Field Hockey: With no margin for error, squad resumes league play vs. Columbia

The field hockey team will have a lot on the line on Saturday when it hosts the Columbia Lions — the Tigers almost certainly need a win to stay in the running for their seventh consecutive Ivy League title.

The Tigers (3-5 overall, 1-1 Ivy League) have had a rocky start to the season, dropping from No. 7 at the beginning of the season to well out of the national top 20. After being upset 2-1 by Dartmouth in their Ivy League opener, the Tigers reclaimed lost territory last weekend with a 3-2 home win over Yale.

Columbia (3-4, 2-0) is currently tied for first place in the Ivy League, one of two schools — along with Dartmouth — to have defeated its first two league opponents. The Lions downed Brown two weeks ago and beat Cornell last week by identical 3-1 scores.

Princeton is coming off a 6-2 loss at No. 3 Maryland on Tuesday. The Tigers had high hopes against the Terrapins — last season, Princeton pulled out an upset against Maryland, ending a stretch of 13 straight defeats. But the visitors could not recapture the magic, surrendering the first four goals of the game.

The Tigers boast a balanced offense, with eight players having scored points this season. Freshman midfielder Sydney Kirby leads the team with 11 points, scoring three goals and notching five assists. Freshman striker Allison Evans, who has often teamed up with Kirby for goals, is close behind with four goals and two assists.

While Columbia has 11 point scorers this season, top scorer Gabby Kozlowski has 10 points from five goals and their second-leading scorer, Leti Freaney, has only five total points, including two goals and an assist.

The Lions average 17 shots per game to the Tigers’ 11, but the gap has translated to only a minor difference in goals scored. Sophomore goalie Christina Maida has made 27 saves this season, an average of 3.9 per game, but ranks last among Ivy League starters with a .600 save percentage.

With the loss of four starters to the U.S. National Team, Princeton has had to restructure its play and has struggled to put together a strong 70 minutes. However, the Tigers have seen strong showings from the freshmen, including Evans and Kirby, giving hope that the team can improve and become more cohesive throughout the season.

Saturday’s game, which begins at noon, is the first of three consecutive home contests for the Tigers. Next weekend, they will take on the two teams they met in the NCAA Tournament last November. Princeton hosts Virginia, which beat the Orange and Black in the quarterfinals to end its run last season, before taking on Wake Forest, which the Tigers defeated in the first round.