Women’s soccer looks to upset Harvard in season finale

The Columbia women’s soccer team seeks its fourth Ivy League victory of the year when it hosts Harvard on Saturday night. The Crimson, which has clinched at least a share of the conference title, needs a win to ensure sole possession of first place.

Last season, Columbia lost to Harvard in heartbreaking fashion. Both teams entered the game with 4-1-1 conference records and, along with Princeton, sat atop the Ivy standings. With nine seconds remaining in the second overtime, Columbia was called for a foul in its box. Defender Lizzy Nichols converted on the ensuing penalty kick to give the Crimson a 2-1 victory and a share of the league championship. The Lions fell from first place to third after Princeton beat Penn for a share of the title.

This year, Columbia (7-6-3, 3-2-1 Ivy) has been mathematically eliminated from championship contention. After a scoreless draw with Princeton on Oct. 17, the Lions suffered a 2-0 loss at Dartmouth on Oct. 25. Columbia followed its lackluster performance against the Big Green with a solid 1-0 win over Yale on Oct. 30.

With the victory, the Lions knocked the Bulldogs to second place in the Ivy standings. Columbia had just seven shots to Yale’s six, but the Lions took eight corner kicks to the Bulldogs’ three. Senior midfielder Sophie Reiser provided the game-winning goal in the 37th minute.
Harvard’s only league loss in 2009 was a 1-0 defeat by Princeton on Oct. 24. The Crimson (8-6-1, 5-1-0) fared better in its next matchup, achieving a 2-1 victory over Dartmouth on Oct. 31.

“They’re clearly a very good team, and we respect that,” Columbia head coach Kevin McCarthy said of Harvard. “It’s a matter of finding the tipping point, and through our hard work and connected play, that’s our intention.”

Junior forward Katherine Sheeleigh garnered Ivy Player of the Week honors on Monday after scoring both of Harvard’s goals against Dartmouth. She has tallied a team-high eight goals this year. Sophomore midfielder Melanie Baskind, the reigning Ivy Rookie of the Year, has scored twice and leads the Crimson with six assists.

Saturday’s matchup marks not only the end of the season, but also the end of the road, for Columbia seniors Christina Eckhardt, Meggie Ford, Ashley Mistele, and Reiser. Eckhardt started 16 games as a sophomore and 12 as a junior. This year, she scored her first career goal against Portland, a squad ranked third at the time and now the number two team in the nation. Ford, a four-year starter, was an all-Ivy second team selection in 2008. Mistele was also a second-team pick last year and has been a regular starter since her sophomore season.

After scoring seven goals and notching 13 assists in her first two seasons combined, Reiser switched from midfielder to forward for the Lions’ 2008 campaign. The result was an explosion of offense—12 goals and 11 assists—and Ivy Player of the Year honors. Reiser, the only unanimous all-Ivy first team selection last season, has tallied seven goals and four assists while mainly playing in midfield this year.
These seniors began their Columbia careers in 2006, the Lions’ first and only Ivy championship season. Last year, they fell one win short of the title. Now, the four seniors enter their final weekend without the opportunity to win a second championship.

“It’s been a fast season, and it’s been tough … especially this week, knowing that we’re not quite playing for what we wanted to be playing for,” Reiser said. “Still, it’s been really inspiring that the four of us have put in such a consistent effort and passion for the team, and we’ve just really worked hard every day at practice this entire year. So to know that it’s going to end this week, I think, gives us a little added incentive to not give up now, and to really see the team through to the final win.”