Field Hockey: After long homestand, team heads to Brown

The field hockey team hits the road this weekend for the first time in nearly three weeks. On Saturday, Princeton will play an Ivy League game against the Brown Bears, followed by a non-conference rivalry contest on Sunday at No. 4 Connecticut.

Coming off an overtime loss last Sunday to Wake Forest, which followed a victory over the Virginia Cavaliers — who beat the Tigers twice last season, including a season-ending loss in the NCAA Touranment — senior midfielder and captain Erin Jennings said that the Tigers (5-6 overall, 2-1 Ivy League) have put in a hard week of practice and are ready for this weekend’s games.

“Although we didn’t get the outcome we had hoped for in our game against Wake Forest, our team is really proud of the way we played in that game and [last] weekend overall,” Jennings said. “We have come so far this season, and I think all the work that we have been putting in every day at practice really was demonstrated this weekend — we proved that we can play with the top teams in the country.”

The Bears (3-8, 0-3) are winless in conference play and stand at the bottom of the Ivy League. The Tigers are currently tied for second place and are looking to catch undefeated Dartmouth. Although the Bears are in the league cellar, freshman goalie Shannon McSweeney was named Ivy League Rookie of the Week for her 13 saves and .813 save percentage, helping the Bears win two non-league games last week against Quinnipiac and Fairfield.

Jennings said that, despite the Bears’ record in the Ivy League, the visitors should not take this game lightly. “Every Ivy League game is really important, especially coming into the end of the season, so our team has been concentrating on our game against Brown first and foremost,” she said. “We have continued to work on our shape and structure so that we can hopefully shock Brown with our speed and quickness around the ball and with our passes.”

The bigger challenge for the Tigers this weekend will come Sunday against the Huskies (12-1), who are currently ranked fourth in the nation.

Jennings commented on the high talent of the Huskies’ team, but also noted that the Tigers are excited for the challenge. “UConn has always been one of our biggest rivals,” she said. “They are currently ranked as one of the top five teams in the country, and they have always had a super-talented team that gives us a challenge. We proved this weekend that we can play with the top teams in the country, and we are prepared to take on UConn and really believe, with the amount we have grown this season and the talent we have, that we can beat them.”

The Huskies also defeated Virginia last week, as midfielder Alicia Angelini scored the game-winning goal in the final three minutes of play to keep the Huskies with only one loss. The Huskies have other weapons on offense — freshman forward Chloe Hunnable, who was named the Big East Offensive Player of the Week, scored two goals in their win against Georgetown and the game-tying goal against Virginia last week.

With the Tigers still trailing Dartmouth in the Ivy League standings and in danger of finishing below .500 for the first time since 2004, every member of the team will have to perform her job well this weekend.

“As a center-mid, my main priority is to hold the shape of our team’s structure throughout the game,” Jennings said. “I’d say one of our team’s biggest strengths is the way we are able to move the ball in that structure … I think that our midfield provides the energy that our team runs off of, so our focus is to just keep up that energy and enthusiasm and bring it into the weekend.”