NICK OF TIME: Princeton University field hockey player Nicole Catalino controls the ball in recent action. Last Friday against visiting Columbia, freshman Catalino scored the game-tying goal and game-winning tally in overtime as the 19th-ranked Tigers rallied from a 3-2 deficit to pull out a 4-3 victory. Princeton, now 6-4 overall and 3-0 Ivy League, plays at Brown on October 17. (Photo by Frank Wojciechowski)

After a powerful thunderstorm delayed the start of the last Friday evening’s showdown between the Princeton University field hockey team and visiting Columbia for 90 minutes, Nicole Catalino was hit with a jolt.

“I tweaked my hamstring five minutes into the game so I was off for a good 15 minutes in the first half,” said Princeton freshman standout Catalino.

Later in the evening, with Princeton trailing Columbia 3-2 in the waning moments of the second half, Catalino went off, scoring a goal to knot the contest at 3-3 with 3:13 remaining in regulation and force overtime before notching the game winner 1:38 in the extra session. The thrilling victory improved the 19th-ranked Tigers to 6-4 overall and 3-0 Ivy League.

Reflecting on the dramatic rally, Catalino said that she and her teammates were determined to come up big in the second half.

“It was about sticking together; we talked so much about team and how much this game means to us,” said Catalino, who played in the half with her right thigh wrapped in tape.

“We had a rough beginning to the season and we have just recently began working together as one unit. It was really important that we showed in this half how much we have improved and how much of a team we are.”

With Princeton keeping the ball in its attacking end for most of the half, Catalino sensed that the tying goal was coming.

“We really wanted it; I knew it was time,” said Catalino, who dove across the circle to redirect a
Teresa Benvenuti pass into the goal on a penalty corner play. “You could tell the last 15 minutes that we had most of the possession, we just needed to finish. We work on that corner so much and it felt good to finally score it. I was supposed to be in that position.”

Princeton liked its position as the contest headed into overtime. “You could tell that everyone wanted it and everyone was really passionate about the win,” said Catalino. “We wanted to go out there and show them right away that this was our game and we deserved to win it. That was what we did.”

Catalino didn’t waste any time giving the Tigers the win, tapping in a feed from Cat Caro on the backpost to successfully convert Princeton’s eighth corner of the evening.

“We had never done that corner before and our coach was just saying that for not having have done it before, it looked pretty good,” said Catalino. “It was about us all being in the right position.”

While Catalino was thrilled to find herself in position to tally the key goals, she was more focused on what it meant for the Tigers than individual glory.

“It feels really good but most importantly, it just feels good for my team,” said Catalino. “To be a part of the win in that way was really special, especially as a freshman.”

The 5’3 Lansdale, Pa. native is excited to be a part of the Princeton team. “The transition is a lot better than I expected, this is probably the greatest team you could be a part of,” said Catalino, who now has six goals on the season, second-most on the team behind the nine scored by senior star Maddie Copeland.

“There haven’t been any real difficulties. I struggled in the beginning, we have a lot of freshmen who play so it was finding our position on the team. Recently, we have found our niches and everything is looking good.”

Princeton head coach Kristen Holmes-Winn acknowledged that things weren’t looking good for the Tigers as they surrendered two goals in the last minute of the first half to find themselves trailing 3-2 at intermission.

“That is the beauty and agony of this game; you can control large bits and then just have one lapse and they capitalize,” said Holmes-Winn.

“Columbia played a sensational game. They defended really well, they came back for the ball really well. I think we kind of got it together in the second half. They absolutely won the first half in a lot of ways.”

At halftime, Holmes-Winn instructed her players to take care of things under their control.

“We had a couple of tactical adjustments but it was more let’s just stick to the principals,” recalled Holmes-Winn.

“It was let’s get our feet going, let’s defend and the attack will take care of itself.”

Holmes-Winn was not surprised to see Catalino cash in as the Princeton attack asserted itself in the second half.

“She is just a winner,” said Holmes-Winn of Catalino. “These guys just did not stop fighting. It is good to see. You never know but I thought we were creating enough chances that, gosh, one of these is going to fall.”

As the Tigers got ready to take the field for overtime, senior goalie Anya Gersoff took over the team huddle, loudly beseeching her teammates in no uncertain terms to keep battling.

“Anya is just a pro; she just takes care of all of the details and she is a fighter,” said Holmes-Winn.

“She is intense, she is focused. It was really good to see her express herself like that and the team responded so positively to it. That is the great aspect of our senior class, they are all contributing. Cat (junior Cat Caro) is our captain and is doing a remarkable job and the seniors are just filling in all the gaps. They are doing a great job.”

Princeton’s intensity paid dividends when it took care of business in the extra session.

“When you are in overtime and you have a corner, you just play hockey and you play around defenders,” said Holmes-Winn. “It was great to be able to take control of the overtime and finish.”

The heart displayed by the Tigers in pulling out the win is a great sign for the homestretch of the season.

“I think this team is not going to roll over, that is for sure,” said Holmes-Winn, whose squad has now won four games in a row and will look to keep on the winning track when it plays at Brown (5-6 overall, 1-2 Ivy) on October 17.

“There were patches where we just could not get in the groove and that is going to happen. To weather that storm, fight through, and still be able to get the outcome, it was so great to see. We just continue to build confidence.”

Catalino, for her part, concurs, seeing Princeton as a team that will fight to the end.

“Going into the latter part of the season, this game will be one we will be able to look back when we play extremely hard teams,” said Catalino. “If we are down, we know we have the power to come back.”