Seniors’ day helps PU men advance

Tigers face rematch with Syracuse on Saturday

By: Bob Nuse
   Josh White and Will MacColl know what it’s like to play for the seniors on the Princeton University men’s lacrosse team. Now they’re finding out what’s it like to play for the Tigers as seniors.
   "Every year before this I’ve played for the seniors," said White, who scored a pair of goals as the Tigers topped Albany, 16-10, Saturday in their opening-round NCAA tournament game. "I’m hoping that now that I’m a senior this group is going to do the same thing for us. I know that in my previous years here the seniors have always wanted to go out on top. This year is no different.
   "I love this time of year. I look forward to it all season. As seniors, we’re going to play our hearts out knowing every game could be our last game. That’s the way everyone has to play, like it’s our last game."
   After the first half of Saturday’s game, the Tigers might have had thoughts that it was, indeed, going to be their last game. Albany played the Tigers even for the first 30 minutes, heading to the locker room tied, 5-5. But the Tigers scored the first five goals of the second half to open up a 10-5 lead and advance to the second round.
   Princeton will next face Syracuse, 3:30 p.m. Saturday at the Carrier Dome. The Orangemen advanced with a 13-11 win over Dartmouth in the opening round on Saturday.
   "It was an interesting game for us," Princeton coach Bill Tierney said. "It was our first home playoff game (at Class of 1952 Stadium) and I thought the kids were ready to roll. But their goalie made some saves on our first five shots and I think we might have panicked a little bit. I was proud of the way Albany played. I thought they played a great game."
   The Tigers played a great game in the second half, led by Jason Doneger with four of his game-high five goals, as well as MacColl, who finished with four goals. Like White, MacColl knows this is his last go-round on the field for the Tigers and he would like to go out a winner.
   "It’s a little scary to know that this is it," MacColl said. "You have to play for the seniors. I’m playing for my classmates and teammates. Obviously, we don’t want any of these games to be the last game, whether you’re a freshman or a senior. So we have to go back at it and get ready for the next game and make sure it’s not."
   That next game will be against Syracuse, the team the Tigers lost to in last year’s NCAA championship game. Earlier this year, Princeton went up and beat the Orangemen in the Carrier Dome, 11-10. Now they’ll have to beat the Orange on their home field a second time to get back to the NCAA semifinals.
   If they play the way they played in the second half on Saturday, the Tigers’ chances are good. If they play the way they played in the first half, it could be a different situation.
   "I think the kids think I’m frustrated at them," Tierney said. "But it’s not directed at them. It’s the frustration of knowing how great this team can be. We have 13 seniors and 11 of them play a lot. We usually have one game a year like this game today. This year we’ve had five or six of them. If we ever put everything together when they are all playing their best game, it could be a good one to see."
   The Tigers came close to that in the second half against Albany. Now they’ll get another chance to see if they can do it at Syracuse on Saturday.
   "I never get worried with this team," said White, whose goal with four seconds left in the first half tied the score just before halftime. "The only time all year I’ve been worried is when we were down seven goals to Dartmouth with less than a minute left in the game.
   "We never give up. It’s a testament to the way we’ve been coached by Coach Tierney and Coach (Dave) Metzbower. The only time I worry is when we get away from what they’ve taught us and what we’ve been doing in practice. Once we get focused on what we’re doing, we get it going."
   Princeton got it going in the second half Saturday, and thus will live to let the seniors play another day.