EL TRAIN: Princeton University field hockey player Ella Hampson, right, goes after the ball in recent action. Last Sunday, senior Hampson scored the winning goal as Princeton edged Maryland 2-1. The Tigers, now 6-3 overall and 1-1 Ivy League, play at Yale on October 3. (Photo by Frank Jacobs III)

By Bill Alden

Over the last few years, the matchup between the Princeton University field hockey team and Harvard has produced some fierce battles as the rivals have dominated the Ivy League.

In 2024, Princeton edged Harvard 2-1 in overtime in their regular season clash before the Crimson turned the tables and topped the Tigers 2-1 in overtime in the Ivy League Tournament final.

When the squads met last Friday evening at Bedford Field, No. 8 Princeton appeared to have outfought fourth-ranked Harvard, building a 14-5 edge in shots and 7-2 in penalty corners.

But it was the Crimson who won the latest battle, making the most of their opportunities as they prevailed 3-1 and dropped the Tigers to 1-1 in Ivy play.

Princeton started the game by outshooting the Crimson 5-0 and appeared to be on the verge of a goal as the game headed into the second quarter.

Tiger head coach Carla Tagliente liked the way her squad came out of the gate.

“I thought we were in a good flow and doing everything that we set out to do,” said Tagliente. “I think sometimes when one doesn’t drop, you get in your head a little bit. I still thought we were playing well.”

Instead, it was Harvard who got its shots to drop as it scored midway through the second quarter to go up 1-0 and extended the lead to 3-0 with goal in the third quarter and early on in the fourth.
“They were putting in some nice goals with power,” said Tagliente.

Princeton, though, responded with a nice goal of its own as junior star Ella Cashman took an insert from Anna Faulstich on a penalty corner and pounded it into the back of the cage.

At that point, Tagliente believed the Tigers were poised for a dramatic rally.

“There was a possibility but we needed to score on that second one,” said Tagliente. “We scored on one and then we got the other one. I think if that goes in, yeah, but chasing that 3-1 with over seven minutes is a lot.”

Tagliente was not surprised that Cashman came through with the tally.

“Cash played great, she is probably the toughest player that we have,” said Tagliente. “She did an awesome job in there absorbing a lot of pressure. She got some tough balls in the middle. She is also opportunistic in the circle. If we could only play her on two lines at once at one time we might have more goals but she is only one person with two legs.”

The Tigers weren’t sharp around goal collectively as they squandered several scoring opportunities.

“We are not opportunistic enough, we just aren’t executing that well in the circle,” said Tagliente. “I think that part is disappointing. Our corner execution wasn’t there either. I think we had seven and we had four miscues on corners. That is the game right there.”

In Tagliente’s view, the Crimson showed more toughness in the game.

“I just think overall we are a little bit soft,” said Tagliente. “Harvard competes, they are physical and they play through some adversity. We don’t have a collective effort to step up and compete together. We shrink right now in big moments. I think that is the big difference for us.”

While the loss to Harvard stung, Tagliente has been getting a good effort this season from a number of players, including junior defender Ottilie Sykes, junior goalie Olivia Caponiti, senior midfielder Beth Yeager, freshman forward Caitlin Thompson, and freshman midfielder Saylor Malone.

“Ottilie has had a really solid year to start,” said Tagliente. “Olivia in goal has been great, today the corners are not really on her. She is laying down on two of those. Beth has been great, she has had a goal or an assist in most games. She has created opportunities. We have some freshmen stepping up. Caitlin and Saylor are doing a nice job as well but they can’t grow up fast enough.”

Last Sunday, the Tigers showed some growth as they edged No. 10 Maryland 2-1 on goals by Yeager and Ella Hampson, improving to 6-3 overall. Looking ahead to the game, Tagliente believed that the matchup could help get Princeton on the right track.

“It will be good to get on the road and get out of here a little bit,” said Tagliente, whose team plays at Yale on October 3 in the second contest of a four-game road swing. “Maryland is good but they are not as strong as in the past systematically. It will be an interesting matchup for us with them. We play similar styles, they have been struggling to score like us.”