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Kolodner's Coolness Under Fire in Goal a Key As Tiger Women's Lax Produces 16-0 Record
By Bill Alden
It didn't take long for Sarah Kolodner to demonstrate to her teammates on the Princeton University women's lacrosse team that she possesses a special poise.
Three games into her freshman season in 2002, Kolodner became the Tigers' starting goalie. Playing like a grizzled veteran, Kolodner posted a 5.85 goals against average and went 18-0 in the net as Princeton won the NCAA title.
Last season, Kolodner's steadying presence was a major factor as she gave up just 6.23 goals a game in helping the Tigers to a second straight national crown.
Last Wednesday, Kolodner gave the latest demonstration of her coolness under fire as she gamely withstood a barrage of shots from powerful Maryland in a highly anticipated match-up between the programs that have won the last 10 NCAA titles.
The junior from Cold Spring Harbor, N.Y. came up with 10 saves, many of them on point-blank shots as the top-ranked Tigers edged the No. 4 Terps 8-7 in double overtime before 1,311 at Class of 1952 Stadium.
The Tigers needed all of Kolodner's heroics as Maryland battled back from a 7-4 deficit to force overtime. The goalie came up with perhaps her biggest stop of the night when she turned away Maryland star Kelly Coppedge late in the first overtime.
Afterward, Kolodner acknowledged that she had relished the challenge of taking on Maryland's high-octane attack. "They had some great attackers," said the unflappable Kolodner, who picked up five saves last Saturday as Princeton edged Brown 5-4 to end the regular season at 16-0 overall and 7-0 in Ivy play. "I don't know if any team has had a run on us like they did late in the second half. I thought our defense played unbelievably throughout the game."
For Kolodner, the game against Maryland was just another learning experience in her progress in the cage. "I'm always learning more and getting better," said Kolodner, whose regular season goals against average of 5.93 puts her at the head of the class among her peers. "The more experience I have, the better I feel. This year as opposed to my freshman year and last year, I know the way our defense should be run."
Princeton head coach Chris Sailer certainly feels good about having Kolodner as her team's last line of defense. "Sarah had some really big saves tonight, it made a difference for us," said Sailer, whose club extended its program-record winning streak to 25 with the win over Brown and now waits to find out who it will face in the NCAA tourney which starts on May 13.
"I thought she backed us up really well tonight. I think this was a great game for her going into the post-season. She's had a good stretch the last few weeks."
In Sailer's view, her club will benefit collectively from withstanding the challenge presented by Maryland, a program which won seven straight NCAA titles between 1995-2001.
"It was a tough one for us, things weren't going our way for a good bit of that game," explained Sailer. "It was good for us to play this close a game against a team that plays so smart. The defensive effort was fantastic, holding them to seven goals. We were so alert and on top of things. We had to really rise to the occasion."
The toughness the Tigers showed against the Terps came in handy three days later against Brown as Princeton fought back from a second-half deficit to edge the Bears on a Lindsey Biles' tally and complete the program's first-ever perfect regular season.
Kolodner, for her part, is more than ready for the post-season. "We're just really excited," said Kolodner. "We just want to make sure that we're going to be at our best with the Final Four being here."
While Kolodner's excitement is understandable, the Tigers' chances for a three-peat may rest on their netminder's unique coolness under fire.
