Booters to Face Wesleyan

The varsity soccer team, held to one goal in two games, faces Wesleyan today --a New England powerhouse that has tallied 11 times in its own last two outings. To make matters worse, the Crimson may be playing without the services of center forward Chris Ohiri.

Ohiri has been missing practice this week with an injured ankle and a pulled groin muscle. Even if be plays, the Nigerian star will undoubtedly be slowed by lack of work and the chronic muscle injury.

Also on the injured list is fullback Lou Williams. The defensive ace cut himself in a freak accident last week and will be carrying 17 stitched in his right knee when he steps onto the Business School held at 3 p.m. today.

With Williams unable to run at full speed, the Crimson secondary will have its hands fall containing a strong Wesleyan front line. The Cardinals sport the leading scorer of the New England League in center forward Brian Sharp.

Sharp, a sophomore, has booted seven goals in three games--all Cardinal victories. He will be assisted by veteran Pete Sipples, whose four goals at inside right give Wesleyan the best one-two punch in the north.

If the Crimson booters manage to hold these two scorers, they will still have to contend with another lineman, Bill Needham. Needham, along with Sipples, was high on the New England scoring lists last year.

A potent Cardinal offense is only one of the problems that Crimson coach Bruce Munro will be facing in today's game. The varsity's own front line has been able to score only once in its last 176 minutes of soccer. This goal, like eight of the other nine, came off the foot of Ohiri, who might not be playing today.

Crimson opponents have learned that if they can stop Ohiri they can stop Harvard. Both Williams and Amherst used this strategy to great advantage by double and triple-teaming the varsity center forward.

Munro indicated in practice this week that there may be a new offense in the making to offset this situation. "We've got to develop another scorer," he added, "to do well in the Ivy League."

If Ohiri is unable to go against the Cardinals, Al Chang will move from his inside right post to the crucial center forward position. This will leave John Thorndike, Steve Sewell, and Doug Gifford to share the inside line positions.

All three booters are good ball handlers, but only Sewell, owner of the ninth Crimson tally, has shown an ability to score. One of these three players will have to convert halfback Tony Davies' passes into goals if the Crimson is to beat Wesleyan.