BURNING DESIRE: Princeton University field hockey star Kelsey Byrne, left, battles a Duke player in a game this fall. Senior midfielder Byrne helped the Tigers go 14-5 this fall on the way to a ninth straight Ivy League crown and an appearance in the NCAA quarterfinals. (Photo by Frank Wojciechowski)

While the Princeton University field hockey team had a bull’s eye on its back this fall as defending national champions, the players didn’t view that as a burden.

“They are not fazed by pressure; they have so much pressure in the classroom that field hockey is an outlet,” said Princeton head coach Kristen Holmes-Winn.

“They have the right perspective, they are into it but they are not consumed by what other teams are doing. They go on their own path and it doesn’t seem to be important what’s happening externally.”

While that path included ups and downs this fall as the Tigers dealt with injuries and struggled to find the best combination, the players kept on task as the program won its ninth straight Ivy League title.

“They kept working throughout the process,” said Holmes-Winn. “We had injuries and other things that didn’t allow us to put our best team out there. It is about playing your best hockey at the end of the season. You have to be rested and ready to put everything into it.”

Riding a seven-game winning streak coming into the NCAA tournament, Princeton started its title defense facing a Penn State team that handed the Tigers a tough regular season loss.

Showing skill and resilience as Princeton All-American senior star Julia Reinprecht got knocked out of the game with a head injury, the Tigers prevailed 5-4 to avenge the regular season setback.

“As we prepared for the second game against Penn State, we realized there was nothing we could extract or gain from the first one because we had totally changed,” said Holmes-Winn, who got two goals from senior star Amanda Bird in the win over the Nittany Lions with Allison Evans, Cat Caro and former Stuart Country Day and Peddie School standout Maddie Copeland adding one apiece.

“We were able to put out our very best lineup. We thought we would match up well and we did. We peaked at the right time. We really improved in the front third, that reflected the work of the girls and the coaches.”

In its quarterfinal matchup against host and top-ranked Maryland, the Tigers fought hard to overcome the loss of Reinprecht but fell just short. Princeton led the Terps 1-0 and 2-1 before falling 3-2.

“When you take Julia out, we had to move a striker into the midfield; she is so influential at both ends of the field and on our corners,” said Holmes-Winn, who got goals from Evans and Sydney Kirby in the defeat as the Tigers ended the season with a 14-5 overall record.

“The team really rallied. I think the girls were inspired to get through the weekend so Julia would get to play again. Julia talked to the team and told them to believe, that they could do this. It is a marker of her character and who she is as a sportsman that she put the team first even though she was suffering. In order to compete effectively against Maryland, every single player had to lift her game.”

Holmes-Winn was proud of how her team lifted its game as it dealt with a regular season schedule that included eventual national champion Connecticut along with such other national powers as Duke, Michigan State, Syracuse, Penn Sate, and Maryland.

“The season put us in a position to play our best,” said Holmes-Winn. “They were focused at each phase and stayed in the moment. Every player gave her best effort in practice and in training.”

Princeton’s group of seniors, which included Allegra Mango, Michelle Cesan, Kelsey Byrne, and Christina Maida in addition to Bird and Reinprecht, gave a great effort over their stellar careers.

“They are irreplaceable in many ways, as a class they balance each other positionally and from a leadership perspective,” said Holmes-Winn.

“Each handles a different piece. Some are more off field leaders, others lead by their work rate on the field, others raise their voices, and some are more connected to the freshmen. It was great that the underclassmen got to learn from such a special group.”

In the view of Holmes-Winn, her group of returning players has the chance to do some special things.

“I think we have a lot of exciting playmakers; we have speed from top to bottom,” said Holmes-Winn.

“They just need to be more comfortable with the ball. When that happens, they can take information under pressure and assimilate it in games. If we can get that taken care of over spring and summer, we can be up at the level we want.”