Princeton University Athletics
Players Mentioned
Defending National Champs Open Field Hockey NCAAs with Penn State Saturday
November 14, 2013 | Field Hockey
| No. 8 Princeton (13-4, 7-0 Ivy) vs. No. 9 Penn State (13-5, 5-1 Big Ten) |
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| Game Info: | NCAA Championship First Round • NCAA Bracket |
| Date: | Saturday, Nov. 16 • 2 p.m. |
| Location: | College Park, Md. • Field Hockey and Lacrosse Complex |
| All-Time Series: | Penn State leads 24-8 Princeton records: Home: 4-10; Away: 2-11; Neutral: 2-3 |
| Last Meeting: | Penn State won 4-3 on Sept. 15, 2013 at Bedford Field |
| On Deck: | NCAA Championship Quarterfinals vs. Maryland/American Sunday, Nov. 17 • 2 p.m. |
| Live Media: |
Live Stats l Live Video l @PUTIGERS l @TigerFH |
| Game Day: | Tickets • Parking |
| Game Notes: | Princeton Game Notes • Penn State Game Notes |
This Week for the Tigers:
• The 2013 Ivy League champion No. 8 Princeton field hockey team will resume its national title defense this weekend in the NCAA tournament first round.
• The Tigers (13-4, 7-0 Ivy) open the postseason with a rematch versus ninth-ranked Penn State (13-5, 5-1 Big Ten) on Saturday, Nov. 16 at 2 p.m. hosted at Maryland in College Park, Md.
Last Time Out:
• Princeton completed its perfect Ivy League slate with a 5-1 victory over Penn on Nov. 9.
• The Quakers managed to tie things up in the 14th minute, before the Tigers went on to score four unanswered goals to earn the outright league title in a must-win match.
On Deck:
• Princeton's advancement in the postseason will be dependent on a victory Saturday.
• With a win the Tigers will face the winner of the Maryland – American matchup on Sunday at 2 p.m.
Follow the Tigers: Live video and stats will be available for this weekend's NCAA tournament action via GoPrincetonTigers.com.
Get Connected: Are you following Princeton on social media? Follow the athletics department at Facebook.com/PrincetonAthletics, Twitter.com/PUTIGERS, Vine.co/PUTIGERS and Instagram.com/PrincetonAthletics.
Scouting No. 9 Penn State:
• No. 9 Penn State (13-5, 5-1 Big Ten) enters the NCAA tournament as an at-large bid recipient.
• The Nittany Lions head to Maryland following their semifinal loss to Iowa, 4-3, in the Big Ten Tournament last week.
• PSU enters the postseason led by Taylor Herold's 18 goals and Laura Gebhart's 12 assists.
• Lone goalie Kylie Licata has a .703 saves percentage, 64 saves, a 1.43 goals against average and seven shutouts.
All-Time vs. Penn:
• Penn State owns the all-time series versus Princeton 24-8.
• The Nittany Lions hold a 3-2 advantage when playing on a neutral sites, but the series is tied 3-3 in the NCAA tournament. Both sides are tied 2-2 in the first round and 1-1 in the quarterfinals.
• Saturday's meeting will be a regular season rematch, a 4-3 victory for Penn State on Sept. 15 at Bedford Field.
• PSU jumped out with a 2-0 lead in the first half and Princeton was unable to corral a momentum push to overcome its multi-goal deficit before the end of regulation.
• The loss snapped the Tigers' 17-game winning streak.
A Quick Look Ahead:
• With a win over Penn State, Princeton will advance to the quarterfinals to face the winner of the Maryland - American match.
• ACC champion Maryland enters the tournament as the No. 1 seed and sits at 20-1, 6-0 ACC.
• The Tigers and Terps have met already this season in College Park. UM employed a midgame three-goal run to earn a 3-1 victory on Oct. 11.
• Maryland owns the all-time series versus Princeton 16-6-1.
• The two met twice last year, including in the NCAA semifinals where the Tigers earned a 3-2 overtime victory.
• No. 18 American (15-5, 6-0 Patriot League) enters the first round after topping Quinnipiac, 3-1, in the NCAA Play-In Game.
• Princeton owns the all-time series versus American, 10-4.
• The Tigers and Eagles have never met in the postseason.
• Princeton earned a 2-0 shutout victory in the last meeting between both sides on Oct. 7, 2012 at Bedford Field.
Ivy Titles by the Numbers: 9, 18, 19, 22:
• The Tigers once again claimed the outright Ivy League title in 2013 for the second straight season. The program has now won 18 outright league crowns.
• Princeton has clinched at least a share of the last 19 of 20 championships, including the last nine consecutive seasons.
• The Tigers have won 22 Ivy titles over program history.
• No other conference opponent has won more than eight championships.
NCAA Appearances: Princeton is making its 19th NCAA appearance, including 10th consecutive this weekend.
Princeton Takes Top Postseason Ivy Honors; Seven Tigers Honored:
• For the second consecutive season the Tigers have earned the top Ivy League postseason honors.
• Michelle Cesan: Offensive Player of the Year and unanimous First-Team All-Ivy
• Julia Reinprecht: Defensive Player of the Year and unanimous First-Team All-Ivy
• Annabeth Donovan: co-Rookie of the Year and First-Team All-Ivy
• Teresa Benvenuti: First-Team All-Ivy
• Allison Evans: Second-Team All-Ivy
• Amanda Bird: Honorable Mention All-Ivy
• Sydney Kirby: Honorable Mention All-Ivy
Ivy Postseason Honors Records:
• Michelle Cesan and Julia Reinprecht have earned four all-league first team honors over their careers.
• Princeton is the only program to have players earn such a feat, with the Class of 2014 duo making it five Tigers in league history.
• Reinprecht, the 2009 Ivy Rookie of the Year, is the third member of her family to earn a top postseason honor. Collectively with her sisters, Katie '13 and Sarah '09, they have six honors among them.
• Princeton is the only school to have three consecutive Rookies of the Year. The last time it happened prior to this season was 1995-97.
• 2013 marks the sixth consecutive season that Princeton has had at least four first teamers.
Extending Ivy Win Streak:
• The Tigers extended their Ivy League winning streak to 20 to close out the year, a run dating back to Sept. 2011.
• Princeton is only chasing its own record of 24 consecutives victories spanning Oct. 2007-Sept. 2011.
• The Tigers have gone 7-0 in league play eight times over 11th-season head coach Kristen Holmes-Winn's tenure.
Another Streak to Track: Princeton currently is riding a seven-game winning streak entering this weekend's action.
A Final Streak to Track:
• The Tigers enter the postseason riding a five-game NCAA winning streak.
• Along with winning games spanning the first through championship rounds, Princeton also opened the 2012 tournament with a win in the NCAA Play-In Game.
Cesan's Earns Second Straight Ivy Player of the Week Honor:
• Senior Michelle Cesan earned her second consecutive Ivy League Player of the Week honor following her five-point performance at Penn last weekend.
• She added a pair of goals, including the game-winner, and an assist.
• The midfielder has scored eight goals over the last seven games, including three game-winners spanning the last four matches.
Caro Doubles Up Ivy Rookie of the Week Nods:
• Freshman Cat Caro collected her second Ivy Rookie of the Week of the season.
• The striker extended her scoring streak to six consecutive contests with her opening goal versus Penn.
• She picked up a rebound off a penalty corner to send in her eighth goal of the year in the third minute.
• She has three assists over her 17 appearances and when recording at least a point in a match Princeton is 8-0.
Trending Now:
• The Tigers hold advantages over opponents in: scoring, 54-27, shots, 361-129, and penalty corners, 154-59, on the year.
• When scoring first Princeton is 12-0.
Overtime Success: Princeton is 2-0 in overtime matches this year, most recently topping local rival Rider in extra time, 2-1, on Nov. 3.
A Closer Look at the Losses:
• All four losses have been to teams ranked currently ranked in the top-9.
• The Tigers are 2-4 versus ranked opponents on the year.
• Princeton has not lost to an unranked opponent since 2011.
Ivy Leaders:
• Princeton is the top-ranked team in the Ivy League in the following categories:
• Scoring margin (1.56)
• Goals against average (1.56)
• Shots (21.24/game)
• Goals allowed (1.59/game)
• Christina Maida is No. 1 in goals against average (1.48) and Anya Gersoff is No. 2 (1.49)
The National Scene:
• The Tigers move up a spot to No. 8 in this week's national top-20 poll.
• Princeton remains tabbed No. 5 in this week's RPI poll. It is the only Ivy team in the top-30.
• As a team, the Tigers are tabbed in the top-20 in the following national statistical categories:
• No. 4 - penalty corners per game (9.06)
• No. 7 - winning percentage (.765)
• No. 11 - goals per game (3.18)
• No. 11 - points per game (8.56)
• No. 12 - scoring average (3.12)
• No. 13 - scoring margin (1.56)
• No. 18 - assists per game (2.29)
• Anya Gersoff is ranked No. 9 in goalie win-loss (9-3 (.750))
The Captains: Seniors Kelsey Byrne, Michelle Cesan and Julia Reinprecht will serve as tri-captains in 2013.
Tigers Featured on HBO Real Sports:
• Princeton was featured on HBO's Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel on Oct. 22 for their work with the Friends of Jaclyn Foundation.
• The team adopted seven-year old Carmella Loschiavo, who battled a pediatric brain tumor, finding a very special source of inspiration from the brave little girl.
• If you missed the segment, it will be available on repeats on HBO or OnDemand.
Beautiful Bedford:
• Bedford, a state-of-the-art turf facility, features an optimal playing surface in artificial turf and a built-in watering system.
• There are currently 1,572 seats, with room for additional temporary seating.
National Team News:
• Julia Reinprecht '14, a 2012 London Summer Olympian, competed with the U.S. Senior National Team at the World League Semifinals in London this summer.
• Michelle Cesan '14, a 2012 London Summer Olympics alternate, is a member of the U.S. Senior National Team.
• Teresa Benvenuti '16 was named to the U.S. Senior National Team this spring. She competed with the U21s at the Junior World Cup in Aug. 2013.
• Alums Katie Reinprecht '13 and Kathleen Sharkey '13 are also members of the senior national team, most recently helping Team USA to silver at the Pan Am Cup and a 2014 World Cup berth.
• Former assistant coach Nate Franks '07 is on staff at USA Field Hockey.
A Look at Last Year...A Year to Remember:
• Princeton won its first-ever national championship, 3-2, versus then-No. 1 North Carolina on Nov. 18, 2012.
• Katie Reinprecht '13 was named Princeton's first Honda Award Winner, along with garnering NFHCA and Mid-Atlantic Player of the Year and Ivy League Defensive Player of the Year honors.
• Kathleen Sharkey '13 led the nation in scoring and was named the Ivy League Offensive Player of the Year.
• Teresa Benvenuti '16 earned Ivy League Rookie of the Year honors.
• 10 Tigers were named All-Ivy and All-Mid-Atlantic Region Team selections.
• Five players earned All-America accolades.
• Kristen Holmes-Winn was named the NFHCA and Mid-Atlantic Coach of the Year.