STANDING TALL: Princeton University men’s lacrosse goalie Ryan Croddick focuses in on a shooter in recent action. Last Sunday, senior star Croddick recorded a career-high 25 saves to help Princeton defeat then-No. 1 North Carolina 11-9. That performance capped a special weekend for Croddick and the Tigers as he made 14 saves on Friday when Princeton topped then No. 6 Syracuse 11-7. Croddick was later named as the Ivy League Defensive Player of the Week. The No. 3 Tigers, now 3-1, host No. 15 Rutgers (5-1) on March 7. (Photo by Frank Jacobs III)
By Bill Alden
With the Princeton University men’s lacrosse team locked in a 9-9 tie with No. 1 North Carolina late in the fourth quarter on Sunday, Tiger goalie Ryan Croddick got bombarded by three straight point blank blasts.
Senior star Croddick was up to the challenge as he turned away each shot and the Tigers proceeded to get unanswered goals from Tucker Wade and Nate Kabiri to pull out a dramatic 11-9 win before a standing-room only crowd of 2,404 packing Class of 1952 Stadium.
In reflecting on that sequence, Croddick said it was a blur.
“I think I blacked out, it was super quick,” said Croddick. “I just kind of ate them with my body and got in front of it. They were pretty close to the cage. I was happy that I got hit.”
Croddick got in front of a lot of UNC shots on the day, recording a career-high 25 saves, the most in a game by a Princeton goalie since 1985.
“My job is very easy with the guys in front of me, I felt pretty good today,” said Croddick, who was later named as the Ivy League Defensive Player of the Week. “You have got to do what you have got to do to win the game. This team is a very high paced team, they take a lot of shots. You have to be ready at all times.”
Coming into Sunday, Croddick felt in synch as he made 14 saves on Friday to help Princeton defeat No. 6 Syracuse 11-7.
“We played a game on Friday so I didn’t really have time to change,” said Croddick. “I didn’t have any time to get into my own head. It was great, I just came out and was seeing the ball right off the go. I love playing on this field, I love defending this field with my guys. Our defense makes it very easy on me, keeping outside shots and it just feels great.”
With Princeton having started the season by losing 13-7 to Penn State on February 14, Croddick is proud of the defensive unit’s progress since that setback.
“We really went internal after that first game,” said Croddick.
“I think the media and the press got to us early on the season with that first game coming in super highly ranked. We came together and went internal. We figured it out both offensively and defensively and got it done the past two weeks.”
In the wake of the graduation of star defenders Colin Mulshine and Michael Bath, Croddick is working with some new faces in front of him.
“I miss the guys from last year obviously, I love everyone I have played with here but these new guys are great,” said Croddick, a 6’3, 185-pound native of Rumson, who starred as post-graduate for the Hun School before coming to Princeton. “I love playing with them. They are very physical, very fast. It is pretty cool being a leader this year as a senior with some younger guys. I just like the experience overall. I am way more comfortable now stepping up as a leader with some younger guys on defense.”
In the view of Croddick, Princeton’s statement weekend was good prep for postseason action.
“It is really great, the weekend simulated how it would be in the Final 4 with games two days apart,” said Croddick. “We just really want to prepare for that and it is great playing the tough opponents.”
While Princeton head coach Matt Madalon was excited by his squad’s triumphs over the weekend, he knows the Tigers are not a finished product.
“Obviously with these two ACC teams coming in, you’re going to learn a lot about yourself,” said Madalon. “So fortunate to come out with the wins, we are still trying to get a heck of a lot better. We are still making a lot of mistakes, offsides, and some bonehead penalties. I am proud of this team.”
Madalon, a former star goalie himself at Roanoke College, was proud of Croddick’s effort.
“You expect to get that, I wish we didn’t have to have that,” said Madalon. “Honestly, I wish we played better with better timed slides. I wish he didn’t have to have that performance, but we’re happy he’s back there.”
Junior star defender Jack Stahl and his teammates are happy to have Croddick in the cage.
“Ryan bailed us out in this game, he has bailed us out a bunch of times,” said Stahl. “It is great to have him backing us up in the cage. He keeps us high mentally, he keeps our systems in mind. He is a great leader in between the pipes.”
Stahl had a great weekend himself as he helped to hold Syracuse star Joey Spallina scoreless and limit UNC star Owen Duffy to one goal and three assists.
“We focused on the next game and the next play mentality,” said Stahl. “Spallina and Syracuse was first. Defensively we came out with the best plan we thought we could come up with. Once that game was over, we turned the page as fast as possible. Duffy is an amazing player with great athleticism and speed so it is really hard to guard him. We tried to come up with the best plan that we could.”
Madalon credited Stahl and the team’s veterans with doing a good job of managing the busy weekend.
“Jack was in for a battle, he had to buckle down,” said Madalon.
“He knew he had matchups, our team was relying on him. He has to go against these guys every day, like [Nate] Kabiri, [Tucker] Wade, [Chad] Palumbo, and [Colin] Burns, you name it. So I think those guys did a good job preparing.”
At the offensive end, junior attackers Burns and Kabiri led the way against UNC as Burns tallied four goals and one assist with Kabiri contributing three goals and three assists. Kabiri was later named the Ivy Offensive Player of the Week.
“I think Burns getting short stick just kind of lit a fire under him,” said Madalon. “He was doing a good job off ball, found some good opportunities and cashed in.”
Madalon is hoping his team’s big weekend will pay dividends in May.
“When you get to the Ivy Championship game, if you’re fortunate enough to do that, and if we’re ever fortunate enough to play in a national championship again, it’s more about your systems,” said Madalon. “It is getting your team playing right, your energy playing right, and then some quick adjustments that can help you win a game.”
As the No. 3 Tigers, now 3-1, host No. 15 Rutgers (5-1) on March 7 with the Harland (Tots) Meistrell Cup going to the winner of the in-state rivalry, Madalon is looking for his team to build on the wins over Syracuse and UNC.
“Super happy that we get these opportunities to put ourselves in a position, but there’s a lot that could go wrong,” said Madalon. “So we’re just going to take next week and keep going at it.”
Croddick, for his part, knows that Princeton can’t rest on its laurels.
“You never want to be satisfied; we came off a win on Friday and we knew we had to bring it even harder today,” said Croddick. “We have Rutgers next Saturday, it is an in-state rivalry and we play for a trophy. We are really excited to get the next one done and keep the energy high.”