Princeton University Athletics
Women's Hockey Meets Brown on Saturday in ECACHL Semifinals
March 09, 2006 | Women's Ice Hockey
March 9, 2006
PRINCETON - The fifth-ranked Princeton women's hockey team travels north to Canton, N.Y., this weekend to compete in the 2006 ECAC Hockey League Championship. Princeton, the tournament's second seed, began its road to the championship by sweeping Colgate last weekend in the quarterfinal series. Those wins set up a semifinal meeting for the Tigers with Brown on Saturday afternoon at 4 p.m. Top-seeded St. Lawrence hosts Harvard in the other semifinal.
This weekend marks Princeton's fifth visit to the semifinal round of the ECACHL tournament. The Tigers, 0-4 in semifinals appearances thus far, will look to reverse that trend when they meet Brown on Saturday. The game will be broadcast live on GoPrincetonTigers.com and livestats will be available. Links to both can be found on the women's hockey schedule page.
Should Princeton advance to the championship game on Sunday, it would meet the winner of the Harvard-St. Lawrence game at 2 p.m. An audio broadcast and livestats will be available for that game as well. In addition, the game will be televised live on Time Warner Sports in Central and Northern New York, as well as on CN8 in the Mid-Atlantic states and New England. The game will also be shown tape-delayed on CSTV on Monday night at 10 p.m.
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This Week's Storylines
In the Semifinals
The Princeton women's hockey team returns to the ECAC Hockey League semifinals for the first time since the 2002-03 season this weekend and meets Brown in the second of semifinal on Saturday. Princeton entered the ECACHL tournament as the second seed and is in search of its first-ever title.
How We Got Here
As the tournament's second seed, Princeton hosted seventh-seeded Colgate in the best-of-three quarterfinal series last weekend at Baker Rink. Freshman Christine Foster's hat trick lifted Princeton to a 3-0 shutout win in the first game, while senior Sarah Butsch scored with 111 seconds left in Game 2 to lift the Tigers to a 5-4 win and the series win.
All-Time High
Princeton's 5-4 win on Saturday in the second game of the Colgate series was the Tigers' 21st win of the 2005-06 season, one more than the 20 wins Princeton recorded in 2002-03 and 2003-04. Princeton's .710 winning percentage is also a program record.
Second Place
Princeton's second-place finish in the ECACHL regular season standings marked an all-time high for Princeton. Princeton highest previous finish was third in 1994-95 and 2002-03.
League Tournament History
Princeton has appeared in the ECACHL tournament 13 times and has played 22 games. The Tigers are 7-15-0 in tournament play and have reached the final four on four occasions. Princeton has yet to win a semifinal game in the league tournament.
First Round History
Princeton's sweep of Colgate in the first round marked the fourth quarterfinal series win for Princeton. The Tigers also advanced from the quarterfinals in 1994-95, 1997-98 and 2002-03.
Semifinal History
Princeton is 0-4 in ECACHL semifinal games entering this weekend. In 1994-95, third-seeded Princeton lost to fourth-seeded Providence 3-2 in overtime. In 1997-98, Princeton, the seventh-seed, lost to top-seed New Hampshire, and in 2002-03, third-seeded Princeton lost to second-seeded Dartmouth 4-2.
Princeton vs. Brown
Princeton is 27-26-1 all-time against Brown and is 0-1 against the Bears at neutral sites. The lone neutral site game came in 1981 at the Ivy League Tournament at Harvard. The two teams split their meetings during the regular season with each team winning a one-goal game on home ice. Princeton has won three of its last four meetings with Brown, but dropped a pair of ECACHL quarterfinal games to Brown at the conclusion of the 2003-04 season.
Scouting The Bears
Brown finished the ECACHL regular season in the third spot and swept by Dartmouth in the first round of the league playoffs. The Bears are 14-12-5 overall and finished the league season with a 10-6-4 record. Brown enters the game unbeaten in three (2-0-1) and last lost on Feb. 24 at Princeton.
Tigers & Bears: Round 1
The first time Princeton and Brown met this season was on Jan. 7 at Meehan Auditorium in Providence. After Heather Jackson put the Tigers ahead 1-0, Brown scored three-straight goals to go ahead 3-1. Annie Greenwood and Sarah Butsch scored to cap a six-goal second period, that ended with the score tied at 3-3. Brown's Keaton Zucker broke the tie 51 seconds into overtime and Brown held on for a 4-3 win despite being outshot 45-31.
Tigers & Bears: Round 2
Princeton and Brown's second meeting of the season took place on Feb. 24 at Baker Rink in Princeton. Sarah Butsch scored midway through the first period to take a lead and would never trail in a 3-2 win. Keaton Zucker knotted the game in the second period before Tiger goals from Marykate Oakley and Laura Watt stretched the lead to 3-1 before Brown added a late goal. Roxanne Gaudiel picked up the win.
Princeton, Brown and the Playoffs
Princeton and Brown have met twice in ECACHL playoff history with the Bears sweeping the Tigers in the 2003-04 quarterfinals, both games were won by a single goal and one in overtime. The two have met once during the days of the Ivy League Tournament, with Brown winning an overtime game in 1981.
Ivy Champions
Princeton's 7-2-1 record in the Ivy subset of games led the Tigers to their first Ivy League title since 1995, and their first outright title since 1992. Overall it was the sixth Ivy title for the Princeton women's hockey program. Princeton other titles came in 1982, 1983 and 1984.
Ivy Honors
Kim Pearce and Annie Greenwood swept the major Ivy League awards as Pearce was named the league's Player of the Year and Greenwood the league's top rookie. Pearce joined Syrena Carlbom (1981, 1982, 1983, 1984) and Gina Pietrangelo (1987) as Princeton league Players of the Year. Greenwood becomes Princeton's fifth league Rookie of the Year and its first since Pearce in 2004. Pearce joins Pietrangelo as Princeton's only two players to be named league Rookie and Player of the Year in their careers.
All-Ivy
In addition to the two major Ivy awards, Princeton placed three players on both the Ivy League's first and second teams. Joining Pearce on the first team were Laura Watt, the only unanimous selection to the squad, and Roxanne Gaudiel, a first-team All-Ivy goaltender for the second-straight season. Greenwood, Marykate Oakley and Dina McCumber were second-team All-Ivy selections.
Academic Honors
The Princeton women's hockey team placed 11 of its student-athletes on the 2006 ECAC Hockey League All-Academic Team. The squad was led by three-time honorees Sarah Butsch, Tarah Clark and Chrissie Norwich. Other members were: Roxanne Gaudiel, Kate Hession, Micol Martinelli, Dina McCumber, Sonja Novak, Kim Pearce, Allison Ralph and Brittany Salmon. Players must have a cumulative GPA above 3.00 and have appeared in at least half of the team's games.
Kazmaier Candidate
Kim Pearce was named one of the 10 candidates for the 2006 Patty Kazmaier Award. Pearce becomes the fourth Princetonian to be a candidate for the award, which is named for the former Princetonian. Ali Coughlin (1998, 1999), Andrea Kilbourne (2001, 2003) and Gretchen Anderson (2004) were also candidates for the award.
Winning Nine Straight
Princeton enters this weekend having won its last nine games and 12 of its last 13 games. The Tigers nine-game winning streak is the longest in Princeton women's hockey history, surpassing eight-game win streaks in 1982-83 and 1994-95.
Staying Healthy and Contributing
Fourteen Tigers have appeared in all 31 games this season and all 14 have made important offensive contributions.
Playing the Top Opponents
Princeton has faced 11 ranked opponents this season and is 6-4-1 in those games. Princeton has wins against Dartmouth, Harvard, Ohio State, Mercyhurst and Clarkson (2). The highest-ranked team Princeton has played is St. Lawrence. The Saints were ranked No. 1 when the team skated to a 1-1 tie in November and were ranked third when they won 3-1 in Canton in February. Princeton has been ranked much of the season and is currently fifth in one poll and sixth in the other.
At Neutral Sites
Saturday's semifinal game will be Princeton's third neutral-site game of the season. Princeton opened the season with neutral-site games against Boston College and Vermont and earned a win and a tie in the tournament.
In The Extra Session
Princeton is 3-0-4 in overtime this season with wins against Vermont, Mercyhurst and Clarkson. Princeton last lost in overtime in the 2005 league playoffs at Yale. The Tigers are 6-1-9 in their last 16 overtime games through the 2004-05 season.
Jumping in Front
Princeton has scored the first goal in 21 games this season and is 16-3-2 when it does so. The Tigers are 13-0-1 when leading after one period and are 17-0-1 when leading after two periods. Princeton has outscored its opponents 31-6 in the first period.
On Target
Princeton has outshot its opponents in 28 of 32 games this season and has only been outshot by two opponents - Mercyhurst and St. Lawrence. Princeton is 1-2-1 in those four games.
Defense First
Princeton has held its opponents to three goals or less in 29 of 32 games and it has held its opponents to two or less goals on 25 occasions. The Tigers have allowed 52 goals thus far this season, the lowest number since 44 in the 1994-95 campaign.
Double Up
Princeton has scored 104 goals this season and allowed exactly half, 52. This marks the sixth-straight season that Princeton has scored more goals than it has allowed. Princeton's 104 goals scored ranks fourth in program history. The high of 135 was recorded in 1983-84.
Non-Conference Wrap
Princeton completed its non-conference schedule with a 2-1 loss to Providence on Jan. 2. That completed Princeton's non-league slate with a 4-3-2 record. Princeton defeated Vermont, Ohio State, Mercyhurst and Wayne State, lost to Ohio State, Mercyhurst and Providence, and tied Boston College and Wayne State.
What Do They Know?
Princeton, the league's second-place finisher, was picked by both the league's coaches and media to finish in the bottom half of the league standings in the preseason polls. The coaches chose Princeton seventh while the media had the Tigers fifth.
On the Horizon
The winners of each semifinal game will meet on Sunday at 2 p.m., for the ECAC Hockey League Championship. The game will be televised live on Time Warner Sports in Upstate New York, as well as on CN8 throughout the East Coast.
Player by Player
1 • Kristen Young - appeared in five games ... made two starts ... 2-0 in starts ... first career win at Cornell (1/14/06) ... first career shutout at Union (2/17/06).
2 • Annie Greenwood - appeared in all 31 games ... scored 25 goals to rank first in league scoring and fourth in the nation ... career-high four goals against Colgate (12/3/05) ... points in 11 of last 12 games ... eight-game goal scoring streak in February.
3 • Katherine Dineen - appeared in all 31 games ... scored three goals and four assists for seven points ... first career goal at Ohio State (11/11/05) ... points in three of four games in late February ... scored game winner at Union (2/18/06).
4 • Christine Foster - appeared in all 31 games ... scored five goals and added five assists for 10 points ... had two points in a win against Cornell (12/3/05) ... notched a hat trick in the ECACHL quarterfinals against Colgate (3/3/06).
6 • Sonja Novak - appeared in all 31 games ... scored a goal and added four assists for five points ... had two assists in a win against Wayne State (12/9/05) ... scored the game winner against Yale (2/25/06).
7 • Kate Hession - appeared in all 31 games ... had a hand in both goals, including scoring the first of her career, in season-opening 2-2 tie with Boston College (10/29/05) ... two assists in win against Colgate (12/2/05) ... goal at Quinnipiac (1/31/06).
8 • Monica Brennan - appeared in 25 games ... was a +2 in win against Harvard (2/10/06) ... had two shots in a win at Union (2/17/06).
9 • Dina McCumber - appeared in all 31 games ... scored twice an added an assist for three points in an overtime win against Mercyhurst (11/26/05) ... assisted on three goals in a win against Dartmouth (2/11/06) ... has five assists in the last three games.
10 • Kim Pearce - appeared in all 31 games ... tallied a career-high six assists in a win against Cornell (12/2/05) ... game was part of a 14-game point scoring streak ... had three points (2-1) in a win against Dartmouth (2/11/06) ... had a goal and three assists in ECACHL quarterfinal win against Colgate (3/4/06).
11 • Tarah Clark - appeared in all 31 games ... scored the shorthanded game winner at Dartmouth (11/4/05) ... had a goal and assist in win against Wayne State (12/9/05) ... scored the game winner against Dartmouth (2/11/06).
12 • Mariesa Mason - appeared in 26 games ... was a +1 against Union (2/17/06).
14 • Heather Jackson - appeared in all 31 games ... had three assists in two games at Ohio State ... had a goal and assist in win at Cornell (1/14/06) ... had 11 points in five games in February ... span included three assist game against Harvard (2/10/06) and a one goal-three assist game at Union (2/18/06) ... scored twice in shutout of Yale (2/25/06).
16 • Micol Martinelli - appeared in 27 games ... had a pair of shots in wins against Cornell and Union.
17 • Marykate Oakley - appeared in 27 games ... had points in seven-straight games in late November-early December ... scored the game winner and added two assists against Cornell (12/2/05) ... had a goal and two assists at Cornell (1/14/06) ... scored twice and added an assist against Harvard (2/10/06) ... points in seven of last eight games.
19 • Brittany Salmon - appeared in all 31 games ... scored twice in win against Cornell (12/2/05) ... had two points the following day against Colgate (12/3/05) ... scored twice, including the game winner against Harvard (2/10/06) ... had a goal and assist against Colgate in the second quarterfinal game (3/4/06).
20 • Chrissie Norwich - appeared in all 31 games ... had nine points, all assists ... notched two helpers against Colgate (12/3/05) ... was +4 in a win at Union ... had an assist against Colgate in the second quarterfinal game (3/4/06).
22 • Laura Watt - appeared in all 31 games ... had a goal and assist in win at Ohio State (11/11/05) ... had a seven-game point streak at the end of November ... scored the game winner and had an assist in a 2-1 win against Quinnipiac (12/6/05) ... scored the game-tying goal and had an assist at Yale (1/6/06).
23 • Allison Ralph - appeared in all 31 games ... scored in Princeton's season-opening tie with Boston College (10/29/05) ... scored a shorthanded goal against Harvard (2/10/06).
25 • Vicki Chen - appeared in eight games ... made collegiate debut against Clarkson (11/18/05).
27 • Sarah Butsch - appeared in all 31 games ... had a goal and assist at Harvard (11/5/05) ... notched the game winner against Wayne State (12/9/05) ... scored back-to-back game winners at Colgate (1/13/06) and Cornell (1/14/06) ... had a goal and assist at Union (2/17/06) ... scored the game winner in the second quarterfinal game against Colgate (3/4/06)..
30 • Rebecca Allen - appeared in one game ... made 16 saves in the third period of a win against Dartmouth (2/11/06).
35 • Roxanne Gaudiel - appeared in 29 games ... went 19-5-4 ... shut out Quinnipiac (1/31/06), Clarkson (2/4/06), Yale (2/25/06) and Colgate (3/3/06) ... made a season-high 39 saves against Boston College (10/29/05) ... made 36 saves in win against Mercyhurst (11/26/05).