Peters' Career-High 21 Saves Help Princeton Knock Off The No. 3 Team For The Second Straight Game

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The game ended. The Princeton men's lacrosse players went off to stretch in the corner. Then they realized the Meistrell Cup was still sitting at the scorer's table, so they went to get it.

Senior goalie Erik Peters was the one who lifted it up. It was only fitting. He was the one who did the most to make sure that it was staying in Princeton.

Peters was awesome all evening, with a career-high 21 saves that helped power No. 7 Princeton to a 16-11 win over previously unbeaten and third-ranked Rutgers in front of 1,440 fans at Sherrerd Field. Peters now has a ridiculous 57 saves in the last three games, which just happened to be against Maryland, Georgetown and Rutgers, all of whom were ranked in the top three at the time. Princeton has rebounded from its loss at Maryland two weeks ago with back-to-back wins against the team ranked third in the national polls, first the Hoyas and now the Scarlet Knights.

Erik Peters makes his 20th save, a career high (he beat that one shot later with his 21st). Princeton 16, Rutgers 9 with 3:25 to go. pic.twitter.com/ZnJ6mYFPem
— Princeton Men's Lacrosse (@TigerLacrosse) March 12, 2022

The game was preceded by a moment of silence in memory of former Rutgers coach Tom Hayes, the Lacrosse Hall of Fame member and former president of the Federation of International Lacrosse, who passed away earlier in the week at the age of 82.

On any other night, the buzz would have been about freshman Coulter Mackesy, who was making his second start on attack. Mackesy was amazing himself, with four goals and two assists and several dazzling moves to make put those numbers up.

His fourth goal was his best, with a rocket shot into the top corner of the net. Or maybe his third one was, with a great fake that froze an RU defender and let him get in on Scarlet Knights goalie Colin Kirst, who was strong himself with 13 saves.

Oh. My. Goodness. Coulter Mackesy with four now, and it's 15-9 Tigers with 8:39 to go. pic.twitter.com/RmsAJEUpVl
— Princeton Men's Lacrosse (@TigerLacrosse) March 12, 2022

Neither team had better than a one-goal lead until late in the second quarter, when Mackesy's second made it an 8-6 Tiger lead as part of a 5-1 run that built a halftime lead of 11-7. After the teams combined for nine goals in the first quarter and nine more in the second, there was only one in the third, scored by Rutgers' Michael Sanguinetti, but Peters made five saves in the quarter to keep it a three-goal Princeton lead at 11-8.

Jake Stevens then scored what might have been the back-breaking goal, when he turned what looked like it was going to be a Princeton turnover into an extra-man goal instead with a ground ball pick up and score in traffic that made it 12-8 and started a 5-1 run that sealed it.

Jake Stevens jumps on the loose ball and scores. Rutgers answers. 12-9 Tigers, 11:45 left. pic.twitter.com/xdpSkv3aqc
— Princeton Men's Lacrosse (@TigerLacrosse) March 12, 2022

Alex Slusher had another big night as well with four goals and two assists of his own, and Chris Brown had three goals and an assist for a four-point night. Stevens scored twice, as did Christian Ronda.

Tyler Sandoval won 19 of 31 face-offs and had nine ground balls.

The story of the night was Peters, though. He had at least five saves in every quarter, many of which were within five yards of the cage, and he continues to put up incredible numbers against some of the nation's best teams.

Speaking of some of the nation's best teams, Princeton opens its Ivy season on Sherrerd Field against Penn next Saturday.

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