As the end of the 2012 men’s soccer season approaches, the competition is white hot with three teams in contention for the Ivy title. Brown continues to lead the Ancient Eight, with Cornell and Dartmouth right on its heels. Meanwhile, Harvard and Penn still await their first Ivy wins, while Princeton, Yale, and Columbia languish in mid-table mediocrity.
BROWN
The Bears (12-1-2, 4-0-1 Ivy) stayed on track toward winning the Ivy title, solidifying their top-dog position with a 1-0 win over Penn. Living up to his status as Brown’s leading striker, sophomore Ben Maurey scored the winning goal for the Bears for the third week in a row. The Bears did not hesitate to establish their lead over the Quakers, scoring the game’s solitary goal less than four minutesxxxin.vvxxxxThis crucial victory brings the Bears’ unbeaten streak to 11 games.
CORNELL
The Big Red (13-1-0, 4-1-0) delivered Princeton its first Ivy loss by shutting them out this past Saturday for a 1-0 win. Cornell’s Daniel Haber scored the game’s lone goal two minutes into the second half after an impressive run from junior Stephen Reisert. The win was crucial as it took away some of the sting of Cornell’s first conference loss last week. The Big Red will need to continue to win games, though, if the team hopes to move past Brown and win the Ivy title.
DARTMOUTH
The Big Green (8-6-0, 4-1-0) conquered the Crimson during their game on Saturday, clinching a 3-1 victory over their visiting opponents. Sophomore Alex Adelabu dominated the Harvard defense, scoring a pair of goals and earning him the title of Ivy League Player of the Week for the second time this season. With the first half ending in a 1-1 tie, the Big Green’s offense woke up in the second half and pounded the net, with nine players taking shots. Still, Harvard did not crack until the 77th minute, when Adelabu capitalized on defensive mistakes to take the 2-1 lead. Freshman Alberto Gorini solidified the lead with another goal with eight minutes remaining. Dartmouth is in a strong position as it holds onto a four-game winning streak and looks to challenge Brown for the League title.
HARVARD
It seemed as though things were looking up for the Crimson (2-9-3, 0-4-1) during its away game against Dartmouth this past weekend. Harvard came out of the gate with intensity, establishing an early lead with a goal by freshman Jake Freeman in the ninth minute of play. Following an unfortunate pattern, the team was unable to maintain their initial success and soon lost the lead in the 23rd minute. With just two weeks left of Ivy play, Harvard is still winless in the conference.
PENN
In one of their toughest matches of the season, the Quakers (0-5-0, 2-12-0) succumbed to first place Brown 1-0 this past weekend. Sophomore Duke Lacroix attempted to pressure the Bears’ back-line, taking a team high of seven shots, but couldn’t find the back of the net. On the other half of the field, Max Kurtzman held his own with a total of eight saves, keeping the Quakers in the game. Penn was unable to mount a successful offensive attack against the Bears, and now has a six-game losing streak. Like the Crimson, the Quakers have yet to beat a league opponent.
PRINCETON
The Tigers (6-6-2, 2-1-2) fell to the Big Red this past Saturday in Ithaca. The 1-0 result marked Princeton’s first Ivy loss this season as the Tigers struggled to develop a rhythm on the field despite outshooting Cornell 12-9. The Tigers’ faltering offense couldn’t convert their numerous scoring chances, though, and it only took the Big Red one goal to take the win.
YALE
The Bulldogs (4-7-4, 1-2-2) could not break the tie with the evenly-matched Lions during their home game against Columbia this weekend. Though Yale trailed at the half, Columbia goalkeeper Kyle Jackson was unable to block Scott Armbrust’s equalizing goal just before the 69th minute, leading to extended time. In the second overtime, Yale’s Kevin Michalak could have clinched the win if not for a key deflection by Jackson. For his performance, Bulldog Tyler Detorie earned the title of Ivy League Rookie of the Week due to his game-saving defensive clear to thwart the Lions’ last-ditch attempt to take the lead.
