.png&width=24&type=webp)
Princeton University
UConn
Players Mentioned
Field Hockey Comes Up Short Against No. 5 UConn, 4-3
October 26, 2014 | Field Hockey
BOX SCORE
PRINCETON, N.J. - The Princeton University field hockey team gave defending national champion No. 5 University of Connecticut all it could handle before ultimately falling short on Bedford Field, 4-3.
Holding leads of 1-0 and 2-1, Princeton found itself locked in a 3-3 tie with less than 20 minutes to play before UConn broke the deadlock in the 52nd minute. Hailey Reeves, Maddie Copeland and Teresa Benvenuti netted the three Tiger goals, while Sydney Kirby had a pair of assists.
Charlotte Veitner notched a pair of tallies for the Huskies, which included the game winner. UConn finished with a 15-6 shot advantage and a 7-2 edge in penalty corners. Princeton goalie Anya Gersoff made seven saves, while redshirt-freshman counterpart Nina Klein had one stop.
With time winding down in a closely contested first half, Reeves put the home team on the board. Inserting a corner to the top of the circle, the sophomore made her way to the left post before putting away a Kirby feed at 29:29. Wasting little time with a response, the Huskies' McKenzie Townsend redirected a Roisin Upton shot past Gersoff just 54 seconds after the restart to pull UConn even.
Looking to regain the momentum, the Tigers moved into the attacking third in the frame's final moments. Corralling a loose ball, Cat Caro backhanded a shot toward the Huskies' cage. Carving out space at the far post, Copeland redirected the try into the opposing net with just 16 ticks on the clock to suddenly put the Orange and Black in front.
Once again battling back, UConn came up with an equalizer just 25 seconds after the intermission as Chloe Hunnable ripped a hard shot from the middle of the circle into the Princeton cage. Moments after Upton hit the right post with a try at 38:09, the Huskies earned a penalty corner. Playing the insert to Chrissy Davidson, Veitner made a run to the near post. Receiving a pass from Upton, the freshman knocked in the go-ahead goal at 38:56 to cap off a three-goal flurry over a stretch of 4:12 that spanned the first and second halves.
Continuing to push forward, Princeton answered less than seven minutes later. Playing in her second game since returning from injury, Benvenuti settled into open space at the edge of the UConn circle. Redirecting a Kirby pass, the junior pulled the Tigers level, notching her second tally of the season at 45:35.
Retaking the lead, UConn capped off the scoring in the 52nd minute. Coming up the right side, Veitner played a ball into the circle. Going to the front of the Princeton net, the striker would find a way to get a stick on a Hunnable rebound, tapping in the game winner at 51:53.
Princeton has held a lead or been within a goal during the second half in six of its seven games against ranked opponents this season with three of those contests decided by just one tally. Falling to 8-14 all-time against UConn, the Tigers dropped to 5-10 (4-1 Ivy) on the year. Three of the last four meetings against the Huskies have been decided by just one goal, with UConn also securing a pair of 1-0 and 3-2 decisions in 2013 and 2011, respectively. Princeton prevailed in the 2012 showdown between regional rivals, 4-1.
The Tigers return to action on Saturday, Nov. 1 with a pivotal Ivy League game against Cornell.