CASHING IN: Princeton University field hockey player Ella Cashman dribbles upfield in a game last year. Junior midfielder/defender Cashman, a two-time All-Ivy League performer, figures to play a key role again this fall for the Tigers. Princeton, ranked 10th nationally in the National Field Hockey Coaches Association (NFHCA) preseason poll, starts its 2025 campaign this weekend when it hosts Old Dominion (1-1) on September 5 and No. 2 North Carolina (2-0) on September 7. (Photo by Frank Wojciechowski)

By Justin Feil

A strong core group combined with a promising freshman class has the Princeton University field hockey team optimistic it can be a national contender.

Led by a pair of senior stars, All-American Beth Yeager (16 goals and 11 assists in 2024 when she was named the Ivy League Offensive Player of the Year) and former Lawrence High standout Talia Schenck (5 goals, 4 assists last fall as a second-team All-Ivy performer), who both missed time early in the preseason, the Tigers open with another challenging non-conference schedule when they host Old Dominion on September 5 followed by North Carolina on September 7. Both games are on Princeton’s Bedford Field.

“I think we’ve got a lot of talent all over the field,” said Princeton head coach Carla Tagliente, whose team is ranked 10th nationally in the National Field Hockey Coaches Association (NFHCA) preseason poll. “We have a lot of depth, a lot of talent. I think the potential is high. I think they play an exciting, very attacking style. We have a lot of individual skill, but I think seeing them combine that and play team hockey is fun.”

Princeton comes off a 2024 season which saw it go 14-6 and win the Ivy regular season title with a 7-0 mark before falling 2-1 to Harvard in the Ivy Tournament final and then dropping a 1-0 decision to eventual NCAA finalist St. Joseph’s in the national quarterfinals. Princeton graduated six seniors from that team, none more important than Robyn Thompson, who was a four-year starter at goalie.

“The turnover for goalie is big,” said Tagliente. “I don’t think we know who’s going to win that spot yet. I think the challenge is I don’t think we’re close to figuring that out.”

The starting role is likely to go to either junior Olivia Caponiti, a junior from Rye, N.Y., or Libby Smith, a sophomore from Houston, Texas. Kylie Elefante, a local product from Allentown, is also in the mix as a freshman walk-on. Caponiti, who played all of 12 minutes last year, is the only one of the candidates with any college experience.

“I don’t think either has done anything to really separate themselves,” said Tagliente. “I think that’s tough, especially losing someone like Robyn who also carried a big leadership weight off field. She was a fifth-year, very experienced, very mature. Those shoes are huge to fill.”

The other challenge is the typical one for the Tigers. They start preseason and games later than non-Ivy League schools. Old Dominion is 1-1 after falling to VCU and beating William & Mary. No. 2 UNC is 2-0 after three-goal wins over a pair of Top-20 teams, Michigan and Iowa.

“I don’t say we’re behind but ramping up to get to that tempo and making that learning curve short is huge,” said Tagliente.

Princeton will play four non-conference foes before they get into Ivy play against Penn on September 19. In addition to this weekend’s opponents, the Tigers will also face the likes of Syracuse, Rutgers, Maryland, Penn State, and defending national champion Northwestern.

“It’s going to lay the foundation for us to win Ivies and make a run in postseason,” said Tagliente. “I don’t think we would have it any other way. I think we should be more competitive, even more than last year in the non-Ivy League schedule but it’s tough to say because teams are now replacing with transfers and fifth-year grad students, so that keeps changing. So when you’re playing teams that have nine seniors and six are grad students 24 years old, and we’ve got six 19-year-olds on the field, that’s a big difference. The difference with us is that as we are retaining all of our players and build the team over four years of their career I think that they’re really bought in and invested in the program.”

This year’s senior class will take the lead as it features Helena Große, Ella Hampson, Ava Dempsey and Grace Anne McCooey in addition to Yeager and Schenck. Each of them brings playing experience and have developed through their careers in the program.

“It’s a good group,” said Tagliente. “I think every group’s different in role on the field and role off the field but it’s a really talented senior group too. We’ve got Beth and Talia in that group really, really trying to make it their best year yet. I think that the talent we have permeates through all the classes, but I think that senior group sets the tone. The thing with them is even though you have Beth and Talia who everyone knows, I think the rest of them are equally as competitive and they might be in different roles on the field or even off field, but I think there’s a collective sense of wanting this to be a great year.”

Retaining that sort of talent plays into Tagliente’s hopes that the Tigers will be even more competitive out of conference than they’ve been in recent years. Princeton has 11 of their top 12 scorers back from a year ago.

“It’s the kids we have back, and they’ll have another year under their belts and then the freshman we’ve got brought in are good,” said Tagliente, whose other returners include junior Ella Cashman, sophomore Pru Lindsey, junior Ottilie Sykes, junior Lydia Bills, and sophomore Molly Nye. “They are going to make an impact. It should be a pretty good year.”

The freshmen this year include Caitlin Thompson, Saylor Milone, former Princeton High star Mia Ramirez, Tabby Vaughan, Gabriella Anderson and Elefante. They are expected to give the Tigers a boost.

“It’s always to be determined because they’re freshmen, but the sky’s the limit,” said Tagliente. “I think there is a high level of potential there. I do think it’s probably the best freshman class we’ve brought in in quite a long time, maybe the best one we’ve had, but I don’t want to use those words. Last year’s with Clem Houlden and Anna Faulstich, those two could be All-Americans this year. You try not to compare this is the best, but of the six, two are walk-ons but the other four, they’re All-America level players. So they’re going to make a huge impact immediately in the season.”

The Tigers will be starting the season in friendly parts. Six of their first seven games are on the road. It’s the exact opposite of a year ago when only one of their first seven games was at Bedford Field.

“That’s good and bad,” said Tagliente. “I actually don’t mind when we’re on the road a bit. Teams have fun, you get a bit more time together outside of the distractions on campus. But it’s also nice to be home and have that convenience.”

Princeton will also play four of their seven Ivy games at home this year. The Tigers have won their last nine regular-season Ivy games. They are again a favorite this year.

“I think that the Ivies are going to be competitive this year,” said Tagliente. “I think everyone thinks it’s Harvard and Princeton. And I think Harvard, Princeton, we’re both going to be up there, but I think Brown and Yale have really turned the corner so I think it’ll be competitive.”

The Tigers believe they have a lot of ingredients in place for a big season. They have opportunities early to build momentum and work out the few holes they have before they get into Ivy play. Getting off to a good start out of the preseason will only fuel the expectations.

“We’ve got a good core returning,” said Tagliente. “I wouldn’t classify us as very experienced, but for the first time in a while I feel like we’re returning a lot of key players. I think the transition has been going well and I think the onboarding of the freshmen’s been going great.”