Women's Lacrosse: Tigers, Lions no match for weather

After waiting and assessing the conditions, the officials decided to call the game after it first started hailing, and then snowing.

Princeton raced out to a quick start as sophomore attacker Jaci Gassaway and senior attacker Lizzy Drumm fired early on the Lions’ goal, but Columbia goalie Karlee Blank stopped both shots. The Tigers forced three turnovers by the Lions while yielding the ball themselves twice before Drumm found the net off senior attacker Maisie Devine’s assist with 22:50 left in the half.

Four minutes later, junior midfielder Cassie Pyle was fouled by Columbia midfielder Taylor Gattinella. On the subsequent free position shot, Pyle found the back of the cage. Two minutes later, at 16:21, Gassaway scored off a pass from sophomore midfielder Charlotte Davis to give Princeton a commanding 3-0 lead.

Columbia responded in the next minute, however, when Lions attacker Kacie Johnson beat senior goalie Erin Tochihara to pull Columbia within two. The Lions pushed into the Tigers’ half of the field again and midfielder Ashley Rinere scored. One minute later, Columbia found the net once more, this time off a free position shot by attacker Gabrielle Geronimos, knotting the game at 3-3 with 11:18 to go in the first half.

Princeton pushed its offense in the later minutes of the half. Davis and junior attacker Barb Previ each attempted shots, but Blank protected her net both times. Finally, Pyle scored at the four-minute mark, putting the Tigers back ahead.

The Lions, however, were not willing to concede the half, and they responded with a free position goal by Geronimos with 21 seconds left in the period. Princeton outshot Columbia 11-7 and had only seven turnovers to the Lions’ 12 but headed into the locker room tied at four.

The Tigers opened the second period ready to play, and Drumm fired a shot past the goalie two minutes into the half off an assist from Previ for her second goal of the game.

Play was stopped soon afterwards, however, after game officials observed lightning in the sky. More thunder and lightning soon followed and the rain turned to hail and snow, forcing the game to be postponed.

Princeton’s defense held the Lions to just six shots on net; Tochihara saved two while four found the cage. Her counterpart Blank stopped seven of the Tigers’ 12 shots on goal.

The matchup has been rescheduled for Wednesday, April 27 at 7 p.m., again at Princeton Stadium. According to NCAA rules, it must be replayed in its entirety instead of resuming from the point of stoppage.

The Tigers next take on Georgetown in a home game on Saturday afternoon. That will be followed by a pair of Ivy League contests on the road in successive weeks, at Cornell and Yale.