After middie Adam McGowan wrenched the first face-off from the center stripe, the junior moved down the left side and put the offense in motion.

With freshman middie Doug Logigian working the top of the zone and senior attackman Lawson DeVries behind the net, the Crimson methodically worked the ball around the perimeter.

DeVries drew numerous double teams coming around the left side of the cage, but could find no one in front for the dish. Princeton's strong play on the crease stifled the Crimson throughout the first half, as the Tigers slid well from the off-side to account for double-teams on the near post.

"We were able to draw the doubles [double teams] and get people open, but we could not really find a lot of good shots in close," Primm said. "They were very good around the crease, and though I don't think their size was a big factor, they were good at bringing pressure and getting our offense out of its full rhythm."

The Crimson got few chances in the middle all day, but the first two periods were particularly arid for Harvard. After a full five minutes around Princeton's cage, Tiger goalie Brendan Tierney, who had nine saves on the day, stopped a shot from junior attackman Roger Buttles and play went the other way.

Unfortunately for the Crimson, the Tigers moved down the field and put pressure on goalie Keith Cynar immediately.

Cynar, who had 21 saves for his third-straight game with 20 or more, made a huge stop early in the Tiger's initial set, after Brendan Tierney got open on the doorstep.