Sports: July 5, 2000
Men's lax returns to final four
Tigers fall to Orangemen in championship
Bill Tierney had reason to be ecstatic after his team's 12-11 semifinal win over the University of Virginia in the NCAA lacrosse tournament at College Park, Maryland, on May 27. Princeton had absorbed a 15-8 beating from Virginia on March 11, and although the Tigers had beaten the University of Maryland 10-7 in the NCAA quarterfinals, few thought Princeton stood a chance in the rematch with the Cavaliers.
But the coach's joy stemmed from a more personal reason: his pride in the role his two sons played in the victory. "I watched them being born, and it's hard to get better than that," Tierney said as he struggled to hold back tears while discussing the duo's performance. "Thank God they've got their mother's composure and intelligence . . . "
Goalie Trevor Tierney '01 kept Princeton in the game with 14 saves, the biggest of which came six minutes into the third quarter. Leading 8-5, Virginia moved the ball to attackman Ian Shure for what appeared to be an easy goal. Instead, Tierney stuffed Shure's shot from point-blank range. "I've been teaching myself to stay back in the goal and not jump out on fakes," the goalie said. "I just waited on it; he made two fakes; and I saw the ball come out of his stick and was able to react."
Buoyed by the save, Princeton chipped away at Virginia's lead, knotting the score at 11 with five minutes left in the game. Matt Bailer '01 then won a critical face-off for Princeton, and the Tigers held the ball for almost three minutes before Josh White '03 found Brendan Tierney '02 for the game-winning goal. Tierney's shot also served as a sharp rebuke to the denizens of Internet bulletin boards who claimed that Brendan saw the field only because his father was the Tigers' coach.
The Tierney brothers had the chance to help win the game largely because of the play of Sean Hartofilis '03, who scored five goals on the day and was unfazed by the 24,105 spectators in attendance. When a reporter asked the freshman if he could have dreamed of having such a performance when he was at St. Anthony's High School on Long Island, Hartofilis shot the scribe a quizzical look and replied, "Well, I hoped so. That's why I came to Princeton."
In the Memorial Day championship against Syracuse University, the Tigers lost their magic and Hartofilis's stick, which the referees chose to check at the end of the first quarter. Deeming the stick illegal, they sent Hartofilis out of the game for three minutes and the stick, which he had used all year, out for good.
Syracuse had a 4-0 lead by then, and though the Orangemen scored only once on the man advantage, they never lost control of the game, winning 13-7. Coach Tierney was philosophical after the loss. "They're just awesome," he said of Syracuse. "Sometimes you've just got to look [your players] in the eyes and say, you know what, they were better than we were."
Still, Tierney said after the final, "It was a good weekend for us. We've taken a giant step with a bunch of young puppies." The Tigers lose three-time first team All-America Josh Sims '00, but with most of Tierney's pack returning longer in the tooth next year, Princeton will be primed for another run at the national title in 2001.-Dave Marcus '92
Women's lacrosse yields to Maryland
in title game
Season ends with championship defeat
Princeton's unexpected run at the national women's lacrosse championship seemed to be in high gear during a stellar first half of the May 21 title game. But the bubble burst for the Tigers when the University of Maryland lit up the scoreboard with 13 second-half goals en route to posting a 16-8 championship victory.
After the Tigers graduated a raft of experienced players last year, few expected them to make it to the Final Four in 2000. But thanks to a swarming defense and a balanced attack, Princeton (15-4 overall, 6-1 Ivy) strung together a series of top-tier victories and earned the second seed in the NCAA tournament.
In the tournament's opening round, the Tigers won a heart-stopping, triple-overtime victory over seventh-seeded Duke, 9-8, thanks to a free-position goal from sophomore attack Lauren Simone. Then, in the semifinals, the Tigers pounded sixth seed James Madison, 15-9, before facing top-ranked Maryland for the title.
In the championship tilt, Princeton played a nearly perfect defensive game during the first half. The Tiger squad consistently closed off the net and stifled the Terrapin offense. Senior goalkeeper Laura Field anchored the effort with a number of strong saves. Meanwhile, the Princeton offense showcased its speed in an up-tempo counterattack led by junior midfielder Julie Shaner's upfield rushes. Shaner's tally just before halftime gave Princeton a 4-3 edge and convinced the buoyant team it could stage an upset.
The second half, however, brought the Tigers back to earth. Maryland's defense smothered the Princeton attack, capitalizing on tentative ball-handling to grab steals and send the Terrapins' vaunted offense back to work for long stretches. The Tigers' team defense finally splintered under the unrelenting pressure, opening cracks that Maryland exploited for a string of point-blank shots and free-position goals. The Terrapins scored on three consecutive possessions in the opening minutes of the second half to gain a two-goal advantage, 6-4.
Princeton attack Charlotte Kenworthy '02 finally answered the barrage at 23:20, but the Terrapins then added four more scores to extend the lead to 10-5. Princeton never got closer than four goals after that. Maryland's victory gave it a sixth straight NCAA title. The last time the Terrapins did not win was in 1994, when the Tigers beat them, 10-7.
While clearly disappointed after the championship game, head coach Chris Sailer put a positive spin on her team's surprising postseason run. "We had a great run for two and a half games," she said. "Overall I'm really proud. We never expected to be here." Next year, Princeton will start with strong expectations: "We had a great season, and we're very young," Sailer said. "We're looking forward to what lies ahead."
The coach has good reason to be optimistic: Princeton returns six of its top seven scorers, along with the core of the defensive unit. Beyond that, the Tigers are upstarts no longer. The team showed resilience in its quarterfinal game against Duke, and against James Madison, the Tigers discovered just how good they could be, taking control of the semifinal early and never letting up. "This team believes in itself," the coach said. "We had no starters who had been to the Final Four before, but I don't think it showed."
This season's chemistry brought the Tigers to the top of the collegiate ranks. And for a half, the team's formula of heart and skill looked as though it might even topple the Maryland dynasty. Next spring, the added ingredient of experience could well prove a catalyst, giving Princeton its best chance in several years to earn a second national championship.
-Paul Hagar '91
Baseball scares fifth-ranked Cougars
in NCAAs
Tigers' tournament run is short but sweet
After winning the Ivy League championship and an automatic bid to the
NCAA tournament, the Princeton baseball team and head coach Scott Bradley
wanted a challenge. They wanted to play in front of a packed house and take
their shot at one of college baseball's marquee teams.
The Tigers gathered to watch ESPN's tournament selection show and let out a collective roar when it was announced that they would face the University of Houston Cougars-ranked fifth nationally-in opening-round regional action. "The guys were so excited to compete against a nationally recognized team in an intense baseball environment," Bradley said. "Houston represents exactly what we wanted."
Four days later, with dusk settling over Cougar Field in Houston, Texas, the Tigers found themselves right where they wanted to be-a decided underdog facing a national baseball power on hostile turf.
Senior cocaptain Chris "Buster" Small said, "I tried to prepare myself for that first game under the lights, but nothing I did could have or would have helped. . . . the amount of energy that was circulating through the stadium was unreal."
With two-time Conference USA pitcher of the year Kyle Crowell on the mound for the Cougars and 4,335 rabid fans in attendance, the Tigers appeared to be in over their heads. But that all changed before the home team even got to their bats. Junior designated hitter Jon Watterson led off the game with a triple and sophomore shortstop Pat Boran drove him in with a single that staked Princeton to a 1-0 first-inning lead and let everyone know that the Tigers were quite comfortable in their new environment.
The Tigers notched three more runs in the second inning behind Small's leadoff double and singles by Jay Mitchell '00, Watterson, and Boran. The 4-0 lead sent Crowell to the showers and left the Cougars with the daunting task of battling back against Princeton ace Chris Young '02.
With Princeton carrying a 6-2 lead into the seventh inning it looked as though the Tigers would seal the upset. But the Cougars showed how they had earned their high ranking. Houston scored three in the seventh and scratched out the tying run in the eighth. Then, with two outs in the bottom of the ninth and the game seemingly headed to extra innings, Cougar first baseman J. P. Woodward ended Princeton's upset dreams with a towering blast over the right field fence. The home run gave Houston a 7-6 win and sentenced Princeton to an 11:00 a.m. loser's bracket game against Texas Tech the next morning. Small said, "I think that the home run that was hit will always be burned into my memory. . . . Even though we lost, I think that [this] might have been one of the best baseball games I have ever been a part of."
Only 12 hours after Woodward's home run cleared the fence, Princeton returned to action against Tech's Red Raiders. But the Tigers never recovered from the game- one disappointment. The Red Raiders pounded a spent Princeton squad, 101, and eliminated the Tigers from the tournament.
Despite two losses, the Tigers take solace and pride in their opening
night performance. "I'm really proud of the guys because no one quit
or was intimidated by Houston," Small said. "This just gives the
guys who are coming back something to build on, and it also lets them know
that they can beat anyone in the country."-M.G.
After 12 Ivy League titles and two trips to the College World Series, Cindy Cohen has resigned as head softball coach at Princeton University. Cohen took the team's reins in 1983 and quickly built the second-year program into a national power. Cohen was named Northeast Region Coach of the Year four times and totaled 560 victories in 19 years. She will become associate director of athletics at the University of Rochester.
Longtime assistant men's hockey coach Len Quesnelle '88 was selected to replace Don Cahoon as the team's head coach. Quesnelle was a defenseman for the Tigers as an undergraduate and has served as an assistant coach for the last 12 years. Mike Brennan '94 returns to Princeton as an assistant men's basketball coach. Brennan was the team's cocaptain while an undergraduate and has spent the last few years playing professionally in Europe.
After leading the women's lacrosse team to the national championship game, head coach Chris Sailer was named Division I National Coach of the Year by the Women's Lacrosse Coaches Association. This is the third time Sailer has won the award. Women's open crew head coach Lori Dauphiny has been named Mid-Atlantic Coach of the Year by the Collegiate Rowing Coaches Association.
Seniors John Mack (track), Josh Sims (lacrosse), and Peter Yik (squash) shared the 2000 William Winston Roper Trophy, which recognizes Princeton's top senior male athlete.
Goga Vukmirovic (water polo) and Blair Irwin (squash) shared the 2000 C. Von Kienbusch Award. The award recognizes Princeton's top senior female athlete.
Sophomore baseball and basketball standout Chris Young was selected by the Pittsburgh Pirates in the third round (89th overall) of Major League Baseball's amateur draft. Young must now decide whether to sign a professional contract or return to Princeton for his junior year. Young's battery-mate, senior catcher Buster Small, was drafted by the Toronto Blue Jays in the 28th round.
The women's lightweight crew successfully defended its national championship while the men's lightweight crew placed second. The men's heavyweight eight placed third.
William C. Campbell '45, on campus for his 55th reunion, shot
a 76 to share first place in the alumni golf tournament that carries his
name.
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