Sports: November 3, 1999
Water polo team wins league title
Tigers head into tournament play with confidence
An almost perfect 15-1-0 (8-0-0 CWPA) record is certainly the right way to begin any season, especially since the mens' water polo team has had varsity status only for three years.
After one year at the helm, head coach Luis Nicolao has proven he is the right man for the job. Entering the fifth week of the season, his Tigers rank 12 on the U. S. water polo collegiate poll.
Princeton returned nearly its entire nucleus from last year's squad, which finished with a commendable 16-8 record. Additionally, six new freshmen should add depth and scoring prowess to an already-stacked roster.
Freshman Kevin Foster leads the team in points tallied with 39. Foster, who hails from Davis, California, and fellow freshman Robert Urquhart, a two-time first team All-America at Pioneer High School and the Michigan Player of the Year, have brought considerable scoring ability to a strong defensive team. Junior two-time All-America Christian Gratian has also been effective for the Tigers, recording 37 points thus far.
"The improvements in our offense have helped us gain some nice wins, but games have still been nip-and-tuck in the fourth quarter," Nicolao said. "So there is always room for improvement on offense."
Also returning for the Tigers is the outstanding goalie tandem of senior captain Greg Stoll and sophomore Jon Pharris. As of press time, these goaltenders have combined for over 150 saves. Last year, Stoll was an All-CWPA Southern Conference selection.
"We're fortunate to have two of the top goalies in the East, so there has been some juggling," Nicolao said. "It's a nice dilemma to have but at the same time, it's a problem because you can only play one goalie at a time."
On October 9, Princeton played at the CWPA games at Washington and Jefferson, competing against Navy, Johns Hopkins and host Jefferson. Though Princeton had not beaten Navy in almost 15 years, the weekend's showdown pitted the two undefeated conference powerhouses against each other in a battle for league bragging rights going into the Southern Division Championships October 30-31.
Against Washington and Jefferson, the Tigers triumphed easily, 16-7. The afternoon game saw Navy and Princeton go head-to-head for four quarters. At the end of regulation, the score was gridlocked at 11 points each. Princeton's single overtime goal proved enough to silence the Midshipmen, 12-11. The Tigers took to the water once more in the evening, this time to claim victory at the hands of Johns Hopkins, 11-7.
"Beating Navy was a real accomplishment for these guys," Nicolao said. "We haven't done that in a long time. It was a great way to finish off the regular season with an undefeated league record of 8-0."
Having completed a perfect regular season, Nicolao's team must now focus on tournament play. The top four teams from both the north and south division meet at Easterns, where the eventual winner advances to the NCAA Championship. Last year, the Tigers finished third at Southerns, but fared poorly at Easterns, ending their season 1-2.
"Naturally, our goal is to win Southerns and get a nice seed entering the Eastern Championships, but it is not going to be easy," Nicolao said. "We're young, but this winning is building confidence."
The Tigers will again see action October 23, when they travel to Brown for the ECAC Championship.
-Patrick Sullivan '02
An angry Tiger defense throttles
Lafayette 22-10
After a drubbing by Brown, Princeton rallies
Kicked around, eaten up, and spit out in all three of its losses, the
Princeton defense-traditionally the heart of a Tiger football team-decided
enough was enough. In dropping three of its first four games, the Tigers
had been torched by three of the top-rated quarterbacks in Division I-AA:
Cornell's Ricky Rahne, Lehigh's Phil Stambaugh, and Brown's James Perry.
For Lafayette quarterback Brian Buczek, starting on October 16 against an ill-tempered Tiger defensive unit was as uninviting a task as stepping into the batter's box against a pitching staff that has just served up three towering home runs. Best advice? Hit the dirt.
After offering little resistance in its three previous defeats-the most recent a 53-30 pounding by Perry's Brown Bears-the defense was looking to take its collective frustration out on a less prolific passer. "No one should score 53 points on us," said defensive end David Ferrara '00, who had been neutralized by Brown's offensive line. "The offense played pretty darn well, and we let them down. This week, we played angry."
Hitting the dirt was exactly what Buczek did on his first snap, sandwiched by Douglas Silverman '00 and Nathan Podsakoff '01 for a sack and a nine-yard loss. From there the Tigers turned in a stifling defensive effort to earn their second victory of the season, a 22-10 triumph in front of 14,805 at Princeton Stadium.
Take away the two benign scoring drives that Lafayette put together in the waning moments of each half, and Princeton's defense held the Leopards to a meager 79 yards and no points. With Ferrara and his cohorts on the defensive line batting down passes, sacking Buczek on three occasions and knocking him to the turf on several more, there would be no flashy numbers from the opposing quarterback this week. Buczek finished 8-of-29 for just 65 yards and an interception and was pulled midway through the fourth quarter.
The defense's inspired showing was a complete turnaround from its performance the previous week at Brown, where the Tigers yielded 424 passing yards and 53 points, the most ever scored against Princeton by an Ivy League team. Perry's first-half numbers would have made a stellar final line: 27-for-38, 261 yards, two touchdowns, and one fluke interception. And that was before he led Brown on four straight scoring drives to open the second half. Screens, slants, shovel passes-everything seemed to work for Perry, who wound up with a league-record 41 completions against a soft Princeton secondary.
Midway through the second quarter, Brown led by only a touchdown at 21-14, but with the ease with which the Bears were moving the football up and down the field, the only question was how long the Tiger offense could keep pace.
It didn't last long. While his Brown counterpart continued his march toward the Ivy League's career mark for passing yards (moving to within seven of second place, held by Princeton's Doug Butler '86), Tiger quarterback Tommy Crenshaw '02 was struggling through a five-sack, 8-for-19 afternoon. With the Tigers trailing 46-14, Jonathan Blevins '01 replaced Crenshaw under center and looked sharp, rallying the Tigers to touchdown drives of 79 and 61 yards.
Before you could say "quarterback controversy," however, head coach Steve Tosches announced on Tuesday that there would be no major personnel changes for the upcoming Lafayette game. Although Tosches has been known for rotating his quarterbacks, it is becoming clear that he sees Crenshaw, a year younger than Blevins, as Princeton's signal-caller of the present-and the future.
"Did I think about it (elevating Blevins into the starting role)?," Tosches asked after the win over Lafayette. "It sure was on my mind. But the overriding reason is that Tommy's the young sophomore. I think he's a very talented quarterback."
Against the Leopards, Crenshaw repaid his coach's confidence, turning in the most productive game of his career. He completed 21 of 35 passes for 218 yards, one touchdown, and no interceptions, and the bombs to speedy wideout Danny Brian '00 that he had overthrown against Brown were now settling in Brian's arms.
Two impressive drives to open the second quarter resulted in a pair of long field goals by Taylor Northrop '02 and a 6-0 lead. Less than a minute later, an interception by safety Ryan Demler '00 deep in Lafayette territory set up a 16-yard touchdown pass from Crenshaw to Philip Wendler '00 that put Princeton ahead 13-0. The Tigers led 16-3 midway through the fourth quarter, when workhorse Derek Theisen '00 (32 carries, 147 yards) scored from two yards out to put the game out of reach at 22-3. Only then did Princeton's defense ease up, allowing the Leopards to drive for a touchdown in the game's final minute.
The encouraging signs from the Lafayette win were tempered somewhat by a dose of reality: no more weak Patriot League teams appear on the Tigers' schedule, and with an 0-2 league record, Princeton is looking up at most of its Ivy rivals. "If we're going to start to beat some of the better teams that we have left to play," Tosches said, "we just have to be sharper."
A brushback pitch like the one his defense threw against Lafayette is a good place to start.
-Mark Sabath '98
Men's cross country squad makes
strong start
Women's team hopes to peak at Heps
If early season performance by both the mens' and women's cross country
teams is any indication of a successful year, then the next month look bright-because
these Tigers are fast!
The mens' team, still fired up from a repeat Triple Crown last year-the Tigers have won the Heptagonal championships in both cross country, indoor, and outdoor track for the last two years-hopes to again run circles around the Ivy League competition.
But before these harriers set their sights on Heps in late October, there is work to be done. On October 15 the Tigers lace up their spikes to defend last year's IC4-A title at New York City's Van Cortland Park.
"The competition over the course of the next few weeks is formidable. When you have won with regularity over the years, you are the hunted," head coach Mike Brady said. "Duke, Villanova, Penn, and LaSalle should prove to be great opposition for us. Each is on the brink of a national ranking. We must be at our very best to retain our title."
Led by senior captain Mike Spence, the top runners for the Tigers are a menacing pack, challenge enough for most any top-ranked team in the country. Canadian Paul Morrison '02, who as a freshman was the top finisher at the NCAA championships last year, looks fit, as does senior teammate Chris Banks, himself a Heps 10,000-meter champion. Juniors Biren Roy, Alex Hallett, Ed Tufaro, Tensai Asfau and sophomores Wes Stockard and Kevin Gallagher have all raced well in varsity competition thus far.
A stellar freshman class strengthens an already-stacked cross country squad, although standouts Jon Bell, Mike Baird and David Dean should contribute vital points.
Women's cross country
The women's team, though less experienced than their male counterparts, nonetheless possesses talent enough to surprise their Ivy League foes. After losing a strong contingent of runners to graduation, the Tigers have to fill the gaping shoes of last year's leaders.
Despite having 21 freshmen and sophomores on a 31-person squad, coach Peter Farrell has these Tigers pointed in the right direction, with the penultimate goal being a win at the Heptagonal championships.
Although captained by seniors Karen O'Neil and Stephanie Doyle, the anchor of this team is undisputedly Courtney Ebersole '00. A solid performer in every race last season and a Heps 5,000-meter champion in outdoor track, Ebersole should be able to contribute key points to the Tiger onslaught, come race day.
Other women who have displayed promise thus far are senior Sarah Hendricks and juniors Jen Cannistra and Kristie Rosso. Sophomore Emily Eynon, a squash player, joined the team during preseason camp and immediately made her presence felt.
Farrell did mention, however, that at Heps, his team will be better prepared mentally to run with the Yale pack. "We still have yet to peak, and Heps is going to be the place to do that," he said.
-Patrick Sullivan '02
The men's basketball team will begin its season Friday, November 12,
against the Syracuse Orangemen in the NABC Classic. The two-day, four-team
tournament takes place at Syracuse's Carrier Dome and will also feature
Missouri and Wisconsin. The Tigers return three starters from last year's
20-7 squad, including the Ivy League's unanimous Rookie of the Year, center
Chris Young '02.
Princeton Beats Monmouth
Battling hard, the team gets over last year's humps
If Wednesday is Hump Day, then the first week in October was Hump Week
for the women's soccer team, falling as it did smack in the middle of their
17-game regular season. Last year, Princeton cruised through the midpoint
with two wins that belied a late-season collapse. This season, Hump Week
was anything but easy; the Tigers came away with a frustrating 2-2 tie against
Yale October 2 and then struggled to put up a goal against a pesky and very
defensive Monmouth team before winning, 1-0, on October 5.
But in typical sports irony, the '99 team (5-2-1, 2-0-1 Ivy) was apparently in better shape than last year's squad after October's first week.
To begin with, the Tigers leapt a few historically significant hurdles in the first half of the season. On October 5, Princeton beat Monmouth for the first time in eight tries. Even more impressive was Princeton's 2-1 overtime victory at Dartmouth on September 26. When Alex Fiore '03 knocked in a long cross five minutes into extra time, Princeton topped the defending Ivy champs at home for the first time since 1983.
Princeton also chalked up two overtime road wins in its first eight games; they stole a 2-1 game from Rutgers in addition to the stunning win in Hanover.
"We battle a lot harder this year," midfielder Julie Shaner '00 said after the Monmouth game. "We're getting over the humps that we didn't last year."
Coach Julie Shackford's bumper recruiting crop pushed Princeton up a level from the season's beginning. Shackford started four first-years consistently in the first eight games-Fiore, Krista Ariss, Jenny Skinner, and Heather Deerin-and used several others off the bench. They responded by producing eight of the team's 14 goals as of October 5.
"It's like they've been out on the field for three or four years," Shaner said of her newest teammates.
Hump Week brought the Tigers some teeth-clenching moments. After Yale scored with under 30 seconds left to play and sent the October 2 game into overtime, Princeton scored twice in the extra period. Both goals were disallowed. The first goal was clearly an offsides play. However, on the second goal in the waning minutes of the final overtime the referees apparently missed a defender standing on the goal line and called would-be scorer Dana Decore '00 offsides. Decore was so irate after the game that she hounded the head referee and received a post-game red card.
As a result of the red card, cocaptain Decore sat out against Monmouth, and Princeton remained in a small funk. In the first half, the Tigers hit the crossbar twice and had a goal by Francica erased by a pushing call.
But with 14 minutes gone in the second half, substitute Joan Cundey found Ariss all alone inside the box and Ariss calmly put away her third goal of the season. Princeton then played a patient possession game and left no doubt about who was the better team.
"That Yale game was a real heartbreaker," Shackford said on October 6. "I think we took a lot away from that game, including how to hold onto a lead."
Shackford's team survived the lumps of Hump Week. And it's that type of seasoning, combined with much first-half success, that bodes well for the season's second stanza.
-Oakley Brooks '99
GO TO the Table of Contents of the current issue
GO TO
PAW's home page