Cavaliers Fall in National Championship Game to Princeton in Overtime 8-7
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May 18, 2003
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The Virginia Cavaliers (17-5) fell in overtime to the defending national champion Princeton Tigers (16-4) by a score of 8-7 in overtime in the national title game. Captains Tiffany Schummer and Lauri Kenis combined for seven caused turnovers and five ground balls while Lauren Aumiller had four assists and Cary Chasney had a hat trick to lead Virginia offensively. Andrea Pfeiffer had 10 saves as Virginia concluded their 2003 campaign as the national runners-up with a record of 17-5.
Virginia jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first seven minutes of the game behind three assists by Aumiller. Kenis caused a turnover and Schummer scooped up the ground ball and the Cavaliers set their attack. Aumiller fed an opposite post feed to Cary Chasney, who scored 4:24 into the game to put Virginia on top. Caitlin Banks won the ensuing draw and the Hoos got the ball upfield to Aumiller, who fed Chasney streaking down the left side of the field. Chasney unleashed a shot from the left side of the cage and scored one minute after her last goal to give the Hoos a 2-0 lead. Courtney Muller scrapped out a draw control on the next draw and the Virginia offense set up in their zone where Morgan Thalenberg cut to the front of the cage. Aumiller dumped the ball inside to her and Thalenberg scored, putting Virginia up 3-0 with 6:48 gone in the game, forcing the Tigers to take a timeout.
Princeton countered with a pair of goals from Theresa Sherry in a two-minute span to pull within one with 20:12 to play in the half.
The Tigers controlled the ball in their offensive zone but an errant pass went out to the restraining line and Chasney scooped up the ball and brought it upfield where Amy Appelt scored at the 10:04 mark to give Virginia a 4-2 lead. The teams switched possessions a couple of times before the Tigers capitalized on a turnover as Elizabeth Pillion bounced a shot into the cage with 3:16 to go before halftime, sending the teams to the break at 4-3.
An errant Princeton pass into the arc was picked up by Pfeiffer, and Virginia brought the ball upfield where Courtney Young quicksticked an Aumiller pass to the back of the net, stretching the Cavalier lead to 5-3. Princeton countered three inutes later as Pillion again scored for the Tigers.
Chasney won the next draw for Virginia and Banks took the ball to the cage and as she cut away, shot low past the keeper to put Virginia up by two again at 6-4 with 23:37 to play in regulation. The Tigers then tied the score on a pair of goals by Lindsey Biles in a span of 58 seconds, knotting the teams at 6-6 with 19:54 to go.
Virginia took the lead again as Kenis intercepted a pass at the top of the fan with one hand, and in the transition Chasney notched a goal, giving her a hat trick in the game and putting the Cavaliers up by one with 13:57 to go in regulation.
Princeton won the draw and took a series of shots on goal, but Pfeiffer held them at bay with a series of saves, and the Cavaliers were able to get the ball back where they attempted a stall with four minutes to play. A Cavalier turnover at the restraining line gave the ball back to the Tigers with just under two minutes to go, and Princeton scored on a fast break to tie the game with 1:39 to go in regulation.
Meredith Lazarus won the draw for the Cavaliers, but they were unable to score on the possession, sending the game into overtime.
In the extra session, Chasney won the opening draw but the Cavaliers did not get on the board and Princeton was able to get one shot on cage, but it was saved by Pfeiffer at the buzzer.
The Tigers won the draw in the second half of overtime and Sherry scored with 1:29 on the clock, the first time that Princeton had led in the game. The Tigers then won the ensuing draw and were able to run out the clock and claim the title.
Aumiller finished the game with four assists, giving her 100 points for the season, making her the first Virginia player and the fourth person in the history of Division I lacrosse to notch back-to-back 100-point seasons. Tiffany Schummer’s four caused turnovers today extended her school record to 127 and gave her 52 for the season, the third-highest total in school history.
Linescore 1 2 ot FPrinceton 3 4 1 8Virginia 4 3 0 7
scoring summary:4:24 V Chasney (Aumiller) 1-05:24 V Chasney (Aumiller) 2-06:48 V Thalenberg (Aumiller) 3-07:27 P Sherry 3-19:37 P Sherry (Fiore) 3-210:04 V Appelt 4-226:44 P Pillion (Fiore) 4-332:30 V Young (Aumiller) 5-335:25 P Pillion 5-436:23 V Banks 6-439:06 P Biles (Hogan) 6-540:04 P Biles (Hogan) 6-646:09 V Chasney 7-658:21 P Miller 7-764:31 P Sherry 7-8
Scoring: Aumiller 0-4=4, Chasney 3-0=3, Thalenberg 1-0=1, Appelt 1-0=1, Banks 1-0=1, Young 1-0=1
Princeton: Sherry 3-0=3, Pillion 2-0=2, Biles 2-0=2, Fiore 0-2=2, Hogan 0-2=2, Miller 1-0=1
Keepers: V: Pfeiffer (66 mins, 10 saves, 8 GA) P: Kolodner (66 mins, 9 saves, 7 GA)
Draws: V: 10, P: 9Shots: V: 13, P 23Ground balls: V 29, P 24Caused turnovers: V 13, P 10Turnovers: V 19, P 13Clearing: V 11-12, P 12-178-meter attempts: V: 0, P: 08-meter shots: V: 0, P: 0