Women's Soccer: Hoy, offense look to obtain 1st conference victory

This weekend, the women’s soccer team will search for a third-straight win when it continues Ivy League play against Columbia. The Tigers also have another chance to notch their first Ivy League victory after dropping their first three league matchups.

The Tigers (3-8-1 overall, 0-3 Ivy League) will enter the game with a week’s worth of positive momentum. On Monday, Princeton snapped a six-match winless streak when it devastated Francis Mason with a 6-0 shutout. Two days later, Princeton extended the upward trend when a mid-game goal gave the visitors a 1-0 victory at Lehigh.

With only five games left in the season, the Tigers know they need to keep playing well to turn around what has to this point been a disappointing season. Head coach Julie Shackford explained how the past week’s goals will help the Tigers’ confidence as they look to close out on the game plans they have had all season.

“As I have said before, we have played well in all of our games, but the main problem has been that we have not been able to finish,” Shackford said.

Columbia (4-8, 2-1) has been going in the opposite direction, entering the match with a three-game losing streak. Despite the late skid, the Lions still stand in a four-way tie for second place in the Ivy League.

The Tigers have squared evenly against Columbia in the past, as each squad has won twice and the teams have tied once in the last five contests.

In last year’s meeting in Manhattan, Princeton took a 2-0 shutout loss when Columbia midfielder Nora Dooley scored twice in the second half. The defeat temporarily knocked the Tigers out of the top place in the Ivy League.

This year is a different story for the Tigers, who find themselves at the bottom of league rankings still seeking their first points. With four league games remaining, the Tigers still have an outside chance to come back for the league title, but they would need to win the remainder of their Ivy League games and have other results break their way.

Even with a newly-inspired offense, Tiger fans will have to be wary of the Columbia defense, which is anchored by goalkeeper Lillian Klein. Klein leads the Ivy League with 50 saves this season.

Columbia, like Princeton, has relied on a balanced offense that has struggled to find the net. Forward Alexa Yow is the only player with multiple goals, accounting for two of the Lions’ eight scores.

Shackford explained that, although none of the Columbia players pose a particularly worrisome threat, Princeton still needs to be careful as it tries to continue its streak.

“If we stick with our game plan and continue to close as we have all week, then I have the upmost confidence in our team,” Shackford said. “We’ve got to keep our midfielders dictating play and controlling the pace of the game.”

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In particular, Shackford said that she hopes to see more out of junior forward Jen Hoy, who led Princeton with seven goals last season and was named second-team All-Ivy.

“She hasn’t had the same confidence as before, but we wish she will find it again and have a breakout game for us,” Shackford said. “She makes things difficult for defenses with her speed, which has really helped our team out in the past.”

Hoy and the Tigers will get their chance to turn arouond their Ivy League struggles against the Lions on Saturday at 4 p.m. at Roberts Stadium.