Princeton's First 2017-18 Athletic Event Set for Friday as Women's Soccer Team Hosts Monmouth

Friday vs. Monmouth, 7 p.m., Roberts Stadium: Video | Live Stats
Sunday at Villanova, 1 p.m., Villanova, Pa.: Video | Live Stats

It's been more than two months since Princeton athletes competed in a regular-season or postseason event, but the wait ends Friday night at Roberts Stadium when the women's soccer team hosts Monmouth at 7. Admission is free.

The Hawks have already played a weekend, playing at Lehigh to a 0-0 draw last Friday and falling to No. 21 Rutgers 4-0 last Sunday. This weekend, the New Jersey (and vicinity) road trip continues for Monmouth in Princeton, where the Tigers last hosted the Hawks in 2002. Monmouth leads the series 9-4 all-time, but in the only meeting since that 2-0 Princeton win at Lourie-Love Field 15 years ago, Princeton won 2-1 last Sept. 11, using an Abby Givens 28th-minute goal and the overtime winner from Mimi Asom with just 2:17 to play before the day would've ended in a draw. Rachelle Ross scored first for Monmouth less than two minutes before Givens' tying goal.

All three goal scorers from that game are back this season, as are Tiger sophomore keeper Natalie Grossi and Monmouth sophomore Amanda Knaub. Monmouth outscored its opponents 60-20 last season and returns 42 of those goals, including its two leading scorers from 2016 in sophomore Madie Gibson (12) and senior Ross (10). Gibson was named the MAAC Rookie of the Year with Alexis McTamney, who graduated, as MAAC Offensive Player of the Year and head coach Krissy Turner as the conference's Coach of the Year. Gibson and midfielder Ross are back as first-team All-MAAC winners last year while McTamney, fellow forward Rachael Ivanicki and defender Julie Spracklin earned first-team honors before graduating. All four second-team All-MAAC honorees from last season are back for the Hawks, including midfielders Allison DeLuca and Miranda Konstantinides, defender Cuevas and keeper Knaub. Gibson, Knaub and defender Anna Lazur earned MAAC all-rookie recognition. The Hawks finished 14-5-2 and won the MAAC tournament last year after going 9-0-1 in conference play before a loss to Virginia in the first round of the NCAAs.

Princeton outscored its foes 30-16 last year and returns 19 of those goals, led by junior Asom (nine). The Tigers graduated their two first-team All-Ivy honorees from last season in forward Tyler Lussi, who reset the program record for career goals and points last season, and defender Jesse McDonough. Second-teamers forward Asom and senior midfielder Natalie Larkin are back, as are sophomore forward Givens and senior midfielder Vanessa Gregoire, both honorable mention all-league honorees in 2016.

The Tigers are coming off a 2016 season that saw the team get out to a 9-1-1 start overall and 1-0-1 in the Ivy before close games down the stretch didn't go Princeton's way. The Tigers went 1-3-2 over their last six, but the three losses were by a combined four goals.

The Monmouth game starts a series of four two-game weekends for the Tigers before Ivy League play begins Sept. 23 versus Yale. Princeton will head to Villanova for a 1 p.m. game Sunday.

Princeton leads the all-time series against the Wildcats 17-7-1, and Princeton is 6-0-1 against Villanova over the last seven games. Since the series resumed on an annual basis in 2014, the Tigers have won all three games, including last year's 1-0 win on Aug. 28 at Roberts Stadium on an Asom 80th-minute goal.

The Wildcats graduated the keeper from that game, Emmalee Meyer, and used senior Emily Harris in Sunday's 2-1 overtime win over Delaware. Grad student Emma Firenze and rookie Jasmine Ruiz had the goals in that game. Villanova returns 13 of its 14 goals from last season, including leader Kristin Barbour (six). Villanova went 4-14 and 2-7 in the Big East but saw eight of its losses come by one or two goals. Barbour, a midfielder, Conner Huggins, a defender, and Ida DiClemente, a forward, were all named to the Big East all-freshman team.

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