Field Hockey: Potent Bulldog offense will challenge struggling hosts

After two heartbreaking losses last weekend, the field hockey team is looking forward to recovering some lost territory in the Ivy League when it hosts Yale at noon on Saturday.

Last Saturday’s defeat against Dartmouth (4-2 overall, 1-0 Ivy League) marked Princeton’s (2-4, 0-1) first league loss in four seasons and ended a 24-game Ivy League winning streak. In defeat, the Tigers outshot the Big Green 17-10 and also led the hosts 10-5 in penalty corners. Princeton’s goal in the 2-1 loss came from freshman midfielder Sidney Kirby with an assist by sophomore back Amanda Bird in the Tigers’ seventh penalty corner of the game.

The next day, the Tigers were shut out 5-0 at No. 5 Syracuse (5-2). The match was a scoreless tie until the final 15 minutes, when the Orange broke through on a penalty stroke for the first goal and continued to pressure the Tigers after that. Princeton was outshot 15-3 and sophomore goalie Christina Maida made seven saves in the loss.

“Losing is never fun,” head coach Kristen Holmes-Winn said. “It’s all about going out and competing for a full 70 minutes. Either match didn’t come down to tactics or talents; it’s just the mental strength to compete for a whole game.”

While Princeton lost their Ivy League opener, the Bulldogs (3-3, 1-0) handily took a victory in their first league game against Harvard, winning 5-1. With Yale’s momentum in the league, the match this weekend could prove to be an exciting and challenging one for the Tigers.

The Bulldogs currently sit atop many Ivy League statistics charts, including goals scored, assists and shots. Yale has averaged a whopping 23.17 shots per game — compared to Princeton’s 9.83 — and ranks sixth nationally with 4.17 goals per game. Yale boasts a strong and balanced attack, with 12 players having points and 11 having scored goals; the Tigers, on the other hand, have scored just nine goals in six games.

The Tigers have a lot on the line this weekend, as they have only had one season in the past 17 during which they dropped two Ivy League games — 2004, also the only year in that span when they did not win the conference title. Princeton will benefit from hosting Yale on its home turf; so far in league play, home teams have taken every game.

This season has been a challenge for the Tigers since losing four key players to training with the U.S. National team for the year, including striker Michelle Cesan, midfielder Katie Reinprecht, midfielder Julia Reinprecht and striker Kat Sharkey. The team has had to focus on restructuring its play to fill in for its missing players, but Holmes-Winn said she believes the Tigers are handling the transitions well but still have work to do.

“We’re still trying to figure out how to fill those gaps,” Holmes-Winn said. “When you have those types of players on the field, they take impeccable lines and are in good spots all the time. Take that out and everyone on the field is forced to take good lines and be more conscious of that for a full game. Filling the gaps is important, and we’ve been doing that really well.”

Holmes-Winn said she believes that it has not been the restructuring or gaps in play that has led to the recent losses, but more of a mental challenge.

“It’s a mental falling-off that we’ve struggled with,” she said. “It’s the last 10 minutes that we’ve let ourselves down from a structural standpoint. We need to learn to close out a match and keep the level of focus up.”

With another important league game on the line this weekend, Holmes-Winn said she is hopeful that the Tigers will be able to fight through a full 70 minutes to bring home a first league victory.

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“Every time you enter a league game, there’s a lot on the line and our kids and staff know that,” she said. “I just want to see their best and see them play to their capabilities. That’s what the focus is this weekend, having every single person stay in tune for the entire match. We’re working on an individual level to maximize our capability of play and hopefully will see the results we want.”