No. 11 Princeton Travels To Take On No. 4 Maryland

Saturday, February 24

College Park, Md.

2:00 PM

Princeton University

Maryland

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Photo by: Nick Ierardi

No. 11 Princeton Travels To Take On No. 4 Maryland

February 22, 2024 | Men's Lacrosse

NO. 11 PRINCETON (2-0) vs. NO. 4 MARYLAND (3-0)

Saturday, Feb. 24 • 2 p.m.
SECU Stadium • College Park, Md.
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The Princeton men's lacrosse team takes to the road for the first time this season — though certainly not the last. In fact, Princeton will be playing the first of three road games in eight days, all against teams in the top 15, two of whom are in the top four.

Princeton has 11 regular season games remaining this season, of which four are at home and seven are away.

Princeton vs. Maryland
Five Storylines

Strength of schedule
After starting its season with wins over unranked Monmouth and Manhattan, Princeton now starts a stretch of five games against teams ranked in the top 17 of this week's USILA coaches' poll — with four of those games on the road.

After taking on No. 4 Maryland, Princeton will be at No. 15 North Carolina next Friday and then No. 2 Duke Sunday, March 3. Then it's a game at No. 17 Rutgers March 10 and the Ivy League opener at home against No. 6 Cornell March 17.

Playing from ahead
Maryland and Princeton have played three times in the last two seasons, during the 2022 and 2023 regular seasons and in the 2022 NCAA semifinals. Of the 180 minutes in those three games, Maryland has had the lead for 174 minutes and 17 seconds.

Maryland has outscored Princeton 12-4 in the three first quarters of those games.

Scoring defense
Princeton is tied with Notre Dame as the No. 1 scoring defense team on the young season (5.5 per game). Princeton has allowed five and six goals in its first two games; the last time Princeton allowed six or fewer goal in consecutive games was 2012, when the Tigers did so three straight times (against Rutgers, Dartmouth and Harvard) en route to having the No. 1 scoring defense in the country for the season.

Princeton has also allowed 11 goals or fewer in its first two games in a season for the first time since 2006.

Face it
Maryland's Luke Wierman, who recently set the program record for career face-off wins, is 45x71 (.634) with 29 ground balls in three career games against Princeton, which has not been over .500 for a full season facing off since 2012.

Princeton sophomore Andrew McMeekin has won 25 of 39 face-offs with 14 ground balls this season, and his .641 percentage ranks 13^th in Division I. Wierman has at .613 for the season to date.

For his career so far, McMeekin is 66 for 118 (.559).

Fast starts
Prior to this season, Princeton had never had a freshman score at least three goals in each of his first two games. This year, Princeton has two: Colin Burns (4 in Game 1, 3 in Game 2) and Nate Kabiri (3 and 3).

Burns and Kabiri were teammates at Georgetown Prep, which is approximately 11 miles from SECU Stadium at the University of Maryland. They have combined for 21 points in two games, and the 12 points that Burns has (7G, 5A) tie Michael Sowers for the most by a Princeton freshman in his first two games.

Princeton has had eight freshmen in the last 15 years reach at least 12 points in a season. Burns has done it in two games.

Other notes

Maryland leads the all-time series 34-12-1, including an 11-5 win in Princeton a year ago. Princeton defeated Maryland in both the 1997 and 1998 NCAA championship games, with the 1997 game played at what is now Capital One Field at Maryland Stadium (and then was called Byrd Stadium). Princeton also won the 1994 and 1996 NCAA titles at Maryland Stadium, both times against Virginia … Colin Burns and Nate Kabiri are the only two current Princeton players who have started every game of his career … Princeton scored 15 goals in each of its first two games. Against Monmouth, Princeton got 10 goals from its attack, one from a longstick midfielder and four from its midfield, all four of which came from its first midfield. Against Manhattan, Princeton got seven goals from its attack and eight from its offensive midfields, with five from the first midfield and three from the second midfield … John Dunphey had his first career three-goal game in the win over Manhattan … Sophomore Chad Palumbo has five goals in two games this season after having two goals all of last year … Michael Gianforcaro ranks fourth in Division I (first in the Ivy League) in goals-against average (6.17) and sixth in Division (first in the ivy League) in save percentage (.645) … Princeton's first two opponents were a combined 0 for 6 on extra man opportunities … Princeton has had only two extra man opportunities in two games, going 1 for 2 … Colin Burns is third in Division I in shooting percentage at .778 (seven goals, nine shots) … Princeton's starting defense features two converted LSMs, Cooper Kistler and Michael Bath, while the top LSM is Pace Billings, who has started 17 career games on close defense …