Princeton University Athletics
Players Mentioned
Princeton Takes On Hopkins At Konica Minolta Face-Off Classic
March 04, 2010 | Men's Lacrosse
With attendance, especially for Hopkins, spiraling upward, Princeton took a huge gamble in agreeing to move the series off campus for a trial two-year period of an event called the Face-Off Classic.
At the time, it was a risk, to move one of the best non-league games off campus into an NFL Stadium in late February/early March. Now, as Princeton and Hopkins prepare to play in the fourth Konica Minolta Face-Off Classic, the event has become an overwhelming success and a game that Princeton fans, coaches and players have circled on their calendars from the time the schedule is announced.
The first three Face-Off Classics have drawn crowds of 20,180 the first year (on what was by far the best weather day of the three), 19,165 in Year 2 and 17,119 last year. That's an average of 18,821.
As for the games themselves, the three-game total goal score stands at Princeton 29, Johns Hopkins 29, though the Blue Jays have a 2-1 lead.
The first game went two overtimes before Paul Rabil scored for a 7-6 JHU win, and the Blue Jays won 14-9 in 2008 in a game that they led 5-0 at the end of the first quarter, 8-0 before Princeton scored, 10-1 at the half and 11-1 early in the third quarter.
Princeton returned the favor last year with a 14-8 win. Princeton lead 6-1 after the first quarter and 9-1 midway through the second quarter.
* * *
Princeton played its first game under new head coach Chris Bates last Saturday against Hofstra and won 17-14.
Princeton scored 17 goals in the game despite having a scoreless stretch of 16:11 spanning the first and second quarters. The 17 goals also came on 39 shots, an average of one goal every 2.3 shots; a year ago, Princeton scored one goal every 3.5 shots.
Princeton scored 23 goals total (7.7) in its first three games against a Seth Tierney-coached Hofstra team, including a 9-7 loss a year ago.
* * *
Princeton's game against Hopkins is the first of four games in 11 days for the Tigers. Of those four games, three are against teams ranked in the Top 20 and two are against teams in the Top 5.
Princeton takes on No. 5 Hopkins and then is at unranked Manhattan Tuesday. That game is followed by a March 13 home game against No. 19 UMBC and then a March 16 game at No. 3 North Carolina.
* * *
Johns Hopkins leads the all-time series against Princeton 54-25.
Princeton and Johns Hopkins first met on May 17, 1890, in a 3-2 Tiger win. Princeton lost to Lehigh one week later and then suspended the sport due to "concerns of losing to schools that could not field proper football teams." Princeton played one game in 1891 and one in game in 1893 and then did not play against until 1921.
Princeton has played Johns Hopkins at least once every year since 1937, except for the World War II-shortened season of 1944.
Princeton is 3-0 against Hopkins in the NCAA tournament.
* * *
* * *
The Princeton men's lacrosse Class of 2010 will be the first since the Class of 1934 to play their entire careers and never play a game at Johns Hopkins, unless Princeton were to play a first-round NCAA tournament game at Homewood Field in May.
* * *
Jack McBride has scored five goals in two games against Hopkins, including four goals a year ago.
Of the 14 goals Princeton scored against JHU last year, 10 of them (71.4%) of them were scored by players who are still on the team: McBride 4, Paul Barnes 2, Chris McBride 1, Rob Engelke 1, Scott MacKenzie 1, John Cunningham 1.
By contrast, for the entire 2009 season, 48% of the goals that Princeton scored were by players who returned for this season. Of the 176 goals scored in 2009, 91 were by players who graduated: Mark Kovler 34, Tommy Davis 27, Rich Sgalardi 18, Josh Lesko 6, Greg Seaman 5, Brendan Reilly 1.
* * *
John Cunningham's goal against Johns Hopkins last year was assisted by Chad Wiedmaier and was the time in Bill Tierney's 22 years as head coach that Princeton scored a goal by a longstick on an assist by a longstick.
Since then, Princeton has played 15 games, and sophomores Cunningham and Wiedmaier have played together for only eight of them. And, as the 2010 season kicks into high gear, it looks like it'll be awhile before the two are on the field together again.
Cunningham broke his jaw last March 17 and missed six games in midseason. He returned for the regular-season game against Cornell and played in the final five games of the year, but he never completely caught up from being hurt.
Wiedmaier started every game a year ago and was a second-team All-America. This year, he was a preseason first-team All-America. Unfortunately for Wiedmaier, he had a knee injury that was more serious than originally thought in the fall, and the subsequent surgery has him out until midseason.
* * *
Princeton scored three goals in the first 3:07 against Hofstra. The Tigers also scored three goals in a 1:55 stretch of the second quarter, two goals in a seven-second stretch of the second quarter, three goals in a 6:09 span of the third quarter, two goals in a 1:25 span of the fourth quarter and two goals in a 1:46 span of the fourth quarter.
On the other hand, Princeton allowed four goals to Hofstra in a 2:03 span of the second quarter, three goals in a 1:30 span of the third quarter and a run of two goals in a 52-second span and three goals in a 3:08 span of the fourth quarter.
Princeton led 3-0 and then 7-3 before Hofstra tied it at 7-7. Princeton then went up 9-7, down 10-9 and up 12-10.
* * *
Princeton got two goals from its senior class (one by Rob Engelke, one by Scott MacKenzie), eight by its junior class (four for Chris McBride, two for Jack McBride, two for Tyler Moni), two from its sophomore class (one each by Peter Smyth and Mike Grossman) and five from its freshman class (three by Jeff Froccaro and two by Mike Chanenchuk) in the 17-14 win over Hofstra last Saturday.
* * *
Senior Jeremy Hirsch is the lone captain for the 2010 Tigers. The last time Princeton had only one captain in a season was 1980.
* * *
Cabrini's Casey Grugan set an NCAA Division III record last week by scoring a goal in his 55th straight game. He then bettered the Division record when his streak reached 57 straight.
The Princeton record for consecutive games with at least one goal is 46, set by Chris Massey of the Class of 1998.
The longest current streak of consecutive games with at least one goal by a Princeton player is two, shared by Jack McBride and Chris McBride.
Jack McBride scored a goal in every game last year except for the one against Manhattan that he missed due to a stomach virus and the NCAA tournament first-round game against UMass.
Both McBrides scored in the quarterfinals against Cornell.
Jack McBride has scored at least one goal in 25 of his 28 career games. He has also been the team's leading goal-scorer in 11 of those games.
* * *
Tyler Fiorito, a preseason second-team All-America goalie and an honorable mention selection last year as a freshman, allowed a career-high 14 goals against Hofstra while making 11 saves.
It was the third time in his 17-game career (all starts) that he has allowed more goals than he has made saves.
In his two career games in NFL stadiums, Fiorito is 2-0 with an 8.00 goals-against and .619 save percentage.
Fiorito allowed eight goals while making 11 saves against Hopkins last year and made 15 saves while allowing eight goals against Syracuse in the Konica Minolta Big City Classic at Giants Stadium.
* * *
Princeton plays three games in NFL stadiums this regular-season.
After the Konica Minolta Face-Off Classic, Princeton will play back-to-back games in early April at Gillette Stadium against Brown (the New England Lacrosse Classic) and at the new Meadowlands Stadium against Syracuse (Konica Minolta Big City Classic).
* * *
Jeff Froccaro twice tore his ACL in high school, including in the final game of his career last spring. Despite that, he was able to play against Hofstra; in fact, he became Ivy League Rookie of the Week after scoring three goals, all in the second half.
Froccaro's three goals came on three shots. He put Princeton on top for good at 11-10 in the third quarter, and he scored twice in the fourth quarter, both times after Hofstra had cut it to one.
* * *
Princeton won 11 of 33 face-offs against Hofstra.
Last year, Princeton won 12 of 24 face-offs against Hopkins and scored two goals directly off face-off wins.
* * *
Princeton's starting close last week was Jeremy Hirsch, Jonathan Meyers and John Cunningham with Derek Styer and Rob Castelo at longstick midfield. Princeton also used Long Ellis at both positions extensively and rotate Cunningham between longstick midfield and close defense.
This week's defensive starters are Hirsch, Cunningham and Ellis, with Meyers joining Styer and Castelo at longstick midfield.
* * *
Scott MacKenzie had 29 points last season, which was 18 more than the career total of every other midfielder on the team.
Last week, MacKenzie had a goal, while the rest of the offensive midfield combined for nine goals and two assists.
Of the offensive middies who scored, four (Mike Grossman, Mike Chanenchuk, Jeff Froccaro, Peter Smyth) had their first career points. A fifth, Tyler Moni, equaled his previous career goal total with his two against Hofstra.
* * *
Chris Bates is 71-71 as a head coach. He went 70-71 in 10 years at Drexel, with 15 wins his first three years, 24 his next four and 31 his last three.
He became Princeton's head coach after Bill Tierney left to go to Denver after last season, when Princeton was 13-3, won a share of the Ivy League title and advanced to the NCAA quarterfinals.
Tierney, a member of the U.S. Lacrosse Hall of Fame, won six NCAA championships and 14 Ivy League titles and went to eight NCAA finals and 10 NCAA Final Fours.
Bates is a 1990 graduate of Dartmouth, and he was a two-time All-Ivy League attackman with the Big Green.
Bates played against Tierney three times, including in Tierney's first season at Princeton (1988).
* * *
Princeton graduated eight seniors, all of whom played significantly for either three or four seasons.
Princeton's Class of 2009 was: A Tommy Davis (four-year starter, All-America), middies Mark Kovler and Rich Sgalardi (both All-America; Kovler was first-team), shortstick D middies Josh Lesko and Brendan Reilly, attack/middie/man-up specialist Greg Seaman, longstick midfielder Charlie Kolkin and defenseman Chris Peyser (All-America).
What Can You Say About ...
Nikhil Ashra #23
• No. 2 goalie
• has been backup to Alex Hewit for first two years and now Tyler Fiorito last year and this year; each of first three years, starting goalie has been an All-America
• has a a career .568 save percentage and 7.67 goals-against average
Paul Barnes #31
• won 145 of 299 face-offs a year ago
• scored four goals off of face-offs in 2009; Princeton had not gotten a goal from its face-off specialist since 2004 prior to that
• scored twice in the Face-Off Classic against Hopkins
• did not face-off against Hofstra, but did play on third midfield unit
Alex Capretta #1
• converted attackman playing on second midfield
• scored first career goal in win over Rutgers last year
Chris Chandler #16
• starting at shortstick defensive middie
• had one caused turnover against Hofstra
• played in three games last year as longstick middie after playing in every game sophomore year
Mike Chanenchuk #13
• playing in the first midfield
• had two goals and an assist against Hofstra
• defered last year after suffering a back injury and is now a freshman
• was the No. 19-rated freshman by Inside Lacrosse a year ago before he defered
John Cunningham #3
• starting on defense, but will also play considerably at longstick midfield
• had six ground balls and two caused turnovers against Hofstra
• had 13 caused turnovers and 23 ground balls a year ago despite missing six games with a broken jaw
Jimmy Davis #5
• starting shortstick defensive midfielder
• had an assist, a caused turnover and three ground balls against Hofstra
• played in every game as third shortstick a year ago, behind graduated Josh Lesko and Brendan Reilly
• had four caused turnovers a year ago
• younger brother of Tommy Davis, who graduated last year after starting for four years on attack
Long Ellis #14
• had two caused turnovers and three ground balls against Hofstra
• listed as starter on defense, but can play defense or longstick midfield or even with a shortstick
Rob Engelke #22
• starting on attack
• had a goal and four assists against Hofstra
• had four assists all of last year and nine assists for his career prior to the Hofstra game
• five points against Hofstra tied career high, set last year against Manhattan
• had made one career start prior to this season but played considerably every year as fourth attackman and on extra man unit
• had nine goals on 15 shots last year for .600 shooting percentage, best on team for players with more than one shot
• also had four assists
Tyler Fiorito #6
• preseason second-team All-America by Inside Lacrosse
• honorable mention All-America and second-team All-IvyLeague last year as a freshman
• started every game of his career
• allowed 14 goals against Hofstra, most in his career, while making 11 saves
• ranked fourth in Division I in goals-against (7.40) and 11th in Division I in save percentage (.587) a year ago
• made 15 saves against Syracuse in 12-8 win to earn Division I Player of the Week honors from Inside Lacrosse
• member of United States U19 team that won 2008 World Championship in Vancouver
Jeff Froccaro #18
• scored three goals on three shots against Hofstra in first college game
• was named Ivy League Rookie of the Week
• three goals all came in the second half
• first goal gave Princeton lead for good in third quarter; last two goals both came in fourth quarter after Hofstra had twice cut Princeton's lead to one
• came back from torn ACL as a high school sophomore and then in the final game of his high school career to play in the season opener
Mike Grossman #8
• first-line midfielder
• scored first career goal in win over Hofstra
• ankle injury wiped out almost entire freshman year
• was the No. 38-ranked recruit by Inside Lacrosse a year ago
Jeremy Hirsch #37
• team captain; last time Princeton had only one captain was in 1980
• preseason honorable mention All-America
• had a caused turnover against Hofstra
• started every game but one since start of his sophomore year
• has played in every game but one in his career
Scott MacKenzie #2
• preseason honorable mention All-America by Inside Lacrosse
• only returning midfield starter
• scored a goal against Hofstra
• had 29 points a year ago; every other current middie on the team had a combined career total of 18 prior to this season
Chris McBride #15
• had four goals against Hofstra, tying career high set last year against Albany
• had four goals on six shots
• scored one goal in every quarter
• had 18 goals and six assists in first year as a starter on attack
• moved from midfield to starting on attack alongside cousin Jack McBride last year
• his father is Jack McBride's brother; his mother is Jack McBride's mother's first cousin
Jack McBride #14
• a preseason first-team All-America by Inside Lacrosse
• second-team All-America a year ago
• first-team All-Ivy League selection
• had two goals and an assist against Hofstra
• one of four Princeton players (B.J. Prager, Sean Hartofilis, Jason Doneger) in the last 10 years to reach 50 goals by the end of sophomore year
• led team with 35 goals last year
• led team in scoring eight times in 16 games last year
• 2008 Ivy League Rookie of the Year
• member of United States U19 team that won 2008 World Championship in Vancouver
• his father is Chris McBride's brother; his mother is Chris McBride's mother's first cousin
Jonathan Meyers #28
• started on defense against Hofstra; may play longstick midfield against Hopkins
• had a caused turnover against Hofstra
• gave up football to concentrate on lacrosse
• 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
• equalled previous career goal total with two against Hofstra
• had two goals and an assist last year
Peter Smyth #26
• had first career points with a goal and assist against Hofstra
• also faced off 15 times, winning five
• father Francis played lacrosse at Princeton, graduating in 1982
Chad Wiedmaier #9
• preseason first-team All-America by Inside Lacrosse
• is out until at least midseason after having knee surgery in the fall
• second-team All-America as a freshman
• first-team All-Ivy League as a freshman
• first freshman defenseman and third freshman ever to be first-team All-Ivy at Princeton (Scott Bacigalupo, B.J. Prager)
• ranked as No. 2 freshman in Division I by Inside Lacrosse
Game-By-Game
HOFSTRA (W, 17-14)
GOALS - C. McBride 4, Froccaro 3, J. McBride 2, Chanenchuk 2, Moni 2, MacKenzie 1, Smyth 1, Grossman 1, Engelke 1
ASSISTS - Engelke 4, Chanencuk 1, J. McBride 1, Davis 1, Smyth 1
GOALIE - Fiorito (60:00 min, 14 goals-against, 11 saves)
Career Scoring
Player G-A-Pts
14 Jack McBride 56-10-66
2 Scott MacKenzie 18-26-44
3 Chris McBride 24-8-32
22 Rob Engelke 18-13-31
27 Tyler Moni 4-1-5
18 Jeff Froccaro 3-0-3
13 Mike Chanenchuk 2-1-3
11 Ryan Morrell 2-1-3
31 Paul Barnes 3-0-3
21 Connor Reilly 2-1-3
26 Peter Smyth 1-1-2
9 Chad Wiedmaier 1-1-2
3 John Cunningham 1-1-2
5 Jimmy Davis 0-2-2
8 Mike Grossman 1-0-1
47 Cliff Larkin 1-0-1
1 Alex Capretta 1-0-1
24 David Marshall 0-1-1
PRINCETON
PROBABLE LINEUP
Attack
14 Jack McBride Jr.. 2-1-3
22 Rob Engelke Sr. 1-4-5
15 Chris McBride Jr. 4-0-4
First Midfield
2 Scott MacKenzie Sr. 1-0-1
8 Mike Grossman So. 1-0-1
13 Mike Chanenchuk Fr. 2-1-3
Second Midfield
27 Tyler Moni Jr. 2-0-2
1 Alex Capretta So. 0-0-0
18 Jeff Froccaro Fr. 3-0-3
29 Chris White Fr. 0-0-0
Third Midfield
31 Paul Barnes Sr. 0-0-0
25 Mark Feild So. 0-0-0
7 Tucker Shanley Fr. 0-0-0
Longstick Midfielder
28 Jonathan Meyers So. 1 GB, 1CT
36 Derek Styer Jr. 0-0-0
4 Rob Castelo Fr. 0-0-0
Shortstick Defensive Midfielder
16 Chris Chandler Sr. 1 CT
5 Jimmy Davis Sr. 1A,1 CT,3 GB
26 Peter Smyth So. 1-1-2
Face-Off
26 Peter Smyth So. 5x15
18 Jeff Froccaro Fr. 6x18
Defense
3 John Cunningham So. 2 CT, 6 GB
37 Jeremy Hirsch Sr. 1 CT, 1 GB
41 Long Ellis Jr. 2 CT, 3 GB
Goal
6 Tyler Fiorito So. 14.00 GAA
.440 S%