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Princeton University Athletics
Princeton University
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Dartmouth
No. 9 Women's Hockey Rallies, Falls Short At No. 2 Dartmouth
November 21, 2003 | Women's Ice Hockey
Nov. 21, 2003
Box Score
HANOVER, N.H. - The No. 9 Princeton hockey team nearly pulled off a wild rally Friday night, but the No. 2 Dartmouth Big Green defended its home ice in a penalty-filled 4-2 victory at Thompson Arena. The loss drops Princeton to 4-3 on the season, while Dartmouth improves to 6-0.
Penalties were as big a story in this game as they can be, as the officials called Dartmouth for 12 penalties and Princeton for 10. Each team converted once on the power play, including a goal by Lisa Rasmussen that got a once 3-0 Dartmouth lead to 3-2.
"It's hard, because what ends up happening is that, while both teams have depth, both teams also have special players," Princeton head coach Jeff Kampersal said. "Those special players play on the power play and the penalty kill, and they got gassed tonight. It was like being in Math 103 again, trying to figure out if it was a power play, a 4-on-4, a 4-on-3, or whatever." The first period was played fairly evenly with Dartmouth outshooting Princeton 9-7, but it was the Big Green that got the one shot that mattered most. Late in the period, Katie Weatherston found Sarah Clark alone atop the goal crease, and Clark connected on her first goal of the season. For Weatherston, it was her team-leading 10th point of the season.
Weatherston wouldn't wait long to get her 11th point. After Dartmouth killed off a Princeton power play to close the first period and another to open the second period, the Big Green built its lead to 2-0 when Weatherston found the puck in the middle of traffic in front of the net and knocked it past Van Beusekom at 4:53 of the period. Cherie Piper was able to tip the puck over to Weatherston, who scored her 29th career goal on the play.
Princeton gave away another good opportunity later in the period. Shortly after a penalty to Alex Zagaria gave Princeton a power play, Dartmouth defended an offensive run and countered it with a slight breakaway of its own. Knowing a 3-0 deficit would all but spell the end of the game for the Tigers, senior Gretchen Anderson took a penalty to end the power play but ensure the goal wouldn't be scored.
After Dartmouth killed off yet another power play minutes later, it was Princeton who was finally put on the defensive after a penalty was called against senior captain Heather Rasmussen. The best opportunity was had by Clark, who skated in alone against Van Beusekom and patiently waited for the goalie to give her a shooting area. It never came, as the senior goaltender stood her ground and stopped the low shot to keep Princeton in the game.
The Tigers had to kill off another penalty late in the period, and it found its best offensive chance in the shorthanded situation. Anderson forced a turnover in the defensive zone and used her speed to lead a 2-on-1 break. She fired a tough shot at sophomore goaltender Stephanie Cochran, but the Dartmouth net minder blocked it away and secured the rebound.
Penalties continued to plague both teams, and Dartmouth skated with a 4-on-3 advantage to open the third period. The Big Green took advantage, scoring its third goal of the game 40 seconds into the period. It started when defenseman Lesley Reiart found Piper alone on the blue line. Piper took the pass cleanly and fired the puck at the net, where Gillian Apps battled for position with a Princeton defender. Apps, the daughter of former Princeton great and NHL player Syl M. Apps '70 and the sister of recent Princeton standout Syl C. Apps '99, won the battle and tipped the shot through the legs of Van Beusekom.
The Tigers showed no quit, and finally lit its side of the scoreboard after outworking Dartmouth in front of its own crease. With plenty of traffic in front of the goal, a shot by Becky Stewart was rebounded and scored by Anderson, her team-best ninth goal of the season. Angela Gooldy was also awarded an assist on the play, and the score sparked Princeton, which almost cut the deficit to 3-2 on a backhand shot by Katherine Maglione, but Cochran made a sprawling save.
After the Tigers staved off another Dartmouth power play, it got an opportunity when Louise Pietrangelo was given a two-minute minor at the 15:49 mark of the period. Kampersal called timeout to organize the attack, and his players responded with a spirited attack for the first 90 seconds of the power play. Unfortunately for the Tigers, good opportunities did not translate into goals, as the Dartmouth defense blocked away enough chances to preserve the 3-1 lead.
After a number of spectacular saves by Van Beusekom, Princeton got another power-play opportunity following a penalty to Piper. It nearly turned into a 5-on-3 attack, as Apps was given a five-minute major for high-sticking called, but a late hit by Stewart following the call was whistled, and it turned into a 4-on-3 opportunity. The power play yielded a pair of good opportunities, including one that Cochran nearly dragged into the goal on a save, but again Princeton came away empty.
As it turned out, it was the ensuing power play that was more to Princeton's liking. After Stewart got out of the box, Apps still had three penalty minutes to serve. Princeton took advantage immediately, as Jackson knocked off a Dartmouth defender to control the puck behind the net, came around and found Rasmussen alone on the doorstep. The senior captain couldn't have had it any easier, finishing her third goal of the season to cut the score to 3-2 with 6:07 remaining.
"Our kids never give up," Kampersal said. "Even if they don't look like they're clicking, they don't stop playing hard."
Princeton used the momentum immediately following Rasmussen's goal to pepper Cochran with shot, but Dartmouth withstood the assault long enough for Apps to get back on the ice. Apps made sure she made up for the penalty by icing the game with her second goal of the game, this one coming with 1:16 remaining in the game. She again found an area on the doorstep and tipped it past Van Beusekom for the clincher.
Van Beusekom ended the game with 22 saves, while Cochran had 21.
Princeton travels to Burlington, Vt., tomorrow to take on the Catamounts at 4 p.m.