GAME 9: #17 Princeton (3-3, 0-1 Ivy) at Cornell (6-2, 2-0 Ivy)

Date & Time: Saturday, March 25 - 1:00 p.m.
Venue: Schoellkopf Field - Ithaca, N.Y.
Twitter: @CornellWLax
Cornell Game Notes
 

STORY LINES

• The Cornell women's lacrosse team begins a stretch of five of its next six contests against nationally ranked teams when No. 17 Princeton visits Schoellkopf Field on Saturday, March 25 at 1 p.m. 
• The contest will be broadcast on the ESPN+.
• Coming off a 16-13 victory over UConn, Cornell will attempt to post its first victory over Princeton in Ithaca since 1988 when the two teams meet.
• The loss snapped a two-game win streak after Cornell began conference play with an impressive 2-0 start.
• The Big Red's explosive offense is averaging 13.9 goals per game and has four players with at least 22 points.
• The defense, meanwhile, has held opponents to single-digit goals in four of its past seven contests.
• In its five wins, Cornell has surrendered just 9.5 goals per game, a number that rises to 15.0 goals in its two losses.
• Picked fourth in the Ivy League's preseason media poll, Cornell returns eight starters and 18 letter winners from last season's 8-8 squad. 
• Cornell went 4-3 in Ivy play last spring, making its ninth appearance in 11 all-time (including eight of the past nine) Ivy League Tournaments as the No. 3 seed. 
• Four senior All-Ivy selections return in 2023, with Katie Castiello and Amanda Cramer on attack, Annie Thomas in the midfield and Hilary Hoover on defense.
 

SERIES HISTORY VS. PRINCETON

Overall: Princeton leads 42-5, first meeting in 1980
In Ithaca, N.Y.: 1-20
Current Streak: Princeton, 7
Last Meeting: Princeton, 13-12 (3/5/2022 in Princeton, N.J.)
Graap vs. Princeton: 3-26 (0-12 at home)
Series Notes: The two teams first met in 1980 with Princeton leading the series 42-5 and owns a seven-game win streak • Cornell last beat Princeton in 2016 (10-9 OT) in the opening round of the Ivy League tournament en route to its first league title • the Big Red has lost 16 straight games to the Tigers in Ithaca • four of Cornell's five wins all-time in the series came on the road or at neutral sites • the last and only time Cornell defeated Princeton in Ithaca came on April 23, 1988 with an 8-2 triumph.
 

A WIN OVER PRINCETON WOULD

• improve Cornell's record to 7-2 on the season, including 3-1 at home.
• up the Big Red's record to 3-0 in Ivy play for the first time since 2017.
• be Cornell's first win over the Tigers in Ithaca in 33 years (8-2, April 23, 1988)
• narrow the Tigers lead in the all-time series to 42-6 and snap a seven-game win streak.
• be the 369th in program history (368-312-4 in 51 seasons, .541).
 

LAST TIME OUT

• The Cornell lacrosse team scored six of seven goals at one span over the fourth quarter to rally for a 16-13 victory over UConn at Schoellkopf Field. 
• Josie Vogel scored four goals and assisted on a fifth to lead a balanced Big Red offensive attack. 
• Katie Castiello scored four times, Caitlin Slaminko had three and Amanda Cramer notched two goals and two assists. 
• Shannon Brazier caused three turnovers, won three ground balls and two draws from her midfield position, while Caitlin Tully and Alexis Reinhardt also forced two UConn miscues. 
• Annie Thomas was credited with eight draw wins, pushing her career total to 156 - just three shy of Sarah Hefner's 159 from 2012-15.
• As a team, Cornell held a 35-29 edge in shots and took advantage of 18 Husky turnovers. 
• UConn held an 18-15 edge in draws, but the Big Red narrowed that significantly in the fourth with a 6-3 advantage. 
• UConn's Grace Coon had four goals and Lia Laprise notched three goals and two assists to pace the offense. 
• Landyn White had nine saves between the pipes for the visitors who entered the week receiving votes in the IWLCA poll.


 

MISCELLANEOUS NOTES

• The Big Red has scored at least 10 goals in all eight contests this season and has allowed single-digit goals four times.
• Cornell has had two players named Ivy League Defensive Player of the Week this season  — goalkeeper Ellie Horner (Feb. 27) and midfielder Shannon Brazier (March 6). 
• Senior Annie Thomas' cousin, Caroline Ramsey, is an All-Ivy field hockey player for the Big Red and a member of the U.S. national team.
• In 30 career games, Thomas has 156 draw controls — a mark that already ranks second in school history.
• Thomas had 73 draw controls in 16 games in 2022 to set the single-season school record, surpassing Sarah Hefner's 2014 record of 68.
• Senior captain Amanda Cramer, an honorable mention All-Ivy selection and the team's leading scorer in 2022, is a transfer from Northwestern who mother, Caroline, was a gymnast for the Big Red.
• Sophomore defender Alessia Packard has a sister (Antonia, field hockey) and brother (Charles, men's lacrosse) who are also current varsity athletes for the Big Red.
• Cornell's 218 draw control wins in 2022 were second all-time in a season, just shy of the 222 recorded in 2017. 
• The team's 13.3 goals per game in 2022 ranked second all-time at Cornell (14.2 in 2012).
• The Big Red has qualified for the Ivy League Tournament nine times in the 11 years it has been held.
• Seniors Bridget Babcock, Amanda Cramer and Hilary Hoover will serve as team tri-captains.
• Head coach Jenny Graap has 226 career wins for the Big Red, ranking her 13th all-time among Cornell head coaches in all sports and second among women coaches (behind Andrea Dutcher with 346 volleyball wins from 1974-87).
• In her 26th season, Graap is the longest tenured women's head coach in school history and currently among women's lacrosse coaches in the Ivy League.
 

NEXT UP

• The Big Red will visit top-ranked Syracuse on Tuesday, March 28 at 6 p.m. on ESPNU at the JMA Wireless Dome.
• The Orange leads the all-time series 19-5 and has won 14 consecutive matchups between the schools.
• Cornell's last win was a 9-4 victory on April 19, 2006 at Schoellkopf.