Princeton University Athletics
Players Mentioned
Field Hockey Looks to Clinch Ivy Title Friday on Senior Night
October 29, 2009 | Field Hockey
GAMETIME: Friday, Oct. 30 at 6 p.m.
RECORDS: Princeton (12-2, 5-0 Ivy); Cornell (9-4, 3-2 Ivy)
RANKINGS: Princeton (Poll: 4, RPI: 5); Cornell (Poll: NR, RPI: 36)
SERIES RECORD: Princeton leads 23-5-3, is 12-2-1 at home
LAST MEETING: Princeton won 4-0 on Nov. 1, 2008 at Cornell
STREAK: Princeton won the last meeting
MULTIMEDIA: Livestats | Live Video
PRINCETON (10/29/09) - The fourth-ranked Princeton field hockey team continues looks to clinch a share of its fifth-consecutive Ivy league title and its 14th in the last 15 years when it hosts Cornell on Friday night at Class of '52 Stadium at 6 p.m.
Princeton is 5-0 in the Ivy League and has a one-game lead on second-place Yale. A Princeton win would assure the Tigers of a share of the Ivy League title and the automatic NCAA tournament berth that comes along with it since the Tigers won their head-to-head meeting with Yale.
The Tigers improved 12-2 overall and 5-0 in the league with last Saturday's 9-0 win at Harvard. It was Princeton's third straight win overall and 15th in a row against Ivy League opponents. Senior Kaitlin Donovan led the offensive charge with three goals scored and earned Ivy League Player of the Week honors for her performance. The win was Princeton's fourth shutout of the season and its nine goals were a season high and the most since the Tigers scored 11 in a win last season at Lehigh.
A total of five Tigers scored goals in the game and three others added assists. Sophomore Katie Reinprecht scored two goals and added an assist for her second straight five-point performance and classmate Alyssa Pyros collected her first two goals of the season in the win. Senior Christina Bortz had a goal and an assist and classmate Kaitlyn Perrelle and had two assists.
Princeton remained ranked fourth in this week's NFHCA Coaches Poll. The top four positions in the poll were unchanged as Maryland, North Carolina, Virginia and Princeton continue to hold down those spots. Syracuse currently holds down the fifth spot in the poll. Princeton is currently ranked fifth in the RPI.
Princeton will recognize the five members of its senior class prior to Friday night's game with Cornell. The group of Christina Bortz, Lauren Capps, Kaitlin Donovan, Kaitlyn Perrelle and Cynthia Wray have been a part of three straight Ivy League titles and two trips the NCAA Quarterfinals. The group of five players has an overall record of 54-17 and is 25-1 in Ivy League games.
Princeton and Cornell meet for the 32nd time on Friday night in a series Princeton leads 23-5-3. The Tigers are 12-2-1 in the series at home and but fell to Cornell in the last game played between the two in Princeton during the 2007 season. Princeton defeated Cornell 4-0 a season ago in Ithaca as four members of Princeton's Class of 2009 scored goals and current sophomore Kathleen Sharkey provided two assists. Junior goalkeeper Jennifer King made nine saves in the shutout.
Cornell is 9-4 overall and 3-2 in the Ivy League. The Big Red started the season with seven-straight wins, but enter the weekend with losses in four of their last six games. Cornell has league wins over Penn, Columbia and Dartmouth. The Big Red dropped its last game prior to this weekend, a 1-0 overtime loss to Bucknell at home.
Princeton was originally scheduled to play Virginia Commonwealth on Sunday afternoon, but the game has been canceled. The game may be played at a later date or the Tigers may schedule a different opponent. More details will be posted when they become available.