MAY DAY: Princeton University women’s lacrosse player Maggie Molnar looks to unload the ball in recent action. Last Sunday, senior midfielder Molnar scored a career-high four goals and won a career-high eight draw controls to help third-seeded Princeton defeat top-seeded Yale 12-8 in the final of the Ivy League postseason tournament. The Tigers, now 11-6, will face Rutgers (10-8 overall, 4-4 Big Ten) in an NCAA tournament first round contest on May 8 at College Park, Md. The winner of that game will face third-seeded and host Maryland (16-3 overall, 6-2 Big Ten) in a second round game on May 10. (Photo by Frank Jacobs III)
By Bill Alden
As the Princeton University women’s lacrosse team headed into the Ivy League postseason tournament last weekend, it brought a special sense of urgency to the event.
Having lost six games in regular season action, the third-seeded Tigers knew they were on the bubble for a spot in the NCAA tournament and needed to win the tourney in New Haven, Conn., to make sure that their season would keep going.
“Last year we kind of had a (NCAA) tournament spot sealed off even before the Ivy tournament,” said Princeton senior goalie Amelia Hughes as she looked forward to the Ivy tournament after the Tigers topped Dartmouth 17-7 in their regular season finale on April 25. “This year with it being do-or-die and then also knowing like this is it for good, there’s no next year, I think that’ll definitely fuel us a lot and give us another reason to work hard and play for each other.”
In order to survive, the Tigers had to go on a revenge tour as they faced second-seeded Penn in the semis on Friday for the right to play top-seeded and host Yale in the final two days later. In regular season action, the Tigers had lost 10-9 to the Quakers in double overtime and got routed 16-8 by the Bulldogs.
In the clash with Penn, it looked like the Tigers were going to go out meekly as they fell behind 4-0 five minutes into the contest. But displaying that do-or-die attitude, the Tigers went on a 10-1 run to go up 10-5 at halftime.
Princeton never looked back as it posted a 15-10 victory to advance to the final. The one-two punch of senior stars Haven Dora and Jami MacDonald sparked the Tiger attack as Dora ended up with a goal and seven assists while MacDonald contributed four goals and two assists. Hughes was sharp in the cage as she recorded 10 saves.
Two days later, Princeton jumped out to a 4-1 lead over nemesis Yale, who had topped the Tigers 17-6 in the Ivy final last spring. After clinging to a 5-4 lead at halftime, Princeton found itself down 8-6 heading into fourth quarter. But this time, the Tigers weren’t going to be denied as they responded with one of their best stretches of the year, outscoring to the Bulldogs 6-0 in the fourth quarter to win 12-8.
Senior Maggie Molnar made sure that she would keep playing beyond this weekend as she scored a career-high four goals and won a career-high eight draw controls against Yale. MacDonald chipped in one goal and four assists while Dora tallied two goals and one assist.
With the win, Princeton, now 11-6, earned its seventh all-time tournament title and the league’s automatic bid to the NCAA tournament.
Later on Sunday, Princeton got its NCAA assignment and it involves some familiar foes. The Tigers are slated to face Rutgers (10-8 overall, 4-4 Big Ten) in a first round contest on May 8 at College Park, Md. The winner of that game will face third-seeded and host Maryland (16-3 overall, 6-2 Big Ten) in a second round game on May 10.
On February 25, Princeton hosted Rutgers and jumped out to a 9-3 halftime lead on the way to a 15-9 win. Meg Morrisroe exploded for five goals in the victory with Molnar chipping in three.
Three days later, the Tigers traveled to College Park to face a then-undefeated Maryland squad. Princeton fell behind 7-3 in the first quarter but battled back to narrow the gap to 10-8 early in the third quarter. The Tigers could get no closer as they fell 16-12 to the Terps. Sophomore Maggie Bacigalupo enjoyed a career game in the defeat, tallying four goals.
Last season, the Tigers received a similar NCAA assignment and thrived as they were sent to Baltimore where they topped Massachusetts 19-10 in a first round matchup and then upset eighth-seeded and host Johns Hopkins 18-12 in the second round. Princeton went on to lose 19-10 in the quarterfinal round to top-seeded and eventual national champion North Carolina.
Maintaining that do-or-die approach, the Tigers will look to duplicate those heroics and extend their season to another weekend.