Princeton University Athletics
Fifth-Ranked Tigers Open ECACHL Playoffs With Quarterfinal Series Against Colgate
March 02, 2006 | Women's Ice Hockey
March 2, 2006
PRINCETON - The fifth-ranked Princeton women's hockey team begins its second season, the postseason, on Friday night when its best-of-three quarterfinal against Colgate begins at Baker Rink. Princeton enters the ECAC Hockey League Tournament as the second seed and will host seventh-seeded Colgate. With a win, Princeton would advance to the ECACHL semifinals for the fourth time in school history and the first time since the 2002-03 season.
The Tigers (19-6-4, 15-3-2 ECACHL) are now ranked fifth in the USCHO.com poll after sweeping last weekend's games with Brown and Yale. The Tigers switched places with Minnesota-Duluth, which went 1-0-1 over the weekend against Minnesota State. Princeton remained ranked sixth in the nation's other poll, the USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine poll, and Minnesota-Duluth is fifth.
The Tigers sweep of Brown and Yale last weekend ran its win streak to seven games. Princeton has also won 10 of its last 11 games, dating back to a four-game winless streak in early January. The wins also avenged Princeton's least successful weekend of the season, when the Tigers tied Yale and lost at Brown in early January.
Princeton started last weekend with a 3-2 win at Brown. Princeton never trailed in the game as senior Sarah Butsch, sophomore Marykate Oakley and junior Laura Watt provided the goals. Senior Roxanne Gaudiel made 12 saves for the win.
The following day marked the final regular-season home game for the five members of the Princeton Class of 2006 and the group put forth a strong effort. After sophomore Sonja Novak gave Princeton a 1-0 lead in the first period, senior co-captain Heather Jackson padded to it with a pair of goals in the third period. Fellow senior and co-captain Tarah Clark assisted on Novak's game winner and Gaudiel made 20 saves and recorded a shutout. Gaudiel received the league's Goaltender of the Week honors for the third time this season following the weekend, while Jackson was named to the league's honor roll for the second-straight week.
Several members of the Ivy-champion Tigers received awards from the Ivy League on Wednesday. Pearce was named the league's Player of the Year while freshman teammate Annie Greenwood took Rookie of the Year honors. Pearce, along with Watt and Gaudiel were named first-team All-Ivy, while Greenwood, Oakley and junior Dina McCumber were second-team All-Ivy selections.
The wins lifted Princeton's overall record to 19-6-4 overall and 15-3-2 in the ECAC Hockey League. Princeton's 19 wins are one shy of the programs record for wins in a season - 20 - which was achieved in both the 2002-02 and 2003-04 seasons. Princeton's 20-9-2 (.677) marked its highest winning percentage. Princeton currently has a .724 winning percentage this season. Princeton's 15 league wins is a program high.
Princeton had secured a top-two league finish entering last weekend, and without any help from St. Lawrence's competitors, the Tigers finished the season in second, two points behind the Saints. The second-place finish marks Princeton's best regular-season finish and its highest tournament seed. Princeton's previous best was third on three occasions, most recently in 2002-03.
By sweeping Ivy opponents Brown and Yale last weekend, Princeton locked up the 2006 Ivy League Championship, which is made up of the ECACHL games played between Ivy League teams. Princeton was 7-2-1 in the 10 games to finish three points ahead of Yale. It marked Princeton's sixth Ivy title since the league started awarding one in 1976. Princeton last won a title in 1995 when it shared it with Dartmouth. Princeton's last outright title came in 1992.
Princeton will meet the league's seventh seed, Colgate, in the quarterfinal series. The three other quarterfinal series' feature eighth-seeded Yale at top-seeded St. Lawrence, sixth-seeded Dartmouth at third-seeded Brown, and fifth-seeded Clarkson and fourth-seeded Harvard.
Princeton is unbeaten in 13 meetings with Colgate, including a pair of wins this season. The Tigers are 11-0-2 against the Raiders and are 5-0-1 on home ice. The teams have never met in the playoffs.
Princeton defeated Colgate 6-2 on Dec. 3 at Baker Rink in the teams' first meeting this season. In that game, freshman Annie Greenwood scored four goals and senior Chrissie Norwich, junior Kate Hession and sophomore Brittany Salmon each added a pair of points. Gaudiel made 22 saves for the win. Princeton posted a 2-1 win at Colgate on Jan. 13 at Starr Rink. After falling behind 1-0 in the first, Pearce and Butsch scored second-period goals in the 2-1 win. Gaudiel made 18 saves in the win.
Colgate is 12-13-7 overall and 9-8-3 in the ECACHL. The Raiders enter the weekend following wins last weekend at home against Union. Colgate is 3-4-3 in its last 10 games and 3-2 in the last five games.
The winner of this weekend's series will advance to the ECACHL semifinals at the site of the highest remaining seed following the quarterfinals. The semifinal games will be played on Saturday, March 11.