CLEAR FOCUS: Princeton University women’s lacrosse senior star Lindsey deButts clears the ball in a game earlier this spring. Last Saturday, All-American defender deButts helped Princeton top Virginia 9-7. The 19th-ranked Tigers, now 3-2 overall and 1-0 in Ivy League action, play at Columbia (1-4 overall, 0-1 Ivy) on March 21 and at No. 14 Johns Hopkins (6-2) on March 24. (Photo by Frank Wojciechowski)

Lindsey deButts is wearing a large knee brace on her left leg and is coming off hip surgery over the offseason but the senior star defender for the Princeton University women’s lacrosse team is not one to complain.

“I think it would be hard to find any senior who isn’t a little beaten up,” said DeButts, who also had hernia surgery in her junior season and didn’t practice until two days before the 2011 season opener.

“I have had a few extra injuries maybe but when you step on the field for a game, you do what you have to do to get through it. I think everyone has some bump or bruise somewhere.”

Last Saturday, deButts fought through the pain to help Princeton edge Virginia 9-7 before a crowd of 1,238 at Sherrerd Field at Class of 1952 Stadium.

With the teams locked in a 4-4 stalemate at halftime, DeButts and the Tigers knew that they needed to ratchet up the intensity if they were going to come out on top.

“We wanted to pick it up and be a little more aggressive,” said deButts. “We knew that they were going to come out hungry in the second half.”

Princeton showed its hunger, scoring three straight goals to start the second half and putting together a 5-1 run to build a 9-5 lead. Then after Virginia scored two straight goals, the defense held the fort to secure the victory as the Tigers improved to 3-2 overall.

“This was a great complete game for us, I think, at both ends,” asserted the 5‘7 deButts, a native of Alexandria, Va. “The attack had some really nice goals and on defense, we had some great stops.”

In deButts’s view, the win over Virginia was a great confidence builder for the Tigers.

“I think this was a big game for us; we had lost two tough games, most recently the one to Duke (12-9 on March 3),” said deButts, reflecting on the tight rivalry which is now knotted at 15-15 all-time.

“UVa is No. 10 so it was a big game to prove that we are still in this season. The Duke game is behind us now and we are moving forward with this win. We hadn’t won against UVa since my freshman year. Last year we lost by one. Regardless of their ranking, it is always a tough game.”

As the defensive quarterback for the Tigers, deButts feels a responsibility to help the Princeton back line play tough.

“I try to keep everyone composed and keep that talk up,” explained deButts, a two-time All American, who has 11 ground balls and eight caused turnovers so far this season.

“I think today, it was really a team defense. Annie [Woehling] played great in the goal; she had an incredible game and I think that really helped anchor the rest of the team. It really gave us the confidence and we were feeding off of each other. It was a real team effort.”

As deButts looks ahead, she is confident the Tigers can make a good run in Ivy competition.

“The Ivies have become super competitive over the last couple of years; it makes it really exciting and really fun,” said deButts.

“I think we are anxious to get going. We just had Brown and we start in again with Columbia. I think this is a good way to start hitting our stride.”

Princeton head coach Chris Sailer believes the win over Virginia can get Princeton headed in the right direction.

“It is a huge confidence builder for us,” asserted Sailer. “That Duke game was just one we wish we could have another shot at; we let that get away. In our loss to Rutgers, we just didn’t play very well so we are starting to put things together. To come out and compete against a good team that has had some wins against Loyola and Syracuse, I think this is going to do a lot for us.”

Freshman goalie Woehling did a lot for the Tigers in the win over Virginia, making 13 saves.

“Obviously Annie had a terrific day in the goal; she probably had more saves today than she has had all year,” added Sailer of her goalie who came into the day with a total of 16 saves in Princeton’s first four games. “She doubled her save total so that was a huge game.”

In Sailer’s view, the combination of deButts and fellow senior Cathy Bachur also played a major role in containing the high-powered Cavaliers.

“The defense played a really good game; we knew Virginia has a ton of movement, a ton of cuts and we didn’t give them any open looks,” said Sailer.

“Lindsey is so tough; she is playing on a sprained knee right now and you would never know it. She just gets out there and competes. Bachur is just so steady. I thought the defense, as a unit, did really well today.”

The Tiger offensive unit was sparked by the one-two punch of senior Cassie Pyle and junior Jaci Gassaway with the former tallying three goals and an assist and the latter chipping in two goals and an assist.

“Cassie is just so quick; she is really hard to contain,” said Sailer, who also got goals from Charlotte Davis, Sarah Lloyd, Sam Ellis, and Erin Slifer.

“She found her opportunities and took them. Jaci is definitely a leader down there; she calms things down; she calls out plays and is always good for some goals and/or assists. She and Cassie had some really beautiful give-and-go plays today. They were reading the defense really well early and had a couple of really nice goals in the beginning of the game.”

With Princeton finding its game, Sailer is looking for a nice spring. “The Ivy is going to be tough, you look at four or five teams that have a legitimate shot at it and so you just have to be at your best every game,” said Sailer, whose team topped Brown 18-8 on March 10 in its Ivy opener and plays at Columbia (1-4 overall, 0-1 Ivy) on March 21 and at No. 14 Johns Hopkins (6-2) on March 24.

“We have Columbia, we have Hopkins, and then we have Cornell and then we have a few non-conference games in the middle of the Ivies but that is clearly going to be our focus as we move forward. We won the tournament last year; we would like to win the regular season title this time.”

For deButts, the focus is on savoring her last season in a Princeton uniform.

“It is so weird that it is the final year,” said deButts. “I think every game, you appreciate the time out there and you realize that you don’t have many games left. I think all of us are trying to make the most of each game.”