On Wednesday, the Princeton ladies’s box hockey staff (8–4, 2–0 Ivy) completed their non-league play with an impressive efficiency in opposition to the Monmouth Hawks (4–7, 1–1 Colonial). Aggressive play from the Tigers earned them a 6–1 win to lift them towards the top in their season.
The Tigers had been longing for the matchup after the Hawks saved them from the 2021 NCAA event via handing them a three–2 extra time loss. Indeed, the Tigers got here in with a vengeance and didn’t take their time settling into their rhythm of play.
Junior goalie Robyn Thompson set the tone for the Tigers early within the first duration with an excellent save, and the Tigers had been off. Six mins into the sport, junior ahead Grace Schulze, the Ivy Offensive Player of the Week, drew a penalty nook and in an instant adopted with a purpose to kick off the Tiger’s scoring streak. Schulze used to be assisted via senior ahead Ophélie Bemelmans.
Just over a minute later, the Hawks protection used to be lining up to get ready for any other Princeton nook, once more taken via Schulze. The Tigers discovered good fortune yet again, with senior ahead Sammy Popper discovering the web with an lend a hand from sophomore midfielder Beth Yeager. For the rest of the primary duration, Princeton persisted to check the Monmouth protection, outshooting the Hawks 6–2.
The 2d duration persisted to turn out a success for the Tigers, who introduced into a sequence of nook pictures two mins into the duration. The 3rd and ultimate nook used to be the place the Tigers had been in a position to destroy via, and Yeager despatched a shot previous the Monmouth goalie to additional Princeton’s lead. Monmouth spoke back Princeton’s offensive good fortune with 4 corners of their very own 5 mins later, however the Tigers’ protection used to be simply as robust and didn’t let the rest get previous.
Near the top of the primary part, the nook powerhouse of Schulze, Yeager, and Bemelmans used to be as soon as once more in a position to ranking, which put the Tigers up 4–0 going into the second one part.
“We work on corners almost every day in practice just to make sure everyone is on the same page and can practice finishing in tight spaces,” Schulze informed The Daily Princetonian. “We also mix up which corners we do during games to keep the other team guessing and increasing the chances for a positive outcome.”
The Hawks got here into the second one part with power and had been in a position to finish their shutout handiest 38 seconds into the 3rd duration with their handiest purpose of the sport. The Tigers’ protection recovered, and the groups each confirmed robust play during the duration.
The Tigers had been in a position to end the sport robust with a good larger lead within the fourth duration. Two mins in, first-year defender Ella Hampson scored off of a rebound for her first purpose of the season. Three extra penalty corners for Princeton gave the staff momentum, and with 11 mins left within the sport, senior defender Autumn Brown scored on a deflection, securing the Tiger win. First-year Ella Thorburn completed the sport with a purpose for the Tigers and made an excellent save, no longer giving the rest to the Hawks.
The Tigers end their out-of-league play with an enormous win to push them into their ultimate 5 video games of the season. They go back house to play Dartmouth on Saturday, Oct. 8 at 12 p.m.
Evelyn Walsh is a contributor to the Sports segment on the ‘Prince.’ She can also be reached at ew0974@princeton.edu or on Twitter and Instagram @evelynwalshh.
