Friars Bow to Unbeaten Women Booters

Another win, another shutout.

Once again combining strong defense with aggressive offense, the Harvard women's soccer team took its undefeated record on the road for the first time this season and came out with a 3-0 victory over Providence College in Providence, R.I.

The Crimson is now 5-0 on the season. And four of its five victories have been shutouts, a credit to standout goalie Tracee Whitley and a well-organized fullback squad.

Whitley's success thus far "is a combination of [her] abilities and the fact that our defense is strong," Crimson Coach Bob Scalise said.

And while the Crimson's opponents have come up dry--with the exception of Vermont, which scored twice Saturday--Harvard's goal production continues to impress.

After yesterday's three-goal harvest, the 1986 squad is only one goal away from matching last year's total of 12 tallies. In addition, the offensive attack remains balanced.

Co-Captain Wendy Zeeben, Electa Sevier and Laurie Hauber each pitched in with second-half goals yesterday, after the Crimson rolled off 1-95 and played what Scalise tabbed a very sluggish first stanza.

"We had bus legs," Scalise said of his squad's fruitless first half. "Providence actually took the play away from us. What kept us in the game was that we were very solid defensively."

Whitley contributed two key saves to hold the hosts scoreless while her teammates got their legs back.

And after regrouping at halftime, the Crimson took control. Four minutes into the second half, Zeeben drilled a penalty kick past Friars goalkeeper Kathy Cronin. Six minutes later, senior forward Sevier seized a rebound of her own shot and knocked it into the Providence cage for a 2-0 Crimson lead.

"It was like a killer instinct came alive," Scalise said of his team's offensive burst. "It's a very encouraging sign."

With about 20 minutes remaining in the contest Scalise decided to give backup netminder Liz Wald some playing time. The Friars hadn't tested Whitley in the second half and only managed one shot on goal against Wald.

Hauber finished the scoring at 80:10 when she redirected Andrea Montalbano's corner kick past Kronin.

"It was like a half-field scrimmage," Scalise said of his team's second-stanza revival. "People just woke up and responded very well to the situation."

Harvard's meeting in Worcester Friday with Holy Cross will be the Crimson's biggest challenge thus far. The Crusaders were ranked seventh in the New England Coaches' Poll released yesterday--with the Crimson just ahead in sixth.