Princeton University Athletics
Players Mentioned
Columbia, #5 UConn Up Next for Field Hockey
October 01, 2009 | Field Hockey
GAMETIME: Friday, Oct. 2 at 6 p.m.
2009 RECORDS: Princeton (7-1, 2-0 Ivy); Columbia (3-4, 1-1 Ivy)
RANKINGS: Princeton (Poll: 7, RPI: 8); Columbia (Poll NR: RPI: 40)
SERIES RECORD: Princeton leads 12-0, is 6-0 at home
LAST MEETING: Princeton won 3-2 on Oct. 3, 2008 in New York
STREAK: Princeton has won the last 12 meetings
MULTIMEDIA: Livestats | Live Video
No. 5 Connecticut at No. 7 Princeton
GAMETIME: Sunday, Oct. 4 at 1 p.m.
2009 RECORDS: Princeton (7-1, 2-0 Ivy); Connecticut (10-0, 2-0 Big East)
RANKINGS: Princeton (Poll: 7, RPI: 8); Connecticut (Poll 5: RPI: 13)
SERIES RECORD: Connecticut leads 9-6, is 3-5 at Princeton
LAST MEETING: Connecticut won 3-2 in double-overtime on Sept. 14, 2008 in Storrs
STREAK: Connecticut won the last meeting
MULTIMEDIA: Livestats | Live Video
PRINCETON (10/1/09) - The seventh-ranked Princeton field hockey team hits the midpoint of its regular season this weekend as it hosts Columbia Friday night in Ivy League action and fifth-ranked Connecticut on Sunday in a match up of teams ranked in the Top 10.
Princeton is 7-1 overall and 2-0 in the Ivy League and won both of its games last week, blanking Penn State 3-0 last Wednesday night and besting Yale 5-2 on Saturday. The Tigers averaged four goals for the weekend and are averaging 4.25 goals per game this season, which ranks sixth nationally.
Goals from freshman Michelle Cesan, sophomore Kathleen Sharkey and senior Kaitlyn Perrelle provided the offense in the win over Penn State with junior goalkeeper Jennifer King stopping all five shots she faced for the shutout. Princeton also won by a three-goal margin again on Saturday against Yale as sophomore Katie Reinprecht led the charge with three goals and an assist. Sharkey and sophomore Rachel Neufeld also scored in the win, as Princeton remained one of two unbeaten teams in the Ivy League this season.
Sharkey remains atop the team's scoring list with nine goals, seven assists and 25 points. With her seven-point game on Saturday, Reinprecht now has seven goals and five assists for 19 points this season. Nine Tigers have scored goals this season and 11 have points
Princeton and Cornell are tied atop the league standings at 2-0. Princeton has defeated Dartmouth and Yale, while Cornell has overtime wins over Penn and Columbia. Yale, Dartmouth, Columbia and Penn are 1-1, while Harvard and Brown are each 0-2. All eight Ivy teams have league games this weekend. Princeton and Columbia meet on Friday night, while Brown visits Harvard, Cornell visits Yale and Penn hosts Dartmouth on Saturday.
Princeton's win over Yale ran its Ivy League winning streak to 12 games. Princeton's two closest wins during that streak were a one-goal win at Harvard in 2007 and one-goal win in last season's meeting with Columbia.
Princeton is 12-0 all-time against the Lions and is 6-0 in the series at home. Last year Princeton defeated Columbia 3-2 in New York City. Columbia opened the scoring and closed it, but three-straight Princeton goals in between gave the Tigers the win. Then senior Kraftin Schreyer scored twice and current senior Kaitlin Donovan scored the Tigers' third goal. The Tigers outshot Columbia 22-6 and tripled the Lions in corners 15-5 on that day.
Columbia is 3-4 overall and 1-1 in the Ivy League this season. The Lions opened the season with consecutive losses, then won three-straight, but enter Friday's game having lost their last two games. Columbia has wins over Quinnipiac, Brown and Fairfield. Princeton and Columbia share two common opponents in Richmond and Syracuse. Princeton defeated both, while both blanked Columbia. Columbia is currently averaging two goals per game and is led offensively by Christine Buszczak's three goals and seven points.
Princeton continues the weekend on Sunday against fifth-ranked Connecticut. The Huskies are one of six undefeated teams in the nation at 10-0 overall and 2-0 in the Big East. UConn plays at Georgetown on Friday night prior to Sunday's game in Princeton. Connecticut represents the third ranked team Princeton will play this season as the Tigers are 2-0 in those games with wins over No. 18 Ohio State and No. 3 Syracuse.
Princeton trails its all-time series with Connecticut 9-6 with the teams each winning at home in the last two years. Princeton claimed a 2-1 win in 2007 at home, while UConn won 3-2 in double-overtime last season. Twice in last season's game, Princeton had leads but UConn came back to tie and win it 3-2. Senior Christina Bortz opened the Princeton scoring and Reinprecht gave Princeton a second-half lead, but came back to win despite five Tiger shots and three corners in overtime.
Connecticut has held its opponents to a goal or less in eight of its 10 games this season and has wins over ranked opponents Penn State, Michigan, Drexel and Louisville. The teams have two opponents in common this season. Both defeated Penn State, while UConn topped Providence and Princeton fell to the Friars.