Women's lacrosse confounds experts with march to national title game

Midfielder Hilary Maddox '00's face burned bright red, wet wisps of a blond ponytail clinging to her face as she spoke in a steady voice while water spilled out of her eyes.

"What was the greatest thing about our team — no one really had . . ." The senior midfielder bent her head. Her hands covered her eyes, fingers pinching her nose, her face contorted. Her teammates patted her on the back.

"Come back to her," one said, smiling, and reporters smoothly moved to the next question.

It was May 20, a dreary Sunday afternoon, and Princeton (15-4) had just lost to Maryland, 16-8. Lost a 4-3 halftime lead. Lost a national championship.

The Terrapins won their sixth straight title on junior attack Jen Adams' second half performance — ducking and darting around a suddenly stagnant Tiger defense, Adams had five goals and five assists, her 10 points a tournament record.

But the Tigers sat proudly next to Maddox, who straightened up and managed a smile. It was the last game of her last season. But what a season.

After graduating eight seniors — including seven starters, among them Cristi Samaras '99, Princeton's all-time leader in points, goals and assists — the Tigers entered the season ranked No. 9, harboring only vague hopes of winning the Ivy League.

But after a loss to Loyola on March 12, Princeton powered its way through the rest of the year, defeating Duke and Georgetown to secure a stunning No. 2 national ranking. The Tigers would stay there for all but one week the rest of the season.

"Obviously, I'm really proud of this team," said head coach Chris Sailer, who was named National Coach of the Year following the season. "We never expected to be here."

They certainly didn't — not at the beginning of the season, and not near the end. After their remarkable surge to No. 2, the Tigers lost back-to-back games to Dartmouth and Maryland. The Dartmouth game was the most devastating loss of the season, costing Princeton the Ivy Championship. Trailing, 13-10, in the final two minutes of the second half, the Big Green rallied to tie the game, then scored three straight goals in overtime to win 16-13 at Princeton Stadium on April 22.

"This was just a tough loss," a shaken Sailer said at the time.

Facing the best

The Tigers' next game was against the Terrapins on April 26. With one minute left in the first half, it seemed as if an upset was brewing. Princeton had scored back-to-back goals in a 40-second span to cut Maryland's lead to just 6-4. Maryland made sure that burst of hope was short-lived, however, as Terrapin midfielder Quinn Carney calmly flipped the ball to cutting attack Allison Comito for a quick goal with 14 seconds left on the clock.

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Princeton would not regain the momentum for the rest of the evening and Maryland cruised to a 14-6 win at Princeton Stadium.

The score would not be much different in the national championship game. The Tigers would lose once again by eight goals. But the game was much closer.

"Princeton was a formidable opponent," Terrapin head coach Cindy Timchal said. "They took us to the limit and we really stepped it up in the second half."

But in the first half, it seemed as though Princeton might push the Terrapins past their breaking point. Princeton won the first draw — a statistic crucial to its success all season — and funneled the ball patiently around the perimeter, before attack Kim Smith '02 was fouled driving to the net. She hit the post on the free-position shot.

Maryland sprinted downfield, spreading the Princeton defense out so that Courtney Hobbs could duck in alone. Tigers collapsed around her, and she converted off the free position, giving Maryland a 1-0 lead with 27:47 left in the half.

Princeton won the second draw, and Ivy League Rookie of the Year Whitney Miller '03 sent the ball soaring over the goal. Princeton scooped up the ground ball and drew Maryland defenders out to the sides, leaving Maddox open at the top of the circle. She hit the top of the post. The Tigers maintained possession and flipped the ball to attack Lauren Simone '02, stationed behind the net. She swerved forward and shoveled the ball in. The Tigers had scored. Tie game.

Later, when Smith faked around the normally sure-footed Courtney Martinez, who was completely fooled, giving Princeton a 3-1 lead, the Terrapins looked stunned.

But in the second half, the momentum was reversed. The defense that had sealed off so many pathways started to stumble on its slides, leaving players open. It almost didn't matter, however. Now there's next year.

"Now we know what it feels like to be here," Simone said after the title game. "Now that we know I can't really see us settling for less the next couple of years."