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No. 7 Syracuse (4-1, 0-0 Atlantic Coast) started its matchup against No. 17 Princeton (1-2, 0-0 Ivy League) trailing, with the Orange allowing two goals in the first quarter. They were not able to recover from this margin as SU dropped its first game of the season in a 5-1 defeat to the Tigers.

Sammy Popper notched the first goal for Princeton, four and a half minutes into the game. Over six minutes later, Liz Agatucci followed up Popper’s score with a goal of her own. After SU’s 6-2 win over Columbia last Sunday, head coach Ange Bradley stressed more discipline on defense and a commitment to fewer fouls. But the Orange struggled defensively, giving up three corners and four shots on goal during the opening period.

Syracuse’s defensive woes continued into the second quarter, with the team allowing three more shots and two more penalty corners. The Orange allowed a third goal four minutes into the period, after Ali McCarthy took a shot that beat Syracuse’s sophomore goalie, Brooke Borzymowski. She was eventually replaced by fellow sophomore Louise Pert at halftime.  

While the defense was unable to stop Princeton from taking shots, Syracuse offense got shots on net during the first half. The Orange tallied up seven shots in the first 30 minutes and had three penalty corners. However, Princeton goaltender Robyn Thompson stopped everything that came her way, making three saves in the first half. 

The second half started out much the same as the first. Syracuse had a few opportunities to score early in the third quarter. But Thompson were saved all of the Orange’s shot or they missed them wide. Despite the missed opportunities, Syracuse put pressure on Princeton offensively by getting the ball down into the Tigers’ end of the field. This consistent pressure by the Orange eventually led to their only goal of the day, which was scored by Quirine Comans 10 minutes into the period. This was Comans’ seventh goal of the season, which leads all SU players.

However, the Syracuse defense continued to falter in the third quarter, making repeated defensive mistakes which Princeton to get five shots on Pert. This included a penalty on Syracuse, which led to a goal by Sam Davidson for Princeton, giving it a 4-1 lead. 

In the fourth quarter, the Tigers scored their fifth goal of the day off a penalty corner, with Beth Yeager scoring with 12 minutes left in the game. The fourth quarter was much of the same as Syracuse gained little traction offensively and struggled on the defensive end. Syracuse had eight penalty corners and 10 shots in the fourth quarter yet was unable to score on any.