Just Enough: Princeton 2, RPI 1

Brianne Mahoney

The script looked like the same, grim scenario: Princeton goalie Rachel Weber gave up an early goal, this time 23 seconds into the game, before the notes from the National Anthem had cleared the arena. Already the Tigers were behind the eight-ball; an uphill battle for a team that values goals like pink diamonds.

But the Tigers showed a little resilience, and battled back to tie and then go ahead, winning the game against Rensselaer 2-1. It was an impressive win in some ways, as RPI had everything to play for; their inclusion in the playoffs hanging in the balance, while Princeton is set as the seven-seed. But the Tigers played some smart and vigorous defense, and Weber, after the early misstep, played brilliantly.

I didn't even see the first goal, but I did see the Tigers' two goals. The first, midway through the first period, was by Denna Laing, who recovered a rebound off a slap shot by Brianne Mahoney.

The second and game-winning goal came off the stick of Sally Butler, who was in the right place at the right time, the puck almost falling in front of her as if ordered, and slapped it home.

The Tigers had a lead with more than half a game to play. In the stands we joked that they needed to now kill off a penalty lasting well over 20 minutes. In fact, RPI controlled the action for what seemed an eternity, an almost four-minute forecheck. At one point the puck was loose in the front of the net, Weber was out of position, but two Tiger defenders stood like a phalanx in the crease, and a shot bounced harmlessly off their torsos. After icing the puck, coach Jeff Kampersal was forced to call a timeout just to get his exhausted players off the ice.

With the sterling play of Weber and her blueline protectors, including Mahoney, who shadowed the RPI wings claustrophobically, the Tigers kept RPI off the scoreboard.