock the Bison out in the quarterfinals in College Park, Md. In the semifinals, the Tigers fell to Michigan (31-6) 12-8. Princeton ended the tournament on a high note, topping Hartwick (25-5) in the third-place game.
A defensive first half turned into an undesirably high-scoring second period for the women’s lacrosse team, as fourth-seeded Princeton fell to top seed Penn 13-9 in the opening round of the Ivy League playoffs. The Tigers (6-10 overall, 4-3 Ivy League) held the Quakers to three first-half points as they entered halftime down 3-1, but they were unable to muster a sufficient comeback. Penn (13-3, 7-0) went on to beat Dartmouth in the Ivy League championship game 9-8 to win the inaugural league tournament.
Last Sunday, Princeton (6-9 overall, 4-3 Ivy League) beat then-No. 7 Dartmouth with a last-minute overtime goal to clinch a spot in this weekend’s inaugural Ivy League tournament.
The women’s water polo team will be looking for more than a trio of victories at this weekend’s Collegiate Water Polo Association (CWPA) Eastern Championships. Princeton (18-9 overall, 5-1 CWPA Southern Division) is also out to avenge Sunday’s loss to perennial rival Bucknell at last weekend’s Southern Championships.
Entering the final weekend of the season, the baseball team sits in last place in the Ivy League’s Gehrig Division and out of the playoff hunt. The Tigers (11-27 overall, 5-11 Ivy League) close out their 2010 campaign with a four-game series against Cornell: a Friday doubleheader in Ithaca, N.Y., and a Sunday doubleheader at Clarke Field.
If it comes down to who needs it more, the men’s lacrosse team may be in trouble.For No. 7 Princeton (9-3 overall, 4-1 Ivy League), there’s a lot riding on Saturday’s game against Cornell in Class of 1952 Stadium: the chance to be the outright Ivy League champion and the opportunity to host the Ivy League tournament in its inaugural year. But there is even more at stake for No. 10 Cornell (8-4, 3-2), known recently as the Tigers’ fiercest rival. Cornell will be fighting for the chance to keep its season alive, as a win Saturday is the Big Red’s ticket to the league tournament.
The Tigers (15-9) bested the George Mason Patriots (8-19) last night at Penn State in similar fashion to their quarterfinal match. The win earns Princeton a spot in the EIVA finals, marking its first appearance since 1998.
This season comes to a close this weekend for the softball team with two days of doubleheaders against a strong Ivy League competitor in Cornell. Since Princeton (11-29 overall, 5-11 Ivy League) did not make the Ivy League playoffs, this weekend will be its last weekend of play this season, and the last for the team's four seniors.
With the regular season quickly coming to an end, the men’s lightweight and women’s openweight crew teams are each looking to complete an undefeated season this Saturday.
The men and women’s track teams will host the Elite Meet, the final meet of the season before the Ivy League Championship, this Saturday at Weaver Stadium.
Head coach Sam Shweisky has often touted the strength of his men’s volleyball team’s bench. Junior middle blocker Keenan McCarthy is one of the Tigers’ key contributors off the bench. McCarthy has appeared in 32 sets. Though his appearances have been limited, he has taken advantage of his opportunities, registering 18 kills and a .469 attack percentage.
These days, the NFL is a quarterback’s league: 10 of the 12 playoff teams in 2009 had quarterbacks in the top 13 in the league in QB rating. (The two that didn’t — the Cincinnati Bengals and New York Jets — played each other in the first round. The Jets won that game and then advanced to the conference championship behind a strong defense and running game, and quarterback Mark Sanchez not being too horrible.) The coverage of the NFL draft is no less centered on signal-callers, with an enormous amount of time devoted to Sam Bradford being drafted first despite injury concerns, the surprising falls of Jimmy Clausen and Colt McCoy to the second and third rounds, respectively, and, of course, Tim “Marvolo” Tebow.
In its final midweek game of the season, the baseball team rallied several times for a 12-10 11-inning victory over local rival Rider in a competitive, back-and-forth game. The Tigers (11-27 overall, 5-11 Ivy League) trailed 6-2 after four innings, but the Princeton offense came alive in the second half of the game. Led by freshman outfielder John Mishu and junior designated hitter Brian Berkowitz, the Tigers rallied for a lead, lost it in the ninth inning and then recovered with three runs in the 11th to claim the victory.
Most Major League Baseball players use the offseason to relax. After a grueling summer, they look forward to taking a vacation and spending time with their families, so that they are fresh when the next year begins.
