For a lot of people, the number 13 is extremely unlucky. But for freshman midfielder Mike Chanenchuk, that feared number has been a lucky charm.
Your bracket is probably dead. Mine certainly is, vanishing in a puff of smoke faster than you can say “Faroukmanesh, Eglseder and Ahelegbe, oh my!” — which actually isn’t that fast, come to think of it.
The men’s basketball team’s strongest season in six years came to a stop last night when it fell to a young but talented Saint Louis squad, 69-59. Princeton (22-9 overall, 11-3 Ivy League) gave the Billikens (23-11) a tight first half before Saint Louis pulled away in the final minutes. A 15-0 run that Saint Louis started at the end of the first half and finished in the beginning of the second gave the Billikens a lead the Tigers could never quite overcome.
This past weekend exemplified what is best about the NCAA tournament. You had the consensus No. 1 team, Kansas, knocked out in the second round by no-name Northern Iowa, who reached the Sweet 16 along with a host of other upset teams, including Ivy League champ Cornell. But there are still enough well-known teams — like Duke, Kentucky and Syracuse — alive to make the final rounds interesting and keep the networks happy.
Senior defender and tri-captain Sarah Vance of the women’s lacrosse team is known for her feisty defense. The Lexington, Va., native is tied for fourth on the team in ground balls and fourth in fouls in what promises to be a career year for her. She has started all six games so far for the No. 13 Tigers (2-4 overall, 1-0 Ivy League), who play at Columbia tonight.
At the beginning of spring break, the women’s golf team played in the Winthrop Intercollegiate Tournament at Rock Hill Country Club in Rock Hill, S.C.
You could call the Schwaglers a volleyball family. For the eldest of the family’s three sons, it took a mother’s prodding to start playing the sport. But for freshman outside hitter Pat, dedication to the sport was never a question.
The men’s volleyball team has certainly been a story of endurance this year. On Friday, March 12, the Tigers (7-5 overall, 3-2 Eastern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association Tait Division) challenged Springfield College and sealed their second-place divisional spot in another lengthy, five-game match. The Tigers got off to a slow start, but like they did in their game the previous week against Juniata, they climbed from a 0-2 game deficit to win in 5 games, 28-30, 28-30, 30-26, 30-26, 15-11.
As the top team in the Northeast and current Ivy League champion, the women’s tennis team is focused on defending its Ivy League title and making the NCAA tournament.
For the first time since the NCAA introduced the new qualification system for national championships in 2001, the men’s and women’s fencing teams received the maximum number of bids for the NCAA finals, sending 12 fencers to compete.
The men’s basketball team traveled to “The Jungle” on Monday night in a game that saw Tigers, Jaguars and, most importantly for the few Princeton faithful in attendance, a win for the Orange and Black.
The women’s water polo team spent its spring break in sunny Southern California. While it may sound like a vacation, the No. 20 Tigers (12-7) were hard at work playing nine games over 10 days.
With winter snowstorms and paired indoor league titles both securely in the past, the men’s and women’s track and field teams journeyed to Florida to open the outdoor season last week. The Walt Disney World Invitational was the main competition for the week, and some field athletes also showcased their skills at the National Training Center Throws and Jumps Challenge. Princeton athletes provided strong performances across the board, with several stirring victories.
While last week was a break for most students, freshman wrestler Garrett Frey spent it extending his magical first collegiate season for as long as he possibly could. It finally came to a close on Friday with his loss in the third round of the NCAA wrestling tournament’s back draw.
The early season struggles continued for the women’s lacrosse team last week, but a strong showing against its first Ivy League opponent gives the team something to be happy about. No. 13 Princeton (2-4 overall, 1-0 Ivy League) defeated Brown in its Ivy League opener but lost to James Madison and No. 6 Virginia later in the week.
The men’s lacrosse team began its spring break with the opportunity to firmly establish itself as one of the top programs in the nation in its post-Tierney era. Two wins and one loss later, Princeton (5-1 overall, 1-0 Ivy League) had done just that.
It may have been the middle of spring break at Princeton, but the men’s basketball team didn’t have it easy in the first half of its game against Duquesne in the opening round of the College Basketball Invitational tournament on Wednesday night. In the end, though, Princeton walked away with a decisive 65-51 victory over the Dukes.
For the baseball team, spring break was no break at all. The squad was hard at work on a southern road trip, playing 10 games in nine days against difficult regional powerhouses, including No. 17 North Carolina. Despite finishing the trip 4-6, the Tigers (4-10) have come away with some valuable experience against high-quality lineups that will surely be of use when battling Ivy League opposition later in the season.
While the swim season may have been over for most of the women’s swimming and diving team, one meet remained for three Princeton athletes — the 2010 NCAA women’s swimming and diving championships, held March 18–20. Senior Alicia Aemisegger, sophomore Meredith Monroe and freshman Bryna Tsai traveled to Purdue University in West Lafayette, Ind., to compete in the year’s final meet after helping lead Princeton to its ninth Ivy League championship in 11 years.
The softball team began spring break with just five games under its belt and has emerged from its nine-day, 13-game trip against seven tough California teams with some crucial experience. It was an up-and-down trip for Princeton (6-12), as its pitching was at times inconsistent and the bats occasionally sputtered against tough California arms.
