The No. 8 story on the goprincetontigers.com countdown of the Top 12 Princeton athletic events of 2008 is the softball team's twin rallies against Cornell to win the Ivy League South Division title.
Princeton trailed 7-1 and 11-6 in the first game before winning it 12-11 on a grand slam from Kathryn Welch and a two-run shot from Jamie Lettire in the sixth. The second game ended when Welch and Lettire homered in the bottom of the seventh for a 6-5 win.
It was a wild comeback, to be sure. You don't usually expect balls to be flying out of softball fields, where dominant pitching and slap-hitting usually win games. Princeton, though, hit 55 home runs last softball season, an extraordinary number.
Any talk of Princeton comebacks, of course, leads back to Feb. 9, 1999, at the Palestra. That was the night that Princeton trailed Penn 29-3 (after a 29-0 Penn run), 33-9 at halftime and then 40-13 at the first media timeout of the second half before coming back for a 50-49 win.
If you were in the building that night, you'll never forget it. If you weren't, you can't possibly imagine what it was like. It is the best comeback in Princeton athletics history, and there is ZERO chance that it'll ever be topped.
What amazes TigerBlog now, though, is that it's been 10 years already. This decade is simply flying by (what is this decade called, anyway? the zeroes?); doesn't it seem like yesterday that Y2K was the biggest problem anyone faced? Contrast this decade with the ’70s, which to TigerBlog will never end.
The twin countdown stories will now break for the weekend, to be picked up next week at No. 7. A break for Christmas will enable the No. 1 stories to appear on Dec. 31.
Friday, December 19, 2008
Thursday, December 18, 2008
A Celebrity Ends Up No. 9
Meagan Cowher is the goprincetontigers.com choice for the No. 9 Princeton athlete of 2008. Her senior season saw her set a women's basketball program record with 532 points, and her last three games of 25, 26 and 31 points left her 12 points away from the school career record. In the entire history of Princeton basketball, only Bill Bradley ’65 and Sandi Bittler ’90 scored more points than Cowher.
At the same time, Cowher brought with her a celebrity presence to Princeton athletics. The daughter of former Pittsburgh Steelers' head coach Bill Cowher, she was used to being in the limelight and had even been interviewed on an NFL films piece as a pre-teen. From Day 1 as a Princeton player, she was deluged by requests for interviews, and the media crush reached a fever pitch during the Steelers' run to the Super Bowl title her sophomore year.
Cowher's bio was the most-viewed bio on goprincetontigers.com, by far, during the last four years.
And yet she was much more than just a name. She was a three-time first-team All-Ivy pick, and her work at Princeton extended beyond basketball to countless charitable causes and campus work, especially with the VSAAC.
In short, Meagan Cowher was the most recognizable Princeton athlete for the last four years. And one of the best.
At the same time, Cowher brought with her a celebrity presence to Princeton athletics. The daughter of former Pittsburgh Steelers' head coach Bill Cowher, she was used to being in the limelight and had even been interviewed on an NFL films piece as a pre-teen. From Day 1 as a Princeton player, she was deluged by requests for interviews, and the media crush reached a fever pitch during the Steelers' run to the Super Bowl title her sophomore year.
Cowher's bio was the most-viewed bio on goprincetontigers.com, by far, during the last four years.
And yet she was much more than just a name. She was a three-time first-team All-Ivy pick, and her work at Princeton extended beyond basketball to countless charitable causes and campus work, especially with the VSAAC.
In short, Meagan Cowher was the most recognizable Princeton athlete for the last four years. And one of the best.
Wednesday, December 17, 2008
Out Of Nowhere To No. 10
Each year when the Roper and von Kienbusch Trophies are awarded to the top senior male and female sportspeople at the Princeton Varsity Club banquet, TigerBlog likes to joke about the future "watchlist" for the awards of the following three years.
To that end, most of the names on the list of the Top 12 Princeton athletes of 2008 being counted down on goprincetontigers.com could have been predicted as 2007 ended.
The most glaring exception is today's choice at No. 10, who literally came out of nowhere to have one of the greatest seasons of any Princeton athlete in recent history.
Sarah Peteraf of the women's soccer team finished her senior season with 12 goals, including two that came in overtime and seven that were game-winning goals. She began her season by scoring the first goal ever scored by a Princeton player at Roberts Stadium, and she would go on to lead the Tigers to the Ivy League championship and a berth in the NCAA tournament.
She became the third Princeton player in the last 24 years (along with former Ivy Players of the Year Esmeralda Negron ’05 and Emily Behncke ’06) to score at least 12 goals in a season. She was a first-team All-Ivy League and third-team Regional All-America selection, as well as an Academic All-Ivy pick.
She did all this after having four career goals prior to this season, with two as a freshman and sophomore and none as a junior. The season preview in the media guide lists five players to watch as potential goal-scorers; Peteraf wasn't even one of those five.
TigerBlog has tried to compare Peteraf's senior year to that of other athletes through the years. Maybe the closest was the final season of Chad Roghair ’92, who sat on the bench until his senior year and then put up the 11th-best single-season passing yardage total in school history in 1991.
Peteraf's senior year will be remembered as one of the greatest clutch seasons in Princeton women's soccer history. She is a well-deserving member of the Top 12.
To that end, most of the names on the list of the Top 12 Princeton athletes of 2008 being counted down on goprincetontigers.com could have been predicted as 2007 ended.
The most glaring exception is today's choice at No. 10, who literally came out of nowhere to have one of the greatest seasons of any Princeton athlete in recent history.
Sarah Peteraf of the women's soccer team finished her senior season with 12 goals, including two that came in overtime and seven that were game-winning goals. She began her season by scoring the first goal ever scored by a Princeton player at Roberts Stadium, and she would go on to lead the Tigers to the Ivy League championship and a berth in the NCAA tournament.
She became the third Princeton player in the last 24 years (along with former Ivy Players of the Year Esmeralda Negron ’05 and Emily Behncke ’06) to score at least 12 goals in a season. She was a first-team All-Ivy League and third-team Regional All-America selection, as well as an Academic All-Ivy pick.
She did all this after having four career goals prior to this season, with two as a freshman and sophomore and none as a junior. The season preview in the media guide lists five players to watch as potential goal-scorers; Peteraf wasn't even one of those five.
TigerBlog has tried to compare Peteraf's senior year to that of other athletes through the years. Maybe the closest was the final season of Chad Roghair ’92, who sat on the bench until his senior year and then put up the 11th-best single-season passing yardage total in school history in 1991.
Peteraf's senior year will be remembered as one of the greatest clutch seasons in Princeton women's soccer history. She is a well-deserving member of the Top 12.
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
Schneider's Big Day
Bob Schneider's performance against Harvard back in April ranks No. 11 on the goprincetontigers.com countdown of the top 12 events of 2008.
It's a well-deserved honor for Schneider, who was awesome in that game. He scored four goals that day, tying the game with 1:20 to play and then winning it in the overtime. Princeton never led at any point of that game until Schneider's goal in the OT.
The game-winner came one possession after Harvard's Zach Widbin came from behind the net and was one-on-one with Tiger goalie Alex Hewit, who stuffed Widbin to keep the game alive.
As for Schneider, his senior year saw him erupt into a dominant scorer; Schneider scored 20 goals in 2008 after having 19 for his first three years combined. He finished second on the team in goals and points, and almost all of his goals were lasers from the outside.
Princeton lacrosse has a history of having players, especially midfielders, have huge senior years after not having big career numbers prior to that. Looking for a candidate in 2009? How about Rich Sgalardi, who has seven career goals but figures to more than match that this coming spring.
It's a well-deserved honor for Schneider, who was awesome in that game. He scored four goals that day, tying the game with 1:20 to play and then winning it in the overtime. Princeton never led at any point of that game until Schneider's goal in the OT.
The game-winner came one possession after Harvard's Zach Widbin came from behind the net and was one-on-one with Tiger goalie Alex Hewit, who stuffed Widbin to keep the game alive.
As for Schneider, his senior year saw him erupt into a dominant scorer; Schneider scored 20 goals in 2008 after having 19 for his first three years combined. He finished second on the team in goals and points, and almost all of his goals were lasers from the outside.
Princeton lacrosse has a history of having players, especially midfielders, have huge senior years after not having big career numbers prior to that. Looking for a candidate in 2009? How about Rich Sgalardi, who has seven career goals but figures to more than match that this coming spring.
Monday, December 15, 2008
GoPrincetonTigers.com Begins Year-End Countdowns
The Princeton Office of Athletic Communications has selected its top 12 athletes and top 12 athletic events of the 2008 calendar year (this is Princeton stuff only, so don't look for LeBron James or Michael Phelps), and the countdown now appears on goprincetontigers.com.
The No. 12 athlete is softball's Jamie Lettire; the No. 12 event is the induction of women's lacrosse coach in the US Lacrosse Hall of Fame.
To offer some perspective, Princeton has roughly 1,000 student-athletes who compete in roughly 650 intercollegiate athletic events each year. Add to that all of the events that aren't actual contests (such as Sailer's Hall of Fame induction), and you have even more to consider.
To be in the Top 12 of either list, then, is pretty impressive. Again, this is Princeton OAC generated and only for the year 2008.
Let us know your feedback.
The No. 12 athlete is softball's Jamie Lettire; the No. 12 event is the induction of women's lacrosse coach in the US Lacrosse Hall of Fame.
To offer some perspective, Princeton has roughly 1,000 student-athletes who compete in roughly 650 intercollegiate athletic events each year. Add to that all of the events that aren't actual contests (such as Sailer's Hall of Fame induction), and you have even more to consider.
To be in the Top 12 of either list, then, is pretty impressive. Again, this is Princeton OAC generated and only for the year 2008.
Let us know your feedback.
Sunday, December 14, 2008
Princeton Men's Basketball at Manhattan
Final: Manhattan 70, Princeton 60
:27.7
John Comfort has his first career points as he drains a three, making it three Tigers with career highs today along with Davis (27) and Buczak (15).
1:28 2nd
Doug Davis hits a three-pointer to bring Princeton within seven. That's 27 for Davis, a new season and career high. He isn't the game's leading scorer, however, as Manhattan's Chris Smith has 35.
2:50 2nd
Zach Finley picks up his fourth foul and Manhattan goes to the line for two as Princeton has 10 team fouls. Chris Smith hits both for the Jaspers, and it's a nine-point game. Though Patrick Saunders will go to the line for Princeton, time is getting awfully short for the Tigers.
3:02 2nd
Pawel Buczak splits from the line, and Princeton is down seven, 57-50.
3:46 2nd
A long two falls for Davis, giving him 24 points, but the Tigers are still down by eight.
7:00 2nd
Buczak gets baby hook in the lane to go, and the Tigers are within six. With under seven minutes to go, that was likely a key bucket to keep Princeton's chances alive. After a Princeton rebound under the basket at the other end, Dan Mavraides has a layup go halfway down the basket and rim out for a Manhattan rebound. Manhattan 53, Princeton 47.
7:27 2nd
It's an eight-point game at the third media timeout, 53-45 Manhattan, with the ball going to Princeton. A Manhattan player tried to call timeout as he was falling out of bounds, but that's no longer allowed.
8:12 2nd
Just as the Tigers were closing in, Manhattan has hit back-to-back shots to pull away. First came a three-pointer at the shot-clock buzzer, followed by a breakaway dunk by Chris Smith.
9:35 2nd
Davis cans another three, nothing but net, and Princeton is the closest its been all half at 46-43. Davis has 22 points, three off his career high from the season-opening Central Michigan game.
10:37 2nd
Nick Lake splits a pair from the line, and Manhattan leads 46-40. Sydney Johnson calls timeout. The Tigers have two 30-second timeouts and a full timeout remaining.
11:23 2nd
Davis' sweet stroke nails a three-pointer, and the Tigers are back within five. Davis has 19 points.
12:20 2nd
We have our first dunk of the night with Manhattan's Chris Smith doing the honors. Smith leads all scorers with 24 points.
13:16 2nd
Nice fallaway jumper in the lane by Doug Davis with defender in his face, giving him 16 points. Five-point game, but the Jaspers are headed to the line.
14:22 2nd
There's a track here in Draddy Gym, and Jason Briggs just won both the high jump and the long jump in the same leap, clearing the Manhattan bench and the drink cooler behind it to land safely in front of the stands. Still 41-34 Manhattan, however.
15:40 2nd
Pawel Buczak's latest bucket gives him 10, bringing him to double-digits for the second time this season. There must be something Buczak likes about the Bronx, since his season-high 13 came at Fordham.
17:15 2nd
Doug Davis' shooting stroke strikes again, bringing the Tigers back within six at 37-31. Davis now has 13 points.
Halftime
Shooting percentage is the stat of the half. Manhattan, after hitting 6 of 7 to start the game, finished the half at 56% to Princeton's 40.9%. In a game where Princeton has the rebounding advantage, 15-12, and turnovers are relatively low (Princeton 5, Manhattan 3), hitting five more shots than your opponent makes a big difference. The Tigers have used the line to keep pace a bit, making 5 of 6 to Manhattan's 2 of 7. Princeton hasn't shot more free throws than its opponent in any game this season.
0:00 1st
Though the Tigers cut it to four at the 3:26 mark, they haven't scored since and will take a seven-point deficit into the break.
3:13 1st
Davis adds five more points to get to 10, perhaps restarting a new double-digit scoring streak. Davis had 10 or more in his first five games in a Tiger uniform before struggling in the last two. Manhattan 30, Princeton 26 at the last media timeout of the half.
6:00 1st
That's another layup by Buczak, who leads the team with eight points. But Chris Smith, who now has 15 points, answers on the other end. Manhattan leads 28-19.
6:57 1st
A big offensive rebound and layup by Pawel Buczak marks Princeton's first field goal in more than four minutes. 25-17 Manhattan.
7:31 1st
Manhattan has scored the last three baskets to turn a six-point game into a 10-point lead at 25:15. Timeout, Princeton.
9:58 1st
It's 21-15 Manhattan at the second media timeout.
12:08 1st
Jason Briggs makes one of two free throws to bring Princeton within 17-12. Manhattan has cooled off a bit, missing four of their last five from the field, but the early hot start still has the Jaspers the lead.
14:41 1st
Today's game is being played at Manhattan's Draddy Gymnasium, named for Vincent dePaul Draddy, the namesake for football's Draddy Trophy. Though Manhattan hasn't had varsity football since 1942, Draddy, a Manhattan alum, went on to become the president of the National Football Foundation. The award combines academic honors with on-field performance Princeton's own Brendan Circle '08 was named a semifinalist for the award in his senior year, which since its inception in 1990, has once gone to a player from outside Division I-A/FBS. That was Washington University's (St. Louis) Brandon Roberts in 2002.
16:06 1st
Manhattan 14, Princeton 6. Manhattan has made 6 of 7 from the field to start the game.
18:30 1st
It's Manhattan 7, Princeton 4. The Jaspers aren't missing much early, but Doug Davis, who is looking to recover from making just one field goal in his last two games after his hot start, has Princeton's first field goal.
19:00 1st
Manhattan starts 2 for 2 from the field as Chris Smith makes a three to re-take the lead at 5-2.
Introductions
One of the Manhattan starters, Chris Smith, is the brother of J.R. Smith of the Denver Nuggets. The Smiths and Princeton aren't far apart, as both Smiths went to Lakewood High just down I-195 from the Trenton/Princeton area. The Tigers have had some famous basketball names in their lineage in recent years, too, with '88 alum and former coach John Thompson III as the son of the national-championship winning Georgetown coach, as well as Nate Walton '01 as the son of Bill Walton.
Hello from Draddy Gym at Manhattan College in the Bronx, N.Y. The Tigers will start the same five as in its first seven games, with Jason Briggs, Kareem Maddox, Doug Davis, Patrick Saunders and Pawel Buczak. The Tigers will look for their third win in the season's first four road games today.
:27.7
John Comfort has his first career points as he drains a three, making it three Tigers with career highs today along with Davis (27) and Buczak (15).
1:28 2nd
Doug Davis hits a three-pointer to bring Princeton within seven. That's 27 for Davis, a new season and career high. He isn't the game's leading scorer, however, as Manhattan's Chris Smith has 35.
2:50 2nd
Zach Finley picks up his fourth foul and Manhattan goes to the line for two as Princeton has 10 team fouls. Chris Smith hits both for the Jaspers, and it's a nine-point game. Though Patrick Saunders will go to the line for Princeton, time is getting awfully short for the Tigers.
3:02 2nd
Pawel Buczak splits from the line, and Princeton is down seven, 57-50.
3:46 2nd
A long two falls for Davis, giving him 24 points, but the Tigers are still down by eight.
7:00 2nd
Buczak gets baby hook in the lane to go, and the Tigers are within six. With under seven minutes to go, that was likely a key bucket to keep Princeton's chances alive. After a Princeton rebound under the basket at the other end, Dan Mavraides has a layup go halfway down the basket and rim out for a Manhattan rebound. Manhattan 53, Princeton 47.
7:27 2nd
It's an eight-point game at the third media timeout, 53-45 Manhattan, with the ball going to Princeton. A Manhattan player tried to call timeout as he was falling out of bounds, but that's no longer allowed.
8:12 2nd
Just as the Tigers were closing in, Manhattan has hit back-to-back shots to pull away. First came a three-pointer at the shot-clock buzzer, followed by a breakaway dunk by Chris Smith.
9:35 2nd
Davis cans another three, nothing but net, and Princeton is the closest its been all half at 46-43. Davis has 22 points, three off his career high from the season-opening Central Michigan game.
10:37 2nd
Nick Lake splits a pair from the line, and Manhattan leads 46-40. Sydney Johnson calls timeout. The Tigers have two 30-second timeouts and a full timeout remaining.
11:23 2nd
Davis' sweet stroke nails a three-pointer, and the Tigers are back within five. Davis has 19 points.
12:20 2nd
We have our first dunk of the night with Manhattan's Chris Smith doing the honors. Smith leads all scorers with 24 points.
13:16 2nd
Nice fallaway jumper in the lane by Doug Davis with defender in his face, giving him 16 points. Five-point game, but the Jaspers are headed to the line.
14:22 2nd
There's a track here in Draddy Gym, and Jason Briggs just won both the high jump and the long jump in the same leap, clearing the Manhattan bench and the drink cooler behind it to land safely in front of the stands. Still 41-34 Manhattan, however.
15:40 2nd
Pawel Buczak's latest bucket gives him 10, bringing him to double-digits for the second time this season. There must be something Buczak likes about the Bronx, since his season-high 13 came at Fordham.
17:15 2nd
Doug Davis' shooting stroke strikes again, bringing the Tigers back within six at 37-31. Davis now has 13 points.
Halftime
Shooting percentage is the stat of the half. Manhattan, after hitting 6 of 7 to start the game, finished the half at 56% to Princeton's 40.9%. In a game where Princeton has the rebounding advantage, 15-12, and turnovers are relatively low (Princeton 5, Manhattan 3), hitting five more shots than your opponent makes a big difference. The Tigers have used the line to keep pace a bit, making 5 of 6 to Manhattan's 2 of 7. Princeton hasn't shot more free throws than its opponent in any game this season.
0:00 1st
Though the Tigers cut it to four at the 3:26 mark, they haven't scored since and will take a seven-point deficit into the break.
3:13 1st
Davis adds five more points to get to 10, perhaps restarting a new double-digit scoring streak. Davis had 10 or more in his first five games in a Tiger uniform before struggling in the last two. Manhattan 30, Princeton 26 at the last media timeout of the half.
6:00 1st
That's another layup by Buczak, who leads the team with eight points. But Chris Smith, who now has 15 points, answers on the other end. Manhattan leads 28-19.
6:57 1st
A big offensive rebound and layup by Pawel Buczak marks Princeton's first field goal in more than four minutes. 25-17 Manhattan.
7:31 1st
Manhattan has scored the last three baskets to turn a six-point game into a 10-point lead at 25:15. Timeout, Princeton.
9:58 1st
It's 21-15 Manhattan at the second media timeout.
12:08 1st
Jason Briggs makes one of two free throws to bring Princeton within 17-12. Manhattan has cooled off a bit, missing four of their last five from the field, but the early hot start still has the Jaspers the lead.
14:41 1st
Today's game is being played at Manhattan's Draddy Gymnasium, named for Vincent dePaul Draddy, the namesake for football's Draddy Trophy. Though Manhattan hasn't had varsity football since 1942, Draddy, a Manhattan alum, went on to become the president of the National Football Foundation. The award combines academic honors with on-field performance Princeton's own Brendan Circle '08 was named a semifinalist for the award in his senior year, which since its inception in 1990, has once gone to a player from outside Division I-A/FBS. That was Washington University's (St. Louis) Brandon Roberts in 2002.
16:06 1st
Manhattan 14, Princeton 6. Manhattan has made 6 of 7 from the field to start the game.
18:30 1st
It's Manhattan 7, Princeton 4. The Jaspers aren't missing much early, but Doug Davis, who is looking to recover from making just one field goal in his last two games after his hot start, has Princeton's first field goal.
19:00 1st
Manhattan starts 2 for 2 from the field as Chris Smith makes a three to re-take the lead at 5-2.
Introductions
One of the Manhattan starters, Chris Smith, is the brother of J.R. Smith of the Denver Nuggets. The Smiths and Princeton aren't far apart, as both Smiths went to Lakewood High just down I-195 from the Trenton/Princeton area. The Tigers have had some famous basketball names in their lineage in recent years, too, with '88 alum and former coach John Thompson III as the son of the national-championship winning Georgetown coach, as well as Nate Walton '01 as the son of Bill Walton.
Hello from Draddy Gym at Manhattan College in the Bronx, N.Y. The Tigers will start the same five as in its first seven games, with Jason Briggs, Kareem Maddox, Doug Davis, Patrick Saunders and Pawel Buczak. The Tigers will look for their third win in the season's first four road games today.
Friday, December 12, 2008
Coming Attractions
Beginning Monday, www.goprincetontigers.com (TigerBlog's big brother) will begin counting down both the top 12 athletes and stories in Princeton sports for the calendar year 2008. These lists were compiled by the TigerBlog staff (the Princeton Office of Athletic Communications), and they will appear in descending order from 12-1 over a basically two-week period on the main Website. TigerBlog will offer some commentary as well.
The ground rules were that athletes were considered only for what they did in a Princeton uniform in the calendar year of 2008. Diana Matheson, for instance, competed in the 2008 Olympics, but she was ineligible for the list because she didn't compete for Princeton in 2008.
As for the events themselves, they include single-game accomplishments and general team accomplishments. Interestly, a vote of the TigerBlog staff had the No. 1 story be unanimous, while there were four different votes (out of five people) for the No. 2 story.
As always, TigerBlog welcomes feedback. Look for the two lists begining Monday.
The ground rules were that athletes were considered only for what they did in a Princeton uniform in the calendar year of 2008. Diana Matheson, for instance, competed in the 2008 Olympics, but she was ineligible for the list because she didn't compete for Princeton in 2008.
As for the events themselves, they include single-game accomplishments and general team accomplishments. Interestly, a vote of the TigerBlog staff had the No. 1 story be unanimous, while there were four different votes (out of five people) for the No. 2 story.
As always, TigerBlog welcomes feedback. Look for the two lists begining Monday.
Thursday, December 11, 2008
History Lesson
Here at TigerBlog HQ, we were lamenting the technical malfunctions that prevented us from blogging during last night's Princeton-Rutgers men's basketball game. The conversation turned from there to the fact that it was the 115th meeting between Princeton and Rutgers in men's basketball, and from there to the question of what is the most-played non-Ivy rivalry in any sport in Tiger history.
The answer is that Princeton and Rutgers have played 149 baseball games.
The most-played rivalry in any sport is men's hockey against Yale, which stands at 230 and counting. Some of the other top numbers by sport include 219 men's basketball games against Columbia and 88 men's lacrosse games against Yale.
On the women's side, the Princeton-Dartmouth 's hockey and Princeton-Penn basketball series both have 64 meetings, though the hockey series has already had one of its meetings this year, so the basketball series will be in the lead at the end of this winter, unless Princeton and Dartmouth play in the ECAC playoffs.
The Princeton-Penn softball series, though, has had 55 previous meetings, and the softball teams play each other four times a year. At this rate, the softball series will pass the other two in the next five years (depending on playoff meetings).
The answer is that Princeton and Rutgers have played 149 baseball games.
The most-played rivalry in any sport is men's hockey against Yale, which stands at 230 and counting. Some of the other top numbers by sport include 219 men's basketball games against Columbia and 88 men's lacrosse games against Yale.
On the women's side, the Princeton-Dartmouth 's hockey and Princeton-Penn basketball series both have 64 meetings, though the hockey series has already had one of its meetings this year, so the basketball series will be in the lead at the end of this winter, unless Princeton and Dartmouth play in the ECAC playoffs.
The Princeton-Penn softball series, though, has had 55 previous meetings, and the softball teams play each other four times a year. At this rate, the softball series will pass the other two in the next five years (depending on playoff meetings).
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
First Goals
For those Princeton hockey fans that double as Philadelphia Flyer fans, you already know that Darroll Powe '07 scored his first NHL goal last night in the Flyers' 4-3 win over the Islanders at the Wachovia Center. The goal came in his sixth NHL game and was scored on former Brown netminder Yann Danis. Powe faced Danis twice in his collegiate career during his freshman campaign of 2003-04 but was scoreless against the All-America goaltender. Click here then scroll down to watch the goal. (Just an aside but the NHL website is great. Highlights of every goal scored.)
Speaking of firsts, this season two Tiger freshmen scored their first collegiate goals and both came in the same game, a 5-3 win over then fourth-ranked Northeastern. Freshman Marc Hagel scored the first two goals of the win and classmate Derrick Pallis had the shorthanded game winner. Hagel's first goal was a little unconventional as his shot from the boards bounced off the post into the crease and then caromed into the net as Northeastern's goalie scrambled to get back into the net. It was a fitting first goal for Hagel considering how his brother Kyle, a 2008 Princeton graduate, scored his first collegiate goal. Kyle's goal came in the first game of his sophomore year at Notre Dame when Mike Moore's point shot bounced off the shoulder of the Irish goalkeeper, hit off Kyle's facemask and wound up in the back of the net.
Speaking of Kyle Hagel, he is in his first season playing in the ECHL for the Fresno Falcons. He has five goals this season and scored his first professional goal in a 1-0 win over the Ontario Reign. Hagel's classmate at Princeton, Mike Moore, who assisted on Hagel's first college goal also has scored his first professional goal this season as he is playing in the AHL for the Worcester Sharks. Moore's first goal came in a win over the Norfolk Admirals on the power play.
Tuesday, December 9, 2008
In Case You Were Wondering ...
TigerBlog is, like say "Batman," not really anyone's actual name, as you clearly could have surmised. TigerBlog is a joint effort of the Princeton Office of Athletic Communications, begun this past September as a way to add additional - and different - content to goprincetontigers.com and to give an added dimension to in-game coverage.
It seems to be a successful venture so far. Readership is on its way up, and it has gone considerably higher since we committed to updating daily during the week in addition to in-game blogging.
One by-product of this is that you have five different people offering up five different historical perspectives, all under the collective name of "TigerBlog." This means that when one TigerBlogger says that his only knowledge of Bob Lanier is from the movie "Airplane," it doesn't necessarily apply to the senior TigerBlogger, who remembers Bob Lanier as a dominant NBA big man and for having size 22 shoes, the largest in NBA history. One TigerBlogger, the lone female of the group, tends towards using exclamation points, which other TigerBloggers would never do.
We here at TigerBlog Central feel like these five different points of view under one collective name leads to something interesting and unique. We'd like to thank you for tuning in and hopefully the word will continue to spread.
In the meantime, make sure you read yesterday's post about Chris Ayres and the wrestling program, located just below this one.
If you have any thoughts, TigerBlog welcomes the feedback.
It seems to be a successful venture so far. Readership is on its way up, and it has gone considerably higher since we committed to updating daily during the week in addition to in-game blogging.
One by-product of this is that you have five different people offering up five different historical perspectives, all under the collective name of "TigerBlog." This means that when one TigerBlogger says that his only knowledge of Bob Lanier is from the movie "Airplane," it doesn't necessarily apply to the senior TigerBlogger, who remembers Bob Lanier as a dominant NBA big man and for having size 22 shoes, the largest in NBA history. One TigerBlogger, the lone female of the group, tends towards using exclamation points, which other TigerBloggers would never do.
We here at TigerBlog Central feel like these five different points of view under one collective name leads to something interesting and unique. We'd like to thank you for tuning in and hopefully the word will continue to spread.
In the meantime, make sure you read yesterday's post about Chris Ayres and the wrestling program, located just below this one.
If you have any thoughts, TigerBlog welcomes the feedback.
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