It will be a battle of Ivy unbeatens tonight in New Jersey as the field hockey team faces Princeton (4-4, 3-0 Ivy) with first place in the league on the line. The Red (5-2, 3-0 Ivy) will then travel from New Jersey to Pennsylvania to play West Chester (6-4) on Sunday.
Cornell fell to the Tigers, 3-0, a year ago – but the Red will look to continue its recent trend of reversing history when the two teams take the field tonight. Thus far in the 2005 campaign, Cornell has already recorded more total wins and team goals than in the entire 2004 season. The team’s accomplishments this year have included a 3-2 overtime win against Yale last weekend and a victory over defending league champion Penn on Sept. 17.
Princeton, despite finishing below .500 last year, won 10 consecutive league titles before losing the crown to the Quakers last season. The Tigers have built some momentum heading into tonight, recording identical 3-0 victories over Columbia and non-conference foe Albany last weekend.
Sarah Yuki and Lauren Ehrlichman lead the Tigers on the offensive end of the field with four goals each this season. The Red will also need to keep an eye on Paige Schmidt, who has notched two goals and four assists in eight games. Goaltender Allison Nemeth anchors the defense for Princeton, allowing 1.27 goals per game and earning a .741 save percentage in five starts.
West Chester is led by Mary Ellen Wells and Megan Glielmi, who have each scored five times and added four and two assists, respectively, to power the Golden Rams. The Red will face a multi-faceted attack, as seven other players have found the back of the net for West Chester. Carrie Hanshue has been the go-to player in net for the Golden Rams, accumulating a 2.00 goals against average and a .817 save percentage.
The Red will have plenty of players to step up and strike back, however, led by its freshman class. In the past month, three different players have earned Ivy League Rookie of the Week honors. Belen Martinez, despite starting in a defender position every game, has played a key role in Cornell’s fortunes this year. She assisted on the tying goal against Yale, and scored the game-winner in overtime a week ago. Martinez is also a component of a stingy Red defense that has allowed just 1.41 goals per game this year.
Alyssa DePaola and Brenna Gulotta are the other members of the Class of 2009 that have already turned heads around the league. DePaola had two goals in a 3-0 win over Columbia on Sept. 9, and added one goal and one assist in the Red’s explosive, 9-1, victory against St. Francis the next day. Gulotta took her turn as Rookie of the Week, and was also recognized as the Ivy League Player of the Week, after scoring two goals, including the game-winner, in the victory over Penn.
The last line of defense for the Red will be sophomore Lizzie Goldblatt, who has allowed 1.33 goals per game and earned a .822 save percentage in six starts.
Archived article by Olivia Dwyer
Sun Assistant Sports Editor