The men’s and women’s tennis teams kicked off their spring seasons this past week.
Most Princeton students look forward to Intersession as a tranquil time before the rigors of the spring semester begin. For the men’s volleyball team, however, the weeklong break was anything but relaxing. As part of their annual training trip to California, Princeton (0-3) faced off against some of the best schools in the country in three matches. The trip out west proved a tough test for the Tigers, who now head into the heart of the season.
After over a month without a match, the men’s and women’s squash teams returned to the court last week with important matches against Penn and Yale. Both squads also played Middlebury on Sunday. The teams had hoped to maintain their unbeaten records in the Ivy League, but neither team escaped without a loss.
This weekend offered a glimpse into the future of the women’s hockey team, as the freshmen stole the show on Friday and Saturday.On Friday, Princeton (10-9-4 overall, 8-4-4 ECAC Hockey) skated to a decisive 3-0 win at Union (5-22-1, 1-14-1) with the aid of two goals and an assist from freshman forward Corey Stearns. To continue the trend, freshman forward Alex Kinney scored the lone goal in a 1-1 tie at Rensselaer (11-10-6, 8-4-4) on Saturday afternoon. The tie locked both teams at an 8-4-4 conference mark, putting them in a three-way tie for third in the ECAC Hockey standings.
Coming back from a short hiatus proved to be a mixed blessing for the Princeton wrestling team. The Tigers dominated their first day back against Duquesne but couldn’t keep up the momentum for their next two opponents, Virginia and Clarion. Friday’s meet against Duquesne was a rousing success that saw the Tigers post a dominant 29-9 victory in Dillon Gym.
After a three-week layoff, normal basketball teams need some time to get back in a rhythm for their first game back. When their leading scorer gets shut out, normal teams struggle to score points. And when their starting point guard suffers an injury early in the second half, normal teams have trouble closing out games.But, as it has proven so many times this season, the women’s basketball team is anything but normal. The Tigers (15-2 overall, 3-0 Ivy League) came out firing in their first game since Jan. 9, cruising to a 75-44 victory over Brown (5-13, 2-2). Princeton capped off its first full weekend of league play by hosting Yale (7-11, 2-2) in the annual “Pink Zone” game, downing the Bulldogs 69-48 and extending its winning streak to 10 games.
Two Ivy League victories, two road wins and a little bit of revenge — not a bad haul for the men’s basketball team, which used a smothering defense to sweep its first pair of Ivy League games. Princeton (11-5 overall, 2-0 Ivy League) defeated Brown (7-14, 1-3) 63-46 on Friday and Yale (8-13, 2-2) 58-45 on Saturday.
While the rest of the school was savoring Intersession, the men’s and women’s track and field teams were busy winning meets. On Jan. 30, the men’s and women’s track teams traveled to the New York Road Runners at the Armory II. The men competed against 11 schools, including Columbia, Cornell and Villanova. The women competed against seven schools. The men won their competition with 126 points, while Cornell grabbed second place with 109.5 points. The women placed third in theirs, finishing behind Cornell and Virginia.
When the Princeton community learned on Dec. 23 that the football team would have a new coach, the initial reactions were mostly positive. Players were excited to have a young, energetic leader in Bob Surace ’90, and fans saw the announcement as the potential dawn of a new era for the Tigers.
January saw a turnaround for the women?s ice hockey team, which posted 1-0 and 4-3 wins as well as a 3-3 tie this month after a lackluster, winless December.
Those who haven’t been following the women’s basketball team this season are missing out on what looks to be the hottest squad Princeton has seen in years.
Exams really couldn?t come at a worse time for the men?s basketball team.
The January exam period often slows the momentum of Princeton?s winter sports teams by creating a two-week gap in the season while other Ivy League teams continue their normal practice schedules.
After a disappointing first half to the season, Guy Gadowsky, the head coach for the men’s hockey team called a press conference yesterday to reveal the new strategy Princeton has employed.
After weeks of non-speculation, former quarterback Jeff Terrell ’07 announced yesterday that he was successful in his petition to the NCAA for another year of eligibility.
A year after completing one of its most successful seasons in recent history and losing long-time head coach Bill Tierney, the men’s lacrosse team is confident there won’t be any sort of drop-off in at least one area: sweetness.
Q: What was your first welcome-to-college moment in track? A: When I was introduced to the Alex Pessala ?09 - Tim Lanni ?09 turf war.
After months of discussion, the men’s club rugby team has decided to forgo its spring season to focus on fundraising. The move comes in spite of objections from alumni and concerns from Princeton’s athletic department.
After months of speculation to the contrary, junior sports writer Joseph Broseph admitted today that he doesn’t believe women’s soccer standout Sarah Peteraf ’09 is returning for the team’s 2009 campaign.
At the start of the year, lots of people had questions about the women?s basketball team, wondering if it would be talented enough to overcome its youth and lack of experience.
