Harvard Soccer Eleven Faces Tough Challenge Against Powerful UConn

The Harvard soccer team travels to Storrs, Conn., today, to face nationally-ranked and perennial soccer powerhouse UConn.

Soccer at UConn is the big-time sport where rock music is played during warm-ups, the starting line-ups are introduced on the public address system and the national anthem is played before the game.

The Crimson will have to draw on its conditioning, aggressiveness and discipline to try to counterbalance UConn's all-star cast.

UConn must be considered at this time a heavy favorite, since it is ranked second in New England behind Brown. It sports two All-American forwards in senior Tim Hunter, who plays sweeper forward and has been an All-American since his sophomore year, and Franz Innocent.

Last year UConn defeated Harvard 1-0 in Cambridge. At that match it exhibited fine individual skills, controlled, and disciplined play, but lacked the scoring touch.

This year, however, UConn coach Joseph Morrone seems to have put the icing on the cake. His team now has an 8-0 record, of which the last five victories were shutouts. Included in the victim list are New England's previously seventh-ranked team, Wesleyan, 5-0 (Wesleyan beat the Crimson 1-0); the nation's seventh-ranked squad, Hartwick, 3-0; Yale, 1-0; and Boston University, 4-0.

The game today should reveal the booters' caliber, and indicate whether they will be surprising people as Crimson Coach Ford has predicted.