It took an entire season, a full 60-minute tournament game, and two three-minute overtime periods to determine who would advance to the finals of Ivy League Tournament.
But eventually the fourth seeded Princeton women’s lacrosse team emerged victorious, 10-8, over the top seed and Ivy League co-champion, Penn (11-5, 6-2 Ivy).
“I’m just so proud and thrilled for our kids to get this win today,” Princeton coach Chris Sailer said. “It wasn’t always our best game, things didn’t always go our way, we struggled in certain areas but we persevered and we came through and we kept fighting. ”
The will to battle back certainly wasn’t lacking between the two Ivy League foes — the game was tied seven times. After losing to the Tigers (10-6, 6-2), at the end of April, the Quakers were certainly looking to redeem themselves in the Ancient Eight, but to no avail.
With 2:24 left in regulation, sophomore Meredith Cain netted her third goal of the night to tie the game at eight apiece. The Quakers won the following draw control and had the chance to notch the win, but couldn’t get a shot off as time expired.
Princeton was simply dominant in the two extra three-minute periods. With just 36 seconds remaining in the first overtime, sophomore Jaci Gassaway was left wide open to put the Tigers ahead. Just 30 seconds later, Gassaway struck again and netted her fourth goal to put her team ahead by two and ultimately ice the victory.
“It’s been a long four years since we’ve beaten Penn and so now to beat Penn twice in one year is really something special,” Sailer said.
Despite stellar offensive performances from Cain, Caroline Bunting, who registered two goals and an assist, and junior co-captain Erin Brennan, who notched four points for the night, the Quakers were haunted by the careless mistakes that have plagued them all season. Penn had 15 turnovers, many of which were a result of unforced errors and a sub-par passing game.
“It was a little frustrating,” Penn coach Karin Brower Corbett said. “We needed to finish better and we needed to take care of the ball better and I think that’s been a problem for us this year. To be a championship team, you have to play cleaner than this and we’re really struggling with that right now.”
The Ivy Tournament, which is now in its second year, has eliminated both Penn and Ivy co-champion, Dartmouth, from receiving an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament at the end of May. Now, Princeton will go on to face Harvard in championship Sunday at 1:00 p.m. on Franklin Field.
Sunday will prove to be a big day for the Quakers as well, as the selection committee will determine whether or not they will receive an at large bid to the big dance.
“I think that we should get in, but who knows,” Corbett said. Despite two losses to Princeton and one to Johns Hopkins, Penn posted upsets of ranked North Carolina and Duke this season. “With the two big wins that we pulled off and the strength of our schedule, I think that we have a good shot.”
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