Phillylacrosse.com, Posted 4/9/14
From Press Release
This one was lost for Princeton, and Tom Schreiber was going to be frustrated. Down one, seconds ticking away, and Schreiber went low on Matt Poillon to try to tie it, only to have Lehigh’s goalie make yet another great save.
That was with 28 seconds to go. As it turned out, this one was far from over, and when it finally ended, in the second overtime, Schreiber was being mobbed by his teammates.
Princeton came up with a turnover, had another shot blocked, came up with a ground ball and got it to Kip Orban, who ripped one past Poillon with 2.7 seconds left to tie it. Then, just over a minute into the second overtime, Schreiber nailed the game-winner – his fourth of the night – to give Princeton a frantic 10-9 victory over Lehigh.
The win improved Princeton to 6-4 overall, while Lehigh fell to 9-4. The Mountain Hawks had won three straight.
Junior Kurtis Kaunas (Parkland) scored the go-ahead goal with 1:22 left in regulation to give the Mountain Hawks the 9-8 lead. Junior Dan Taylor led the offense with five goals to tie a career high while classmate Matt Poillon finished with 13 saves, including six in the first quarter.
“It was a great game. It was two teams battling hard,” said Lehigh head coach Kevin Cassese. “There was good energy on both sides of the ball. Both teams really wanted this game. Both teams fought tooth and nail for it and that’s how you get a double overtime game. It was a great environment and great to play on national TV (ESPNU). Congrats to Princeton for getting the job done.”
PLAYER OF THE GAME – Tom Schreiber scored four goals and had to work like a dog for everything he got against Lehigh, which came in second in Division I with a 6.50 goals per game average. In the process Schreiber moved past Josh Sims for the Princeton record for goals in a career by a midfielder with 105, after Sims had had 103. The game ended when Schreiber set a screen for
Kip Orban and then got the ball back; in a split second it was behind Matt Poillon and the Princeton celebration was on. Schreiber’s game-winner came with 1:09 gone in the second overtime.
PLAYER OF THE GAME RUNNER UP – Kip Orban found himself in the right place at the right time as the clock was winding down in regulation. Princeton, down 9-8 with less than 30 seconds to go, had two shots at the Lehigh goal, forcing a turnover in between to regain possession. After the second shot hit a foot and bounded towards midfield, Mike MacDonald finally tracked it down and flpped it to Orban. With the clock just under three seconds to go, Orban uncorked one high past Poillon, tying it with 2.7 seconds left. Orban then assisted on Schreiber’s game-winner, giving him a two-goal, two-assist night.
“We played great defense all day,” said Cassese. “That’s one of the top offenses in the country. Unfortunately, at the end of regulation, we couldn’t seal the deal. We had an opportunity to win the game. It didn’t have to go to overtime.
STAT OF THE GAME – The game was tied 1-1, 2-2, 3-3, 4-4, 5-5, 6-6, 7-7, 8-8 and 9-9 before Princeton won it 10-9. Neither team ever led by more than one.
WHAT THE BOX SCORE DOESN’T TELL YOU – Princeton and Lehigh, separated by about 70 miles, played for the first time since 1940.
OFFENSE vs. DEFENSE – Princeton ranked seventh in Division I in scoring offense, while Lehigh was second in Division I in scoring defense. The first half ended 3-2 Princeton, but there were 14 more goals after intermission.
FiRST OT – Lehigh won the faceoff to start the first overtime and had two shots go wide before Will Reynolds caused a turnover. Princeton cleared and had three shots of its own, including one from Mike MacDonald that was saved by Poillon. The teams traded turnovers, and Lehigh was unable to get another shot off.
SECOND OT – Lehigh again won the face-off to start the second overtime, and Kurtis Kaunas took a shot that Eric Sanschagrin saved. Princeton cleared and called timeout with 3:18 to go in the period. Schreiber’s game-winner came 27 seconds later.
NOTES – Jake Froccaro had a goal and two assists, and Tucker Shanley had two goals and one assist for Princeton… Will Reynolds caused three turnovers, including one with 46 seconds left in regulation as Lehigh was trying to run out the clock … Dan Taylor tied his career high with five goals for Lehigh … Poillon made nine of his 13 saves in the first half; Sanschagrin made 10 saves … Lehigh won 16 of 23 face-offs.
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