SOMETHING TO CHEER ABOUT: Princeton University men’s soccer player Danny Ittycheria celebrates after scoring a first half goal against Columbia last Saturday. Senior star Ittycheria added another tally in the second half as Princeton prevailed 2-0. The No. 5 Tigers, who improved to 10-1-1 overall and 4-0 Ivy League with the win over the Lions, were slated to host No. 2 Bryant on October 21 before resuming Ivy League action by playing at Yale on October 25. (Photo by Frank Jacobs III)
By Bill Alden
Hosting Columbia last Saturday afternoon, the Princeton University men’s soccer team generated eight shots in the first half hour of action but couldn’t find the back of the net.
But after Brown committed a hand ball foul in the box at the 30:40 mark that led to a penalty kick, Tiger senior forward Danny Ittycheria broke the ice, taking the PK and slotting the ball into the back of the net.
As Ittycheria stood over the ball, he was prepared for the moment.
“The day before I decide where I want to go and I will do a practice on where I want to go and how I want to take it,” said Ittycheria. “When I step up there, I know exactly what I am doing. It felt really good.”
Despite outshooting Columbia 22-7 on the day, Princeton struggled to find the back of the net against the feisty Lions. Once again, Ittycheria came through as he tallied his second goal of the contest with 3:52 left in regulation to seal a 2-0 victory for the Tigers.
“Columbia plays very chaotic so we had to get used to it a little bit,” said Ittycheria. “Once we got used to it, we had so many chances. The shots speak for themselves. We should have had more than two probably.”
On his second half goal, Ittycheria displayed some savvy finishing.
“I knew one was coming,” said Ittycheria, who celebrated the tally by striking the bow and arrow pose made famous by sprint star Usain Bolt. “I saw the keeper biting to the far post, he did that on other shots. So I was if I hit it near post, he is not going to be expecting it.”
With No. 5 Princeton improving to 10-1-1 overall and 4-0 Ivy League, Ittycheria attributes the team’s blazing start to continuity and growth.
“The first thing is experience, the guys we put in played so much before in the Ivy tournament,” said Ittycheria, a 6’2, 170-pound native of nearby Warren. “We return 10 of those 11 starters, it is so much experience. Everyone knows what it is going to be like and we have grown since. The guys have gotten so much better.”
Ittycheria, who starred at the Pingry School, is having a great experience playing at Princeton even though it wasn’t initially on his radar.
“I always wanted to play in college but I wanted to move out of Jersey for a bit,” said Ittycheria. “Princeton was the only Division I school that offered me. I didn’t really get into the recruiting process until really late. I didn’t get looked at. When I visited the school, I was like it is unreal here. It has been perfect. My parents come to every home game. They are so supportive. It is awesome, I feel it.”
Princeton head coach Jim Barlow is certainly glad that Ittycheria stayed local.
“He is a weapon,” said Barlow of Ittycheria, who now has a team-high seven goals despite missing three games due to injury. “He can be dangerous from the middle, or running behind, in the air, getting on the end of crosses, and dribbling it at guys too. He is a big weapon.”
The Tigers were dangerous from the start against Columbia, dominating possession and generating a number of scoring chances.
“It felt like that at James Madison too, we just couldn’t get that early goal,” said Barlow, referring to a 1-1 tie with JMU on October 14.
“It took a break today, the hand ball was a really lucky, fortunate break. That broke the ice for us. Once you get the first goal, it does take a little bit of the pressure off and then you have to go for the second one. Columbia did a really good job.”
While it took a while for Princeton to get that next tally, Barlow was confident that the Tigers would add to their lead.
“I thought we played pretty well in the second half, it felt like the second goal was coming,” said Barlow. “We have been talking a lot to Danny and the other guys about taking off to get balls behind the defense and playing the ball earlier.”
Junior midfielder/forward Bardia Hormozi has been playing really well lately, piling up four goals and four assists so far this fall.
“When he releases the ball, he is so dangerous,” said Barlow of Hormozi. “The first half we thought he was taking too many touches, getting caught in possession a few times. In the second half, it was much better. Towards the end, he played some great balls in.”
The Tigers did suffer a great loss against Columbia as senior star defender Giuliano Fravolini Whitchurch left the game in the first half with an apparent shoulder injury and was replaced by freshman Frederik Sadjak.
“To lose Giuliano and have Freddy come in, he is a first year,” said Barlow. “It was a big spot in a big Ivy game and he helped us get a shutout.”
With the Tigers starting at 10-1-1 and rising up the national polls, Barlow points to team defense as a key to its early success.
“The starting point is how much defending matters to this team,” said Barlow. “We have a lot of shutouts. After 12 games we haven’t given up a goal in the run of play. We have given up a penalty kick, two corner kicks, and a long throw in. It is everyone and with that as a starting point we can be in every game.”
That defense was prepared to a face a stiff test as Princeton hosted undefeated Bryant (13-0-1) on October 21.
“I think they are No. 2 in the polls and we are No. 5,” said Barlow, whose team resumes Ivy action by playing at Yale on October 25. “You get a win like that on your resume, it is great for the NCAA tournament.”
Ittycheria and his teammates were primed for the matchup with the Bulldogs.
“We are looking forward to it, it is big for us to prove that we are one of the top teams in the country,” said Ittycheria. “Bryant is undefeated but we expect to win.”
Win or lose, Ittycheria is determined to make the most of his final campaign with the Tigers.
“The two things I try to keep is enjoy, have fun and have no regrets,” said Ittycheria. “I am with my best friends playing on the field. I just want to have fun and enjoy playing the game I love and no regrets. So don’t regret like not giving your best effort and not making the run you should have made. It is try your best to keep going, even when stuff doesn’t work out.”