Getman's Got Ivy on the Mind

The Ivy League is on Mike Getman's mind.

After dropping four straight nonleague games, the Harvard men's soccer team defeated Boston University, 2-0, Tuesday and appears ready to challenge for top honors in the league. Five of the Crimson's six remaining contests will be against Ivy rivals.

Today, Harvard (4-5 overall, 1-1 Ivy) travels to New Haven, Conn., to play Yale. The Bulldogs (4-3, 1-1) had a four game winning streak until Clemson burst their bubble.

"Harvard's going to be a game that teeters on the brink--as usual--all the way down the line," Yale Coach Steve Griggs said. "It'll be a break here, a bounce there or one individual effort that rises above the pack that makes the difference. Both teams have players that can do that."

Senior Dave Goldblatt leads the Eli with three goals and one assist. Junior Jeff "Down on the" Farmelo lends some offensive support with two goals and two assists.

Goalie Bryan Martin anchors a solid Yale defense. The senior netminder has stopped 84 percent of opponents' shots for a goals-against average of 1.24. More impressively, Yale has recorded four shutouts this campaign.

"We've been pretty well organized defensively, but we haven't been as dynamic as we'd like to offensively," Griggs said. "But if you look around, most teams aren't scoring too many goals."

When Yale's defense is on, the team has been unstoppable. All four of Yale's wins have been shutouts, including a 1-0 victory over the same Connecticut squad that beat Harvard, 1-0.

"We've got to put pressure on them right away," Getman said.

Bo Knows Soccer: Martin and Harvard senior Dave Kramer are familiar with one another. They have squared off in both soccer and lacrosse. Kramer has led both the soccer team and the lacrosse team in scoring in the past.

Martin, in addition to anchoring the soccer team in the goal, was an All-Ivy defenseman for the Eli lacrosse team last year. Today will not be the last time Harvard and Yale's versions of Bo Jackson and Deion Sanders meet--but next time they'll be wearing helmets.

Ironman: Against B.U., senior Richard Knight played the full 90 minutes for the first time this season.

"I was very pleased that Knight played the entire game," Getman said. "I was even more pleased that he played well."

In the first game this season, Knight--who did not play last year and missed most of the preseason--felt like he was not quite in playing shape. Hoping to play the senior for only about 15 minutes against MIT, Getman was forced to play Knight for the bulk of the game, because of the injury to Captain Paul Baverstock.

"It seemed more like 200 minutes," Knight said after the game.

Knight, like the rest of the Crimson, seems to be in prime shape for the heart of the Ivy season.

In the Clutch: Sophomore Don Daigle only played about 10 minutes against B.U., but he made the most of his opportunity.

Daigle made several key plays, the most crucial of which was a perfectly executed shot that nailed the right post. After Kramer's follow shot was deflected, senior Nick D'Onofrio headed in Harvard's second goal, icing the victory. Daigle and Kramer each tallied an assist on the play.

"I was very pleased with Daigle," Getman said. "He came in for 10 minutes and was extraordinary."

Ithaca, How You Doin'?: Harvard is back on the road Saturday when it travels to Cornell to play the Big Red in front of its Homecoming crowd. The game in chilly upstate New York is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Turtleneck required.

The Crimson then has a week off before it hosts Dartmouth.