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No. 6 Princeton Hosts No. 5 Cornell In Ivy Showdown
April 20, 2006 | Men's Lacrosse
April 20, 2006
A year ago, Princeton traveled to Ithaca to face Cornell in the 2005 showdown for the Ivy League men's lacrosse championship. The result? No contest. The Big Red scored four times in the first five minutes and led 10-2 at halftime en route to a 17-4 win that ended Princeton's 10-year reign as Ivy champion.
The rematch comes up this weekend, when sixth-ranked Princeton hosts fifth-ranked Cornell (noon, Saturday, Class of 1952 Stadium) in a game that will go a long way in determining the 2006 Ivy champion.
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Princeton vs. Cornell
The site Class of 1952 Stadium • Princeton, N.J.
The date Saturday, April 22, 2006 • 12:00 p.m.
The records Princeton: 7-3 (3-0 Ivy League); Cornell: 8-2 (3-1 Ivy League)
The rankings Princeton: No. 6 USILA/No. 7 Inside Lacrosse; Cornell: No. 5 USILA/No. 6 Inside Lacrosse
The coaches Princeton: Bill Tierney (22nd season overall, 238-78); Cornell: Jeff Tambroni (sixth season, 55-24)
The series Princeton leads 35-28-2
Last year Cornell defeated Princeton 17-4 • April 23, 2005
In case you forgot Cornell defeated Princeton 17-4 a year ago in Ithaca. The Big Red scored four times in the first five minutes of the game and led 10-2 at halftime.
More forgot Cornell outshot Princeton 62-21 in last year's 17-4 win in Ithaca.
Another forgot Cornell's win over Princeton a year ago ended the Tigers' 10-year run as Ivy League champion and 15-year streak of NCAA tournament appearances. Last forgot Cornell defeated Princeton 12-11 in overtime in 2004 in the last meeting between the teams at Class of 1952 Stadium. Princeton scored three times in the final two minutes to force the OT.
History lesson Princeton's 17-4 loss to Cornell a year ago was its worst Ivy League loss since a 23-5 loss to the Big Red in 1985, three years before Bill Tierney became Tiger head coach.
More history Cornell has defeated Princeton each of the last two years. The last time Princeton lost more than two straight times to an Ivy team was against Yale, who defeated Princeton five straight times from 1987-90 (including one NCAA tournament game).
Polling place Cornell is ranked fifth in this week's USILA coaches' poll and sixth in this week's Inside Lacrosse media poll. Princeton is ranked sixth in this week's USILA poll and seventh is this week's Inside Lacrosse poll.
Spread it around Princeton had nine different players score one goal each in its 9-7 win over Harvard last Saturday.
More spread it around Princeton does not have a player ranked in the top 11 in the Ivy League in scoring.
On the other hand Cornell has three players ranked in the top six in the Ivy League in scoring: David Mitchell (first), Derek Haswell (second), Joe Boulukos (sixth).
Double play Cornell ranks second in Division I in scoring offense and scoring defense.
Four score Princeton ranks fourth in Division I in scoring defense. Net results Princeton's Alex Hewit ranks first in Division I in save percentage (.646); Cornell's Matt McMonagle ranks fifth (.626).
More net Cornell's Matt McMonagle ranks second in Division I in goals-against average (5.86); Princeton's Alex Hewit ranks third (6.06).
Highly defensive No team has scored more than nine goals against Princeton this season, and only one (Hofstra) has scored more than seven.
More defensive Cornell will be the fourth team in the top six in scoring offense and fifth team in the Top 10 that Princeton will face. Virginia (No. 1), Hofstra (No. 3) and Syracuse (No. 6) and Penn (No. 10 average 49.77 goals per game between them; Princeton held them to a combined 30 goals. A league of their own The Ivy League has awarded a champion in men's lacrosse for the last 50 seasons; Princeton and Cornell have combined to win 42 championships.
In case you were wondering A Princeton win over Cornell along with Princeton losses to Dartmouth and Brown, a Cornell win over Brown and Yale losses to Harvard and Dartmouth would create a four-way tie for the league championship with Princeton, Cornell, Penn and the winner of the Dartmouth-Harvard game. Princeton would get the automatic bid to the NCAA tournament by all head-to-head tiebreakers.
More wondering There are still 12 possible outcomes of the Ivy League men's lacrosse race, ranging from an outright championship for either Princeton or Cornell to a four-way tie for the championship. It is mathematically impossible for neither Princeton nor Cornell to have at least a share of the league title.
I'm honored Dan Cocoziello, who helped Princeton hold Pen and Harvard to seven goals each and scored a key goal against the Crimson, was named Ivy League Player of the Week last week.
More honored Dan Cocoziello is the second Princeton player to be named Ivy League Player of the Week this season; both honorees are defenseman (John Bennett).
Streaking Peter Trombino has scored at least one goal in 21 straight games; it is the fifth longest streak in school history, behind Chris Massey '98 (46 straight), B.J. Prager (31), Jason Doneger '05 (30 straight) and Scott Conklin '95 (28 straight).
Princeton Lacrosse '06 ... By The Numbers
0 Princeton players in the top 11 in the Ivy League in scoring; Cornell has three of the top six
1 automatic bids to the NCAA tournament for the Ivy League; Princeton would clinch the automatic bid with a win over Cornell
2 injured starters for Princeton: M Mike Gaudio is out with a torn ACL; A Tommy Davis is out with a dislocated shoulder
3 consecutive years Cornell will have defeated Princeton should the Big Red win Saturday's game; the last time Princeton lost at least three straight to an Ivy oppoent was against Yale from 1987-90
4 points (2G, 2A) in last six games by defenseman Dan Cocoziello in his last six games; he had no career points prior to that
5 points by Whitney Hayes in his last three games (3G, 2A); he had one point in the four games prior to that
6 consecutive possessions on which Cornell scored to start its 17-4 win over Princeton a year ago
6.65 former Tiger goalie Trevor Tierney's career goals-against average, which ranks first all-time in the NCAA's men's lacrosse record book; current Princeton goalie Alex Hewit has a career goals-against average of 6.06 though he is 600 minutes shy of the 1,400-minute requirement
9 players with at least one goal a week ago against Harvard in a 9-7 win
10 number of consecutive Ivy League championships won by Princeton before finishing second a year ago
11.92 combined goals-against averages of Cornell's Matt McMonagle and Princeton's Alex Hewit; the two rank 2-3 in Division I in goals-against average
13 Cornell's margin of victory against Princeton a year ago (17-4)
20 years prior to last year since Princeton had lost an Ivy League game by as many goals (23-5 to Cornell in 1985)
21 consecutive games with at least one goal by Peter Trombino, who is the fifth player in school history to have a streak that long
42 combined Ivy League championships for Princeton and Cornell in the 50 years of Ivy League men's lacrosse
62 shots by Cornell against Princeton last year
What Can You Say About ... John Bennett • named Ivy League Player of the Week after Princeton's win at Johns Hopkins • forced seven turnovers in one-on-one situations against the Blue Jays • Princeton's top longstick midifleder • has played in every game Alex Berg • has taken 132 of Princeton's 187 face-offs • won 19 of 24 face-offs against Canisius • won 8 of 12 face-offs against Binghamton, who had been in the Top 10 nationally in face-off percentage Mac Bryson • returned after taking the 2004-05 academic year off from school • scored goal against Canisius in first game back • also has goals against Hofstra, Butler and Harvard • had two assists against Binghamton • scored career-high three goals against Navy in 2004 NCAA semifinals Dan Cocoziello • the reigning Ivy League Player of the Week • has started every game of his career on defense • has four points in last six games prior to Syracuse game after not having a point for the first 16 games of his career • had a goal against Butler for first goal by a Tiger longstick in a span of 30 games • had a goal against Harvard • had assists against Binghamton and Yale • became first defenseman to be named Ivy League Rookie of the Year • has started every game of his career Trip Cowin • had first career two-goal game in win over Penn • scored one goal in each of first two games • scored game-winning goal against Hopkins, unassisted, late in the third quarter • had an assist against Virginia • scored goal against Butler Tommy Davis • suffered separated shoulder in game at Syracuse and is out indefinitely • scored three goals in opener, did not score in next three games and then had six goals in next three games • scored three goals against Yale, all in the first half • scored three goals against Canisius to become the first Princeton player since Jesse Hubbard in 1995 to score three goals in first game freshman year • had two goals against Butler and one against Binghamton in first two starts Mike DeSantis • won 7 of 12 face-offs against Harvard • had faced-off 10 times for the season prior to Harvard game, winning six • won 48 of 96 face-offs a year ago Mike Gaudio • scored Princeton's second goal against Johns Hopkins to make it 2-1 early in the second quarter • extended streak of consecutive games with at least one goal to 13 • suffered a torn ACL later in the game against Hopkins and will miss the remainder of the season • honorable mention All-Ivy selection a year ago • scored 16 goals in 2005, most by a sophomore midfielder at Princeton since Josh Sims in 1998 Zach Goldberg • one of top shortstick defensive midfielders • had two assists 19 seconds apart during second quarter of win over Penn; both were on Alex Haynie goals • scored goal in opener against Canisius • also scored against Virginia • had an assist against Binghamton • has four career goals, all in transition Whitney Hayes • has started 26 career games, including seven this year • has three goals and two assists in last three games after having no goals and one assist in four games prior to that • had a goal and assist at Syracuse and at Harvard • scored a goal against Penn • assisted on Peter Trombino's tying goal in the third quarter of win over Hopkins Alex Haynie • returned to starting lineup against Penn in place of injured Tommy Davis; had started first four games of the year • had a goal against Harvard • had two goals and an assist against Penn to tie career high of three points • goals came 19 seconds apart during 5-0 second quarter run • had a goal and assist against Canisius • scored a goal against Virginia • had a goal and assist against Yale • had a goal against Binghamton • had an assist against Butler Alex Hewit • first in Division I with a .646 save percentage and third in goals-against with a 6.06 average • has a career save percentage of .643 and a career goals-against average of 6.06 • made 20 saves against Virginia • held UVa, the highest scoring team in the nation, to seven goals, more than 10 below its average coming into the game • had 15 saves while allowing four goals against Butler • had six saves while allowing one goal in 51 minutes against Binghamton • had 13 saves against Hofstra • made 12 saves against Yale and Penn • made seven saves while allowing four goals at Hopkins as Princeton snapped Blue Jays' 37-game home winning streak • six of seven saves against both Johns Hopkins and Harvard came in the second half • played first 45 minutes against Canisius and allowed three goals Grant Hewit • senior tri-captain shortstick defensive midfielder • older brother of goalie Alex Hewit • had first career point with an assist against Harvard Zachary Jungers • starter on close defense • played longstick midfield for most of first two years, except for starting three games on close defense freshman year when Tim Sullivan was hurt • competed at tryouts for U.S. national team last summer Charlie Kolkin • freshman longstick midfielder • has been No. 2 longstick midfielder • has played in every game Mark Kovler • had at least one point in first six games before going without a point against Yale; only played one shift against Yale due to stomach virus • had a goal and assist against Penn • had five goals in two games against Butler and Binghamton • started his career with back-to-back multiple point games • scored one goal against Virginia while making first career start • had an assist against Syracuse • had a goal against Harvard • scored 47 seconds into first quarter against Hopkins • scored 58 seconds into first quarter against Binghamton • assisted on Peter Trombino's goal to give Tigers 4-3 lead late in the third • had two goals in opener against Canisius Dave Law • started every game two years ago in goal • Ivy League Player of the Week after 15-save performance in win at UVa Josh Lesko • had first career two-goal game at Syracuse • has goals against Canisius, Hopkins, Harvard and Hofstra • had one goal in each of first two games • has played mostly shortstick defensive midfield • goal in win over Hopkins came during 4-0 run as Princeton took control Jim O'Brien • senior tri-captain • had a goal and assist against Harvard • returned from injury that kept him out of Bulter/Binghamton weekend to have goal and assist against Yale • had a goal against Canisius and Hofstra • had an assist against Virginia and Penn Chris Peyser • has played in every game as fourth close defender • started against Butler when Ryan Schoenig faced off and played mostly shortstick • faced-off with longstick four times against Yale Bob Schneider • had a career-high three goals and four points against Penn • had a goal and assist against Yale • scored one goal against Virginia • scored a goal against Binghamton Ryan Schoenig • has played longstick and shortstick defense • won 6 of 9 face-offs as shortstick Butler/Binghamton weekend • also played close defense against Butler and Binghamton Rich Sgalardi • played in four games, starting two • returns to starting lineup for Penn game Tripp Shriner • plays attack almost exclusively on man-up situations • had an assist against Yale • had a goal and assist against Penn • had a goal against Harvard Scott Sowanick • second on team with 24 points (13G, 11A) • moved from midfield to attack for Butler game • has 15 points in last five games after nine points in first five games • had three goals and an assist against Yale • had three goals and an assist against Penn • had career high five points (3-2) in win over Binghamton • had a goal and two assists against Butler • had a goal and assist against Hofstra • had 13-game point-scoring streak snapped against Hopkins • had two goals and two assists in opener against Canisius • tied Peter Trombino for team scoring lead a year ago with 32 points • has started every game of career Derek Sudan • veteran shortstick defensive midfielder • has played in every game Peter Trombino • has at least one goal in 21 straight games, the fifth-longest streak in school history behind Chris Massey (46), B.J. Prager (31), Jason Doneger (30) and Scott Conklin (28) • had two goals and three assists against Penn • tied career-high with six points against Yale (3G, 3A) • leads team in assists and is tied for lead in ground balls and goals • had a goal and two assists against Virginia • had two goals and an assist during game-winning 4-0 run against Hopkins • scored two goals 1:40 apart late in third quarter against Hopkins, first tying game at 3-3 and then putting Princeton ahead for good • had a goal and assist against Hofstra • has at least one point in every game of career; scored goal with 18 seconds remaining against Syracuse to prolong streak • only player in school history with at least 20 goals and at least 10 assists as both a freshman and sophomore • has reached double figures in goals and assists as freshman, sophomore and junior • only active player in Division I lacrosse who has scored an overtime goal in an NCAA tournament game, which he did against Maryland in 2004 quarterfinals