BORN READY: Princeton High girls’ lacrosse player Leah Bornstein looks to unload the ball in a game last year. Junior midfielder Bornstein, who tallied 56 goals and 22 assists last year, figures to be an offensive catalyst again for the Tigers this spring. PHS opens its 2025 season by hosting Hopewell Valley on April 2. (Photo by Frank Wojciechowski)

By Bill Alden

After enduring a disappointing 7-12 campaign in 2023, the Princeton High girls’ lacrosse team produced a reversal of fortune last spring, going 12-9 and advancing to the quarterfinals of the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association (NJSIAA) North Jersey Group 3 sectional.

As PHS looks ahead to the upcoming season, Tiger head coach Katie Federico believes that run will serve as motivation for this year’s squad.

“It gives them a little bit more hunger because they felt it a bit last year,” said Federico, whose team opens its 2025 season by hosting Hopewell Valley on April 2. “They want to return and do better this year which would be fun.”

While PHS lost a stellar group of seniors to graduation, Federico believes her core of juniors can pick up where Class of ’24 left off.

“It is definitely different but I have to say that we have a gritty strong junior class this year,” said Federico. “Quinn [Gallagher], Nicki [Lee], Leah [Bornstein], Zoie [Reynolds], and Gracie [DePrince] have all been playing together for a long time. It has been nice to see them step up and take over that leadership role.”

Two of those juniors, Gallagher (49 goals and 22 assists in 2024) and Bornstein (56 goals, 22 assists), figure to be offensive catalysts in the midfield this spring for the Tigers.

“Towards the end of last season we started utilizing Quinn a little bit more within the attack and looking for her to give the feeds, I am looking for her to do that this year,” said Federico. “She is excited to do it. Having her be a lefty and losing Sarah [Henderson] who was a lefty, I am able to move her into that spot. She really sees the cuts nicely and has the height on her. She is also not afraid to take it herself and shoot. She is connecting nicely with Leah.”

The scrappy Bornstein brings energy and skill to the midfield.

“I think Leah has gotten even faster, her shot has gotten much better,” said Federico. “She just keeps going and going. There is a huge level of confidence really with a lot of the juniors which has been nice to see as well.”

Gallagher and Bornstein will be joined in the midfield by promising sophomore Emerson Barker.

“Emme is a strong player,” said Federico. “She is fast, has a great shot and a great lax IQ. She really sees the field nicely.”

On attack, the quintet of sophomore Claire Barlag (1 goal), senior Lily vonRoemer (3 goals), senior Aniya Zahid (19 goals, 4 assists) Lee (1 goal) and DePrince (16 goals, 2 assists) will lead the way.

“Claire is going to be on attack, she was injured a lot of last season so it will be nice having her there and again,” said Federico. “She really sees the field as well. Gracie is very excited, she had a great season last year. Aniya is a quiet weapon, she has got a nice, quick shot. Nikki will be playing attack as well, we moved her from the midfield. Lily is back as well, having a little more confidence with a year of varsity under her belt.”

The trio of sophomore Lila Casto (1 goal, 1 assist, 20 ground balls), senior Ellie Naggar (1 goal), and Reynolds (34 ground balls) will be spearheading the defensive backfield.

“Lila is going to be playing defense but she could play in the midfield if we need her to but primarily, I see her more on defense,” said Federico. “She is such a strong voice and a big presence there. Zoie is so great, she is a very calm leader. She has been really helping because we lost a big chunk of our defense. Ellie is going to be a pretty solid defender as well.”

In goal, sophomore Paige Menapace (16 saves) and senior Olivia Deluca are both in the mix.

“Paige is back,” said Federico. ‘Olivia is back and she is looking really good in goal. She has quick hands, she is tracking the ball really nicely. I think it might be a combination thing with the two of them, I want to see how it plays out. They are working very nicely together.”

Looking forward, Federico believes that the Tigers can build on last year’s progress by taking care of the basics, bonding on the field, and being patient with the ball.

“Being very sharp with the fundamentals is a huge piece of the game – accurate throwing and catching,” said Federico. “I think just jelling together because it is a new corps of defenders. You don’t have Joci [Lee] there or Theona [Hsu] who helped push that a bit last year but they will get there. I have already seen huge improvement since the beginning of the season. It is also just playing our game and not forcing things, just keeping it at a pace that we need. That is a discipline that we have to learn and own because when we do slow it down, we see the openings and often we capitalize on it.”