On Sunday afternoon, No. 16 women’s lacrosse (1–1 overall, 0–0 Ivy League) defeated the No. 13 Loyola Greyhounds (2–2 overall, 1–0 Patriot League) by a score of 16–14, earning their first win of the 2025 season after falling to No. 10 University of Virginia (2–1 overall, 0–1 ACC) the week prior.
“I think the UVA game was an incredible teaching moment for our team,” Head Coach Jenn Cook told The Daily Princetonian. “There was about a five minute span where we lost our focus, right? We were really working that focus all week leading up to Loyola so they couldn’t capitalize on that against us.”
“Virginia was a tough loss for us,” junior attacker Haven Dora told the ‘Prince.’ “It was hard to start the season with a loss, but instead of letting this defeat us, we used it as motivation to fuel our focus in practice, pushing us to focus on the little things and improve to face another difficult opponent.”
After earning the first draw control, the Loyola offense went to work, getting on the board less than two minutes into the game. Soon after, Dora responded for the Tigers, netting her first goal of the day off of a free-position shot. The game was tied early, 1–1.
Dora comes into the season as a key cog in the Tiger offensive machine, after tying the program record for assists last season with 40 and playing for the USA national team in the U20 World Cup this past summer. Her 69-point season in 2024 earned her Second-Team All-Ivy honors and placement on the 2025 preseason Tewaaraton Award watch list, which previews the possible candidates for the best player in the nation.
Scoring continued to run back and forth. The Greyhounds scored less than a minute later, but not long after, junior attacker Jami MacDonald added her mark to the scoreboard off of a fierce drive to goal with a shot that landed in the top-left corner of the goal.
From here, the Tigers began to gain momentum and dominate offensive possession, scoring two more goals, courtesy of MacDonald and senior attacker Nina Montes, taking their first lead of the game, ahead 4–2 10 minutes into play.
The second quarter opened with a quick goal from sophomore midfielder Colette Quinn, capitalizing off of the Tigers’ man-advantage from an ongoing penalty issued in the first. Quinn netted her goal off a strong shot from the center position, putting Princeton ahead by two.
Once back at even-strength, the Greyhounds barrelled down the field, responding to Quinn’s goal with one of their own, cutting their deficit in half. Less than a minute later, Loyola found the back of the net again, tying the game at five goals a-piece.
The Tigers soon responded and scored headed back in the other direction with a goal from senior attacker McKenzie Blake.
Scoring came to a halt for about five minutes until Loyola broke through again midway through the second quarter. After tying the game 6–6, Princeton responded with two goals from first-year attacker Grace Mulham and junior midfielder Lane Calkins who worked to bring the Tigers’ lead back to two at 8–6.
MacDonald ended the day with five points, a combination of her four goals and single assist, bringing her to 100 points in her Princeton career.
After halftime, the Tigers came out firing, scoring two quick goals from Quinn and Dora to give Princeton their largest lead of the game, up 11–7. Loyola responded quickly, though, netting back-to-back goals, now trailing only by two.
Princeton’s next goal marked an impressive achievement for Blake, who tallied 150 career goals with the shot. Blake is one of only seven Princeton women’s lacrosse players to hit this milestone and is on pace to continue to climb the leaderboards after scoring ten goals in just two games this season. Following Blake’s goal, the Tigers led 12–9.
From here, the Greyhounds took over. For nearly eight minutes, Loyola dominated both possession and scoring. From the end of the third quarter and into the early minutes of the fourth, the Greyhounds scored three goals to tie the game at 12–12.
“You look at the draw-control category in the third quarter, and we lost the category six to two,” Cook told the ‘Prince.’ “Going into the fourth, though, our draw-controls were huge and we won the category six to two — that’s what helped us win the game.”
Dora put the Tigers back on track after their brief lapse, scoring her third goal of the game three minutes into the final period. Blake followed suit, scoring her third of the game off of an assist from Dora and putting Princeton up two, 14–12.
Nearly clawing back yet again, the Greyhounds netted a goal just a minute later to cut the deficit to one. The Tigers kept their composure, though, utilizing MacDonald and Blake to counter and bring scoring back to Princeton. The game ended in favor of the Tigers, with a final score of 16–14.
Princeton will travel to Delaware to take on the Blue Hens (2–1 overall, 0–0 CAA) in their first away game of the season on Wednesday, Feb. 26.
“This week, we are coming into practice super focused and ready for our next competitor in Delaware,” Dora told the ‘Prince.’ “While we are proud of our win against Loyola, we cannot be complacent because no game will be easy.”
“For us, it’s continuing to focus on the details and execute these details at a high level,” Cook told the ‘Prince.’ “We need to continue to have fun while we play and be focused and engaged, that’s our main thing.”
Lily Pampolina is an associate Sports editor for the ‘Prince.’
Please send any corrections to corrections[at]dailyprincetonian.com
Read More
Track and field finishes regular season strong, prepares for Heps and NCAA Championships
Carina Fucich and Luke StocklessWomen’s and men’s track & field had strong performances over the weekend and look well prepared for Ivy Championships next weekend.
Women’s and men’s track & field had strong performances over the weekend and look well prepared for Ivy Championships next weekend.
As federal government bears down, town of Princeton vows to stay strong on immigration
Sena Chang and Charlie RothWhile the Trump administration cracks down on immigration, fear is spreading in the immigrant community. However, the town of Princeton is holding firm in its support of the immigrant population.
While the Trump administration cracks down on immigration, fear is spreading in the immigrant community. However, the town of Princeton is holding firm in its support of the immigrant population.
How your Coffee Club order turns into compost
Allison JiangThe ‘Prince’ explores the sustainability partnership between the Coffee Club and the S.C.R.A.P. lab, which turns used coffee grounds into nutrient-rich compost. Student “compost concierges” collect and transport the grounds, delivering them to the S.C.R.A.P. lab to be processed and reintegrated into the campus environment.
The ‘Prince’ explores the sustainability partnership between the Coffee Club and the S.C.R.A.P. lab, which turns used coffee grounds into nutrient-rich compost. Student “compost concierges” collect and transport the grounds, delivering them to the S.C.R.A.P. lab to be processed and reintegrated into the campus environment.
