MAC ATTACK: Princeton University women’s lacrosse player Jami MacDonald, left, fires a shot in recent action. Last Saturday, freshmen attacker MacDonald tallied a game-high four goals with one assist to help Princeton defeat Columbia 19-4. The No. 22 Tigers, now 5-5 overall and 2-1 Ivy League, host No. 11 Loyola on April 12 and Brown on April 15. (Photo by Frank Wojciechowski)

By Bill Alden

For Jami MacDonald, seeing her older brother, Mikey, play for the Princeton University men’s lacrosse team in 2012 changed the course of her life.

“I have wanted to play here since his first game,” said MacDonald of her brother, a 2015 Princeton alum who scored 208 points in his Tiger career on 132 goals and 76 assists and was the Ivy League Co-Player of the year as a senior. “I was here when I was about 7 years old, it was great. After watching my brother play, this has been a dream of mine.”

That dream is coming true for MacDonald this spring as she has come to Princeton and joined its women’s lax team, emerging as a go-to scorer in her debut campaign for the Tigers.

Last Saturday, freshman attacker MacDonald tallied a game-high four goals along with one assist to help Princeton cruise to a 19-4 win over Columbia before 816 at Class of 1952 Stadium as it improved to 5-5 overall and 2-1 Ivy.

With the Tigers coming off a disappointing 19-17 loss to Saint Joseph’s on Wednesday, MacDonald helped Princeton get off to a fast start against the Lions, tallying the first goal of the game and adding another moments later as it jumped out to a 5-0 lead nine minutes into the game.

“It was really great as a team to come together,” said MacDonald. “We have really been focusing on that all week. This was awesome coming off the loss. We were all just ready to work together and stick it to them and get off to a really good start.”

The Tigers  never looked back, building their lead to 12-3 at half and 16-3 entering the fourth quarter.

“Our biggest goal was to string together four quarters of great play,” said MacDonald, reflecting on the win which saw Kari Buonanno and McKenzie Blake each score three goals. “I think we did a really good job of that. That is why we were as successful we were.”

Princeton also got some good play at the defensive end against the Lions, allowing its fewest goals of any game this season.

“I think Jenn (head coach Jenn Cook) and Kerrin (assistant coach Kerrin Maurer) have done a great job watching film, going over every aspect of defense and working on both individual and team stuff,” said MacDonald, who scooped up a team-high three ground balls against the Lions.

Reflecting on her performance, which was MacDonald’s second highest offensive output this season besides tallying six goals and an assist in an 18-12 win over Rutgers on March 1, she saw it as a joint effort.

“It was just the collaboration of everyone, we understood what was needed,” said MacDonald. “We understood when we needed to have an assisted goal or clear out for each other.”

In making the transition to college lacrosse, MacDonald has focused on being quicker.

“I think just the speed of the play, that was the biggest challenge,” said MacDonald, who is third in scoring on the team with 33 points on 21 goals and 12 assists. “Everyone on the team does a great job of preparing each other.”

In addition, MacDonald has benefitted from the advice of her older brother.

“He just said take it one game at a time and just make yourself better every day,” said MacDonald.

As No. 22 Princeton looks forward to hosting No. 11 Loyola on April 12 and Brown on April 15, MacDonald believes that dealing with some tough setbacks has helped the Tigers get better.

“We learned some needed lessons from those games, they are going to be really helpful going forward,” said MacDonald, referring to losses to Yale (15-10 on March 4), Penn State (16-14 on March 18), and Maryland (15-11 on March 29).

“We just have to keep our heads down and keep working. We have a really good shot if we just keep getting better every day as we have been in the past.”