Princeton Falls To Syracuse In NCAA Tournament

Friday, November 11

College Park, Md.

2:30 PM

Princeton University

(15-6)

Syracuse

(14-4)

Team	1	2	3	4	Final F
Syracuse	1	1	1	2	5
Princeton	1	1	0	0	2

Ali McCarthy had an assist in Princeton's NCAA loss to Syracuse Friday.

Photo by: Greg Fiume

November 11, 2022 | Field Hockey

Box Score

The Princeton field hockey team, particularly its eight seniors, would have loved to have gotten one more weekend together. Instead, this group's destiny was not the NCAA Final Four but instead to have gotten the Tigers back to the top of the Ivy League and into the postseason, which, after the disappointment of how it ended wears away, makes the 2022 season a pretty special one in the history of the program.

Princeton's season ended with a 5-2 loss to Syracuse in the opening round of the NCAA tournament at the University of Maryland Friday afternoon. The Tigers finished their season 13-5 and as the Ivy League champion for the 27^th time.

The key moment of the NCAA game against Syracuse came at the end of the first half. Princeton had just taken a 2-1 lead when Ali McCarthy set up Grace Schulze, but the Orange came back and drew a penalty corner with three seconds to go and then another one with no time remaining. That second corner resulted in the tying goal, and Syracuse had all the momentum after that.

Grace Schulze with the finish on the feed from Ali McCarthy but Syracuse answers with a goal off a penalty corner after time had expired. It's a 2-2 game at the half. pic.twitter.com/XtwaoaMzUZ
— Princeton FH (@TigerFH) November 11, 2022

It paid off early in the third quarter, when Syracuse took the lead for good at 3-2. Princeton threatened from there, but the Orange put it away in the fourth with one goal off a penalty stroke and then another into an empty net after the Tigers had pulled their goalie.

Princeton led 1-0 when Claire Donovan tipped in a cross from Schulze, who was everywhere all day. Syracuse tied it at 1-1 before the end of the first.

The end brought sadness, especially for the eight Tigers who made their way through their final postgame handshake line. Still, this group of eight — Gabby Andretta, Ophelie Bemelmans, Autumn Brown, Hannah Davey, Claire Donovan, Ali McCarthy, Sammy Popper, Zoe Shephard — navigated a great deal in their careers, including keeping the program chemistry alive during the Covid pandemic and then rededicated themselves this year to getting the championship and NCAA spot back.

They'll smile about what they did together soon enough.