Hostess Cupcakes For Everyone

As a follow up to yesterday, if you're wondering what Martha Russo did with the money she won racing her brother's friends, this is what she texted TigerBlog: 

And I just wanted to let you know with the prize money for beating my bros friends we used the loot to buy Hostess Cupcakes -proven to boost hitting power on corners in FH!!  

TigerBlog thought that was worth including as a follow up. TB wonders what Princeton Athletics head dietician Hector Martinez things.  What are your thoughts, Hector? 

TB reached out to Hector after he got the text from Martha (who, by the way, is in Venice now with some of her new sculptures). Here's his response: 

"You know what they, 'a Hostess Cupcake a day kept the field hockey women swinging away.' It's the original pregame fuel. Obviously sports nutrition has come a long way since then, but there is something to be said for the role that fun foods, team traditions and post-match treats play in performance culture and team bonding."

 Hey, it was a different time. Most lockerrooms featured candy bars as halftime energy boosters. 

Also, from first-hand observation, Hostess Cupcakes have been replaced as the power source for penalty corners by either Smoothies or, in the case of Princeton's Beth Yeager, those little oranges, which she eats by the dozen. 

TB, by the way, was never really a "Hostess Cupcake" kid. He was more into Yodels. Remember those? Like elite athletes, TB grew out of Yodels long ago. He is not a Smoothie fan though, so he probably won't be taking any big penalty corners any time soon. 

The big Ivy League news yesterday was not about nutrition. Instead, it was the announcement that the Ivy League tournament in 2027 (somehow that's next year) will be played at the Palestra instead of at Dartmouth, the lone Ivy school who has yet to host. 

Interestingly, the league hasn't committed to anything beyond the 2027 tournament in Philly, as part of the building's 100th anniversary celebration. Where will it be? What will the format be? 

Those are all stories for another day. 

TigerBlog saw the story on the Ivy League website yesterday, though that's not why he went there. Instead, he was looking for the women's lacrosse standings. 

There's a big game tonight at 7 on Sherrerd Field as Princeton hosts Penn. There will be free Hostess Cupcakes to the first 10,000 fans (just kidding, just kidding). 

Princeton and Penn have played three league games, while the other six have played four each. Right now, Yale is at 4-0, followed by Penn at 3-0 and Princeton at 2-1. Princeton's loss is to Yale, while Yale and Penn (obviously) have not played yet.

There are three ways to look at the current Ivy women's lacrosse race. 

First, there is the matter of the championship, which as you know goes to the regular season champion. For that Princeton would need to win out and have Yale lose at least once. 

Second is the Ivy League tournament, in which the top four teams will meet at the home of the No.1 seed. Behind the teams in the top three right now are Brown and Cornell, who are both 2-2. Brown and Princeton both have wins over Cornell; Princeton's came this past Saturday by a 14-12 score. 

Tiger senior Jami MacDonald had five goals and two assists in that win over the Big Red. Abigail Roberts was named Ivy Defensive Player of the Week after putting these numbers in two games: 10 ground balls, six caused turnovers and six draw controls.

The final note in Ivy women's lacrosse is the NCAA tournament. Right now, Princeton has the second-best RPI in the league, at No. 18, with Yale at No. 16 and Penn back at No. 25. 

Speaking of RPI, North Carolina is the defending NCAA champion with an 11-1 record, the only blemish on which is an overtime loss to Northwestern, the team it beat in the championship game last year. What is UNC's RPI? It's 10. How is that possible? 

As for Princeton, the latest USA Lacrosse Magazine tournament prediction has the Tigers rather comfortably in the field, which it has Penn out. The NCAA field will have 29 teams, of which 15 are automatic bids and 14 are at-large.

If you're into these sorts of predictions, the Tigers are currently slotted to play Georgetown, with the winner to take on No. 1 Maryland. Ah, but that's for the future. 

For tonight, it's Princeton-Penn, at 7. 

And, again, there will be no free Hostess Cupcakes.