Princeton University Athletics
Players Mentioned
Princeton Returns Home To Host Dartmouth
April 23, 2009 | Men's Lacrosse
A year ago, the Princeton men's lacrosse team beat Cornell and entered the last two games of the regular season needing only to win once to get at least a share of the Ivy League championship and solidify its NCAA tournament position if the automatic bid didn't work out.
Instead, Princeton lost both games, beginning with an 11-9 loss at Dartmouth 52 weeks ago and followed by a 6-5 loss at Brown a week later that left the Tigers 7-6 and out of the postseason.
This year? Well, Princeton lost at Cornell a week ago and now returns home to play Dartmouth and Brown to end the regular season. Unlike last year, Princeton is 10-2 overall, ranked in the Top 5 in both polls and the holder of a strong resume of quality wins.
* * *
Princeton cannot earn the Ivy League's automatic bid to the NCAA tournament, which will go either to Cornell or Brown. The Big Red clinched at least a tie for the Ivy League title a week ago with the win over Princeton, and a win over Brown this week in Providence would give Cornell the outright title and automatic bid.
Should Brown defeat Cornell and then Princeton next weekend, then Brown and Cornell would finish as co-champs and Brown would earn the automatic bid to the tournament. Princeton's only chance at a co-championship would be to have Brown defeat Cornell and Princeton defeat Dartmouth and Brown; Princeton and Cornell would then finish as co-champs, and Cornell would get the automatic bid. If Dartmouth beats Princeton, then Princeton cannot earn a share of the Ivy title, regardless of anything else.
Dartmouth, Harvard, Yale and Penn have been mathematically eliminated from the league race.
* * *
Were this next year, the automatic bid to the NCAA tournament wouldn't be decided in the regular season.
Had the Ivy League tournament started this year, then Princeton, Brown and Cornell would all have clinched bids and the other four schools would all still be in contention for the fourth spot. The tournament would have been held either in Providence or Ithaca.
* * *
Dartmouth led Princeton 6-1 with 11:28 remaining in the first half of last year's game in Hanover. It was 8-4 at halftime and 9-6 at the end of third, but Princeton tied it in the first 2:28 of the fourth quarter.
Dartmouth regained the lead on Phillip Killian's goal with 10:31 to play and then sealed it on Jimmy Mullen's goal with 1:42 left.
Princeton lost despite outshooting Dartmouth 42-23 for the game and 22-6 in the second half.
The key man for Dartmouth was goalie Michael Novosel, who has started against Princeton the last two years and has a .600 save percentage against the Tigers. For the rest of his career, Novosel has a .472 save percentage.
Freshman Fergus Campbell has started the last eight games for Dartmouth, including a
13-save effort last week against Virginia in a game that the Big Green led 6-5 in the fourth quarter before the Cavs, now ranked No. 1, scored the final eight goals of the day.
* * *
Princeton leads the all-time series against Dartmouth 48-8 as the teams met for the first time in 1953 and have since played every year. Princeton is 27-1 all-time against Dartmouth in Princeton and has never lost consecutive games to the Big Green.
Princeton lost to Dartmouth in 1956, in 1964, on four consecutive trips to Hanover from 1982-88, in Princeton for the only time in 2003 and last year. Princeton is 7-0 the year after losing to Dartmouth with an average score of 10-7 in those seven games.
* * *
Princeton has won 14 straight games at Class of 1952 Stadium, dating to a 4-3 loss to Cornell in 2006. Princeton has gone 3-1 at Princeton Stadium since that Cornell loss, so its current home winning streak is actually nine.
The 2009 Tigers are 4-0 and have outscored their opponents by a combined 57-32 at the Class of 1952 Stadium.
* * *
Princeton won five of 19 face-offs against Cornell and now ranks 38th in Division I in face-off winning percentage (469).
Princeton does rank ahead of its final two regular-season opponents, Dartmouth (.457/42nd) and Brown (.415/51st).
* * *
Princeton has never led (or for that matter been tied after falling behind 1-0) at any point of its two losses, March 14 at Hofstra and April 18 at Cornell.
Hofstra led 1-0 six minutes in and 2-0 two minutes after that, and Princeton had to come-from-behind the entire game. Cornell led 3-0 after five minutes, and Princeton never got even after that as well.
On the other hand, Princeton has trailed at the half in three of its 10 wins and been tied at the half in two others.
Only four times has Princeton played a game in which it has never trailed: Johns Hopkins, Syracuse, Rutgers and Manhattan. The only one of those games in which Princeton took a 1-0 lead and was never tied at any point after that was the one against Johns Hopkins.
* * *
Mark Kovler had three goals against Cornell, giving him 25 for the year, the highest single-season total by a Princeton midfielder since Josh Sims had 36 in 2000.
Kovler also is currently tied with Jon Hess '98 for 15th place at Princeton with 82 career goals. He needs one more to tie David Heubeck for 15th and 12 more to move into a four-way tie for 11th.
Only two Princeton players have ever scored more of career goals as a midfielder: Sims, who had 103, and Lorne Smith '99, who had 94.
Kovler did not play against Dartmouth a year ago after a broken ankle two weeks earlier caused him to miss the last four games of the 2008 season.
Kovler is one of two Princeton players to be among the 21 nominees for the Tewaaraton Trophy. Jack McBride is the other.
* * *
Rich Sgalardi is the only Princeton player with at least one point in every game this season. Jack McBride has at least one goal in every game he's played this year, but he missed one game (vs. Manhattan).
Sgalardi has 15 goals and 18 assists in 12 games this year; he had seven goals and 11 assists for his first three years combined.
McBride has a team-best 28 goals this season. He needs three more to become the third sophomore this decade (B.J. Prager, Sean Hartofilis, Jason Doneger) to reach 50 goals by the end of his sophomore year.
* * *
Tommy Davis needs one goal to become the seventh player in program history with at least 75 career goals and 50 career assists.
The others: Jon Hess '98, David Heubeck '80, Wick Sollers '77, David Tickner 77, Gerald Ronon '83 and Peter Trombino '07.
Davis (124 career points) and Kovler (103 career points) give Princeton two players in the Class of 2009 with at least 100 career points.
The only three other times Princeton had multiple players in the same class reach at least 100 career points were: Jesse Hubbard, Jon Hess and Chris Massey of the Class of 1998; Kevin Lowe and Taylor Simmers of the Class of 1994; Wick Sollers and David Tickner of the Class of 1977.
* * *
Chad Wiedmaier leads Princeton with 18 caused turnovers, of which two came last week against Cornell. Wiedmaier had his first matchup against Big Red freshman attackman Rob Pannell, who came into the game with 14 goals and 30 assists to rank near the top of Division I in scoring.
Pannell had Cornell's first goal and then did not score again. Pannell did have two assists, both of which came on extra-man opportunities. He also helped Cornell dominate posssession time in the fourth quarter.
The first matchup between the two? Call it a draw. With three more years to go, plus any possible Ivy tournament or NCAA tournament games added in, this could become one of the greatest individual subplots Princeton lacrosse has known.
* * *
Freshman John Cunningham returned to the lineup against Cornell after missing six games due to a broken jaw suffered in practice on March 17. Cunningham split the longstick midfield position with Charlie Kolkin.
Long Ellis, who played in Cunningham's spot while the freshman was injured, played with a longstick and shortstick against Harvard and played with a shortstick against Cornell.
Princeton vs. Dartmouth
The site Class of 1952 Stadium ? Princeton, N.J.
The date Saturday, April 25, 2009 ? noon
Radio WPRB FM 103.3; www.goprincetontigers.com
The rankings Princeton: No. 4 (USILA)/No. 5 (Inside Lacrosse); Dartmouth: unranked
The records Princeton: 10-2 (3-1 Ivy League); Dartmouth: 4-9 (1-3 Ivy League)
The coaches Princeton: Bill Tierney (25th season overall, 269-92); Dartmouth: Bill Wilson (sixth season overall, 40-42)
The series Princeton leads 48-8
Last meeting Dartmouth defeated Princeton 11-9 ? April 26, 2008
What Can You Say About ...
Nikhil Ashra #23
? played 49:32 against Manhattan, making four saves while allowing five goals
? played second half against Canisius, allowing three goals and making five saves
? played second half against Hofstra
? played 6:19 last year and 35:33 as a freshman as Alex Hewit's backup
Paul Barnes #31
? Ivy League Co-Player of the Week after winning 20 of 25 face-offs (80%) against UMBC and Manhattan
? won 13 of 15 face-offs against UMBC, including the first 11
? won face-off with 57 seconds remaining after UMBC had scored to make it 6-5
? scored two goals against Johns Hopkins after face-off wins
? became first Princeton face-off man to score a goal in a game since Drew Casino in 2004
? also scored a goal against Yale
? won 10 of 20 face-offs against Hopkins
? won 15 of 29 face-offs against Albany
? won 13 of 22 face-offs against Canisius
? won 7 of 10 face-offs against Manhattan
Alex Capretta #1
? attackman currently playing on second midfield
? scored first career goal in win over Rutgers
John Cunningham #3
? returned against Cornell after missing six games due to broken jaw suffered in practice March 17
? scored goal against Johns Hopkins
? goal against Hopkins was assisted by Chad Wiedmaier and became first longstick-to-longstick goal since Bill Tierney has been Princeton head coach
? played against Canisius as No. 1 longstick midfield in place of Charlie Kolkin, who was out with injury
? has six caused turnovers
? had four caused turnovers and three ground balls against
Canisius
Jimmy Davis #5
? played in every game as third shortstick defensive midfielder
? played most of Harvard game after injury to Brendan Reilly
? had first career assist against Harvard
? caused two turnovers against Hofstra
? missed most of first two years due to injury
Tommy Davis #7
? has 124 career points, 19th all-time at Princeton
? needs three to move into three-way tie for 17th with Bill Chaires '75 and Charles Stillwell '85
? needs one goal to become seventh player in school history with at least 75 career goals and 50 career assists
? Ivy League Player of the Week after a six-goal, two-assist week in wins against Penn and Harvard
? had two goals and two assists against Harvard
? scored four goals, including game-winner in overtime, on four shots against Penn
? had career-high five goals and tied career high with seven points gainst Manhattan
? had two goals and two assists against Rutgers
? had four assists against Albany
? had three goals against Canisius
? had two goals against Yale
? had two assists against Hopkins
? had a goal and assist against Syracuse
? led team in goals and assists last year, becoming first player since Justin Tortolani in 1990 to lead the team in goals and assists in same season (Peter Trombino led the team in goals and tied for team lead in assists in 2006)
? has led team in assists each of the last two years
Long Ellis #14
? has played defense, longstick midfield and shortstick defensive midfield
? played longstick midfield and shortstick defensive midfield against Harvard
? four ground balls and two caused turnovers against Syracuse
? had three ground balls and a caused turnover against Yale
? had game-winning goal in one game and assisted on game-winning goal in other game against English national team during team's trip to Spain and Ireland last June
Rob Engelke #22
? has seven goals on 10 shots (.700 shooting percentage)
? tied career high with three goals and set career high with five points against Manhattan
? made first career start in win over Manhattan
? scored goal against Hopkins and Syracuse
? scored two goals against Canisius
? had an assist against Albany
? plays mostly in man-up situations
? tied with Mark Kovler for team lead with four man-up goals
Tyler Fiorito #6
? has started every game
? made 15 saves, including one on a tough shot from 10 yards out with 38 seconds left, in 10-9 win over Harvard
? Inside Lacrosse Division I Player of the Week after his 15-save performance in 12-8 win against Syracuse in Big City Classic
? also earned Ivy Rookie of the Week honors for second time after Syracuse game
? named by Inside Lacrosse fourth best freshman in Division I
? helped hold Syracuse to more than six goals below average for season (14.1 prior to game); Syracuse had been ranked No. 1 in scoring offense in Division I
? also Ivy League Rookie of the Week after wins over UMBC and Manhattan
? made 10 saves while allowing five goals against UMBC
? made 13 saves while allowing 10 goals against Albany
? played entire game against Hopkins, making 11 saves for first career double-figure save total
? made five second quarter saves against Hopkins as Princeton built a 9-1 lead
? started and played first half against Canisius, making four saves and allowing three goals
? allowed six goals and made nine saves against Rutgers
? made 10 saves while allowing seven goals while playing all 60 minutes against Yale, including nine saves and three goals allowed in final three quarters
? started and played first eight minutes against Manhattan, allowing one goal and making two saves
? member of United States U19 team that won World Championship last summer in Vancouver
Jeremy Hirsch #37
? started 25 straight games on defense
? has seven caused turnovers
? started every game last two seasons on defense
? played in 13 of 14 games as freshman as fourth defenseman
Charlie Kolkin #43
? No. 1 longstick midfielder
? second on the team with 11 caused turnovers
? 2009 preseason All-America
? returned to lineup after missing game against Canisius with a minor injury; it was first game missed in his career
? named Nike/Inside Lacrosse Division I Player of the Week after Princeton's win over Cornell last year
Mark Kovler #17
? mid-season second-team All-America by Inside Lacrosse
? one of 21 Tewaaraton Trophy nominees
? 15th all-time at Princeton with 82 career goals; next up is Dave Huebeck '80 with 83 and then three players with 94
? became 22nd player in program history to reach 100 mark for career with two goals and two assists against Harvard
? third all-time in goals at Princeton by a midfielder, behind Josh Sims '00 (103) and Lorne Smith '99 (94)
? had three goals against Cornell
? had three goals against Syracuse in Big City Classic
? tied career high of four goals in consecutive games against Rutgers and Albany
? in all has four four-goal games in career (vs. Syracuse sophomore year and Virginia a year ago)
? four goals against Rutgers all came in the second half, on four shots
? had two goals against Yale
? has 11 goals in last four games after getting shut out at Hofstra
? had two goals and an assist against UMBC
? had two goals against Hopkins
? had a goal against Canisius and a goal and assist against Manhattan
? suffered broken ankle in practice last April 10 and missed
remainder of season
? three-time All-America
? preseason third-team All-America by Inside Lacrosse
Josh Lesko #19
? has gone from starting 12 games a year ago at midfield to being first shortstick defensive middie unit with Brendan Reilly
? has more goals this year (four) as a defensive middie than a year ago (two) as an offensive middie
? second on team with 24 ground balls
? had two goals, seven ground balls and two caused turnovers against Albany
? had a goal against Cornell
? had a goal and assist against Hofstra
? scored a goal against Johns Hopkins
? had an assist against Manhattan
Scott MacKenzie #2
? has a point in all but one game (Harvard)
? has 11 goals in 10 games this season after having four his first two seasons combined
? had a goal and two assists against Syracuse and Penn
? had career-high three goals and four points vs. Manhattan
? had two goals and an assist against Yale
? had Princeton's first goal against Hopkins, Hofstra and Yale
? had a goal and two assists against Rutgers
? had two assists against Albany and an assist against UMBC
? had a goal and assist against Canisius
Chris McBride #15
? had three goals and an assist against Harvard
? had an assist against Syracuse after being shut out against Yale, ending nine-game scoring streak
? had career-high four goals against Albany
? had two goals against UMBC
? started and ended Princeton's 5-0 third-quarter run against UMBC
? had a goal against Hopkins and Hofstra
? scored two goals against Canisius
? had a goal and assist against Manhattan and an assist against Rutgers
? had two goals a year ago
? moved from midfield to starting on attack alongside cousin Jack McBride
Jack McBride #14
? one of 21 Tewaaraton Trophy nominees
? leads team with 28 goals and tied for team lead with 34 points despite missing game against Manhattan
? has at least one goal in all 11 games he's played
? needs three goals to join B.J. Prager, Sean Hartofilis and Jason Doneger as Princeton players this decade to reach 50 goals by end of sophomore year
? has been Princeton's leading goal-scorer six times
? had two goals against Harvard, including game-winner with 1:58 to play
? had two goals and game-winning assist in overtime against Penn
? had three goals against Syracuse
? tied career high with six goals against Albany
? scored four goals against Hopkins while matched against All-America defenseman Michael Evans
? led Princeton with four goals and five points against Canisius
? all four goals against Canisius came after halftime, as Princeton erased 3-2 deficit
? had one goal against UMBC after spending two nights prior in infirmary with stomach flu; did not play against Manhattan
? had two goals and an assist against Hofstra and Yale
? had a goal and assist against Rutgers
? 2008 Ivy League Rookie of the Year
? member of United States U19 team that won World Championship last summer in Vancouver
Jonathan Meyers #28
? has faced off and played on defense and on wings on face-offs
? recruited for football by schools such as Florida, Michigan and Oklahoma; plays football and lacrosse at Princeton
Tyler Moni #27
? playing on second midfield group
? scored first career goal in win over Manhattan
? had an assist against Albany
? had three goals during Princeton's European trip for highest goal total by any current player
Chris Peyser #38
? named co-Division I Defenseman of the Week by Christian Swezey of Inside Lacrosse along with teammate Chad Wiedmaier after Hopkins game
? preseason third-team All-America
? has started 39 straight games on defense
? second on team with 12 caused turnovers
? team tri-captain
Brendan Reilly #29
? team tri-captain
? preseason honorable mention All-America
? one of top two shortstick D-middies since freshman year
? suffered ankle injury against Harvard but did play against Cornell
? helped hold Kyle Wimer of UMBC, who had been reigning DI Player of the Week and team's leading scorer, to one goal
? had a goal against Syracuse in man-down situation
? had an assist against Canisius
? a Woodrow Wilson Schoool Scholar in the Nation's Service
? completed Marine Corps Office Candidate School over summer and will be commissioned a 2nd Lt. after graduation
? also an All-Collegiate Sprint Football League selection in varsity sport for players 174 pounds or less
Greg Seaman #42
? team tri-captain
? scored a goal against Hopkins, Rutgers and Cornell
? son of Towson coach Tony Seaman
Rich Sgalardi #18
? only player with at least one point in every game
? has 33 points in 11 games after having 18 points his first three years combined
? had a goal against Harvard to end a streak of four straight games with at least four points
? tied career high with five points against Penn (2G, 3A)
? had two goals and two assists against Syracuse
? named to Inside Lacrosse Team of the Week after Syracuse game
? Ivy League Player of the Week after having five goals and four assists in wins over Rutgers and Yale
? had career high five points against Yale (2G, 3A), eclipsing career-high for points set four days earlier against Rutgers
? had career-high three goals and four points against Rutgers
? had two goals and an assist against Albany
? had a goal and assist against UMBC
? had a goal and two assists against Canisius
? had two assists against Johns Hopkins and Manhattan
Chad Wiedmaier #9
? ranked as No. 1 freshman in Division I by Inside Lacrosse and to IL's Team of the Week after Syracuse game
? ranked as fourth-best defenseman by Inside Lacrosse; only freshman of 28 players named as top seven at their position
? leads team with 18 caused turnovers
? had caused eight turnovers in last three games
? stripped Harvard's Dean Gibbons in front of goal with five seconds remaining to preserve Princeton win
? Ivy League Rookie of the Week after holding Hopkins' Steven Boyle to one goal and matching Boyle's point total with an assist of his own
? assist came on goal by fellow freshman longstick John Cunningham for the first longstick-to-longstick goal since Bill Tierney has been head coach
? named co-Division I Defenseman of the Week by Christian Swezey of Inside Lacrosse along with teammate Chris Peyser after Hopkins game
? caused three turnovers against Albany