Princeton Grounds the Blue Jays
and
Syracuse Foils the Cavaliers

May 25, 2002


By Nelson Coffin

The much-ballyhooed parity in Division I lacrosse morphed into a parody of itself when defending champ Princeton and last season's runner-up Syracuse returned to the Memorial Day title game for the third year in a row. So much for any chance of lesser mortals actually walking away with a banner in 2002. Mortal but top-seeded Johns Hopkins and star-studded but fallable Virginia, both summarily dispatched in tight semifinal contests Saturday afternoon at Rutgers. As close as almost every game has been in the playoffs, it just doesn't seem to matter. When it comes to winning those nerve-fraying one and two-goal encounters in the playoffs, nobody does it better than the Tigers or the Orange. The bravado both clubs brandish came to the forefront again when the Tigers stopped Hopkins, 11-9, and Syracuse rallied past the Cavaliers in double OT, 12-11. That the two teams with the best all-time postseason winning percentages (Princeton, 75%) and Syracuse (74%) would advance to what has become their private domain in the finals, should not come as a shock to anybody. It certainly did not catch Syracuse attackman Michael Powell off-guard. "We're the two best teams," the sophomore said. "We should be here." Heck, it's been 11 years since either dynasty was shut out of the title game, a span in which the Tigers have garnered six crowns and the Orange four, with upstart Virginia the only interloper during the two-team reign.


John Glatzel on Conor Gill

There was probably more intrigue before the playoffs than there was getting to the annual showdown between the 'Cuse and the 'Cats. There was even mid-to-late-season speculation (on this site as well) that Princeton might not be invited to the playoff party it has redefined since barging into the national conciousness of the sport in 1992 when Coach Bill Tierney's troops knocked off - you guessed it - Syracuse in double OT to end a 40-year title drought. This season's Tigers (10-4) took awhile at adjust to expectations and the loss of key performers to graduation, despite having what is generally regarded as the most talented roster top to bottom in the country. March was an excursion into mediocrity in which Princeton lost at Hopkins and Virginia and was dumped at home by Syracuse and Yale. Seven straight wins later, Tierney and company motored 20 minutes up the turnpike to lay in wait for Hopkins like modern day highwaymen. The Blue Jays (12-2) had been the master of winning close games all season under Coach Dave Pietramala, only to stumble out of the gate and fall behind, 6-1, to a Princeton squad not given to blowing five-goal leads. It proved to be too much of a hurdle to overcome for the Jays, who still reeled the Tigers in enough to make sophomore Kevin Boland's two-shot salvo with 2:09 left a major disappointment when neither offering could find the net with his team trailing by a deuce.



Tom Hardy poses for ESPN Sports Center

"The biggest thing for us today was that we were able to get out to a big lead," said middie Brad Dumont, who scored two of Princeton's first four goals. "We just wanted to be able to play smart and hold it." Senior attackman B.J. Prager went off for the Tigers, scoring five goals on just seven shots. It was Prager who knifed through the Orange defense for the game winner at the same site a year ago. "We've really opened up the offense since March 30," noted Prager, a sharpshooter who moved past Wick Sollers to move up to third on the school's career goals list with 118. "I know we get some grief sometimes for slowing it down. But I don't think we're a slow team. We just know when to run and when to slow things down." Pietramala knew all along that his wunderkinds - four freshman and a sophomore start - might wilt under the glare of a state-best 23,123 fans and a national television audience via ESPN2. "We were able to overcome our youth and inexperience in other games, but you can't simulate this kind of game in practice." One of his freshman who did shine through was Kyle Harrison, credited with winning 13 of 18 faceoffs. "When you have a bunch of young guys like we do, it can be pretty tough," said Harrison. "We were kind of shell-shocked in the beginning. Our offense was scattered until we pulled it together."



TOYOTA Video Clip of the Week!


Virginia (11-4) was dazed after losing to the 'Cuse (14-2), seeing as how the 'Hoos had the ball and the lead late in the contest until a turnover gave the Orange the only thing they've ever needed - the ball with some clock and a chance to win. Bad idea, that. Giving the Orange a second chance is like putting Hannibal Lecter on work-release. Next thing you know, you're lunch. Not that Syracuse exactly made a meal of Virginia. The game featured several lead changes, top-flight goaltending by Syracuse's Jay Pfeifer (19 saves) and Virginia's Tillman Johnson (18 saves) and enough clever plays to keep everybody entertained for nearly 68 minutes.



Third team AA Kevin Boland

The two teams stood toe-to-toe and whaled on each other, with the 'Cuse the last squad standing after Tom Hardy, owner of exactly one start this season prior to the game, dodged to immortality with 32 seconds remaining in the second extra stanza. Hardy hung his defender out to dry, not to mention tangled in the back of the net, before the unheralded senior came around to confront Johnson for the game-winner.





"It was nothing special," Hardy demurred. "It's something I do every day in practice and they were a little slow to slide." Hardy did not mention that he also hammered home the equalizer with 25 seconds to go after Virginia's Brenndan Mohler was called for bringing the ball out of the box. Ironically, it was Mohler's spectacular catch-and-run that had put the 'Hoos ahead with 4:08 to go. "I'm almost speechless," said Virginia Coach Dom Starsia. "We all witnessed something really special out there today. I've been in plenty of clubhouses after games. But I've never been more impressed by a team in my life."


ACTION VIDEOS

Princeton's B.J. Prager to Brendan Tierney    High Bandwidth Only

Princeton's Ryan Boyle to B.J. Prager    High Bandwidth Only

Hopkins' Kevin Boland    High Bandwidth Only

Princeton's Sean Hartofilis    High Bandwidth Only




Virginia's John Christmas    High Bandwidth Only

Syracuse's Jay Pfeifer    High Bandwidth Only

Virginia's Tillman Johnson    High Bandwidth Only

Syracuse's Mike Powell to Mike Springer    High Bandwidth Only

Virginia's Conor Gill to Joe Yevoli    High Bandwidth Only

Syracuse's Josh Coffman to Mike Springer    High Bandwidth Only

Syracuse's Tom Hardy    High Bandwidth Only

Syracuse's Tom Hardy wins it    High Bandwidth Only


Crease Monkeys Parking Lot Party

Tom Ryan & Dawg (aka Kyle Piper)    High Bandwidth Only

Tom Ryan & Dawg again!    High Bandwidth Only

Tom Ryan & Matt Davis    High Bandwidth Only

Tom Ryan & Mason Risner    High Bandwidth Only





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Maryland's Dave Cottle scouts the action


Rutgers' Jim Stagnitta looks on















































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