Women's Soccer Set to Enjoy an Ivy League Feast

Pretend that you are an animal and it is feeding time at the zoo. You are starved and start licking your chops at the fresh meat sitting right in front of you. Now imagine that this reward has been snatched away from you and given to most hated rival; let's say, the bears.

Forward ahead one year later and the meat is again staring right at you. So how do you feel?

WOMEN'S SOCCER

Record: 9-4-3

Ivy League: 5-0-2

Coach: Tim Wheaton

Captains: Sara Noonan '96, Susie DeLellis '96

Key Returnees: Emily Stauffer '98, Keren Gudeman '98

New Face: Jaime Chu '99

Key Losses: Genevieve Chelius '95, Beth Morgan '95, Dana Krein '98 (injury)

Just ask the Harvard women's soccer team, which came within seven minutes of capturing last year's Ivy League title.

"We are fired up," sophomore standout Emily Stauffer said. "We were excited about last year but left with a bad taste about the last two games."

The Crimson had taken a seemingly commanding 3-1 lead on the defending champion Bears of Brown in the regular-season finale only to see the opposition tie the contest on a penalty kick with seven minutes left in regulation.

The game ended a 3-3 tie, allowing the Bears to edge out the Crimson for the league crown by one point in the standings.

Harvard's 9-3-2 regular season (5-0-2 Ivy) was impressive enough to deserve an NCAA Tournament bid even though it did not win the title. Harvard fell to the University of Massachusetts, 3-0, in the first round, but that game marked the Crimson's first tourney appearance since 1984.

Ranked number 18 in Soccer America's preseason poll, Harvard returns its top four scorers, including the 1994 Ivy League Rookie of the Year in Stauffer. Last year's squad allowed a stingy 1.15 goals per game, and the core of that defensive unit remains intact.

Of the class of 1995, only Genevieve Chelius and Beth Morgan were regular starters, but both missed several games to injury--games that Harvard won anyway. With the exception of goaltender, Harvard has experience and desire all over the field.

"If last year had gone totally smoothly, I would have been worried about getting a little complacent," Harvard's ninth-year head coach Tim Wheaton said. "We are already further ahead than we were at this point last year."

Offense

A young, but well-seasoned team, Harvard has numerous strengths and one of them is its attack.

First there is Stauffer, who is the Wayne Gretzky of this squad. Perhaps the top player in the league and one who competed in this past summer's U.S. Olympic Festival, Stauffer's deft footwork leaves most opponents in the lurch.

Sophomores Keren Gudeman and Kristen Bowes were the second-and third-leading scorers last season, respectively. Gudeman already has a pair of fantastic finishes to her credit--scoring the game-winner in a 1-0 at Princeton with one minute left and setting up current co-captain Noonan's game winner against Top 20 Dartmouth the following week, also with 60 ticks left.

Juniors Dana Tenser, who made a successful return last year following a knee injury her freshman season and Rachel Chernikoff add to the punch, as does co-captain Susie DeLellis.

"The team looks great, and a strong freshman class raises our level of play," Stauffer said.

Defense

Noonan and junior Meg Kassakian headline Harvard's defensive corps. Both are rugged players, rarely beaten by the opposition.

Many eyes will also focus on freshman Jaime Chu, who was selected the Sonny Carter Scholar/Athlete award winner--given to the top male and female high school scholar-athletes for soccer.

Sophomores Rebe Glass and Jessica Henderson both saw extended amounts of playing time last year and should be major contributors to the defense this year as well. In addition, freshman Ashley Meredith--a midfielder who has been converted to a fullback--will see a lot of action.

Playing time might be hard to accumulate because there are just too many talented players at each position, but that "problem" doesn't faze Wheaton.

"There are definitely more players that deserve to start that there are positions," Wheaton said, "but all will have significant playing time."

Goaltending

Few teams get away without any injuries, and the Crimson is no exception. Sophomore Dana Krein, who played every game last season, is taking the season off to recuperate from shoulder surgery.

Krein's backup--junior Phoebe Cummings--also has to miss the upcoming season due to injury. Thus, Harvard's goaltending situation looms as the team's only big question mark.

The competition at netminder will lie between freshmen Merideth Bagley and Jennifer Burney, who both have had strong training camps, according to Wheaton.

"It's a little disconcerting that we lost two goalies to injury, but the freshmen have been outstanding," Wheaton said. "I feel totally confident with either one."

The Schedule

It isn't hard to notice Harvard's biggest game of the season. The facts that it is against defending champion Brown, that it is against the 16th ranked team in the nation, that it starts under the lights at 7 p.m. on the road and that it again is the final regular season game make it hard to ignore.

"In practice, people say, 'Do these last two sprints for Brown,'" Stauffer said. "But consistency [in other games] is important."

Indeed. To make the Brown clash meaningful, Harvard cannot afford any letdowns, as it did in a season-opening 2-2 tie against a pathetic Columbia team despite outshooting the Lions by about 40 shots.

A road game at Fairfield this past Friday and a home contest this past Sunday (see sports page of Monday's Section A) opened the season, and the Crimson plays its next four contests on the grass at Ohiri Field.

The Crimson's Ivy League opener again comes against the mediocre Lions in the first game of the Harvard Invitational on September 22. Harvard faces Monmouth--a team that barely missed qualifying for the NCAA Tournament last year--two days later in its other game in that tournament.

From there, Harvard faces a slew of appetizingly beatable Ivy League and Northeastern teams before ending the regular campaign with its three toughest contests: October 28 at No. 19 Dartmouth, October 31 at No. 6 Connecticut and Brown.

Feeding time has commenced once again, and time will tell whether Harvard can finally digest its dinner.

Juniors Dana Tenser, who made a successful return last year following a knee injury her freshman season and Rachel Chernikoff add to the punch, as does co-captain Susie DeLellis.

"The team looks great, and a strong freshman class raises our level of play," Stauffer said.

Defense

Noonan and junior Meg Kassakian headline Harvard's defensive corps. Both are rugged players, rarely beaten by the opposition.

Many eyes will also focus on freshman Jaime Chu, who was selected the Sonny Carter Scholar/Athlete award winner--given to the top male and female high school scholar-athletes for soccer.

Sophomores Rebe Glass and Jessica Henderson both saw extended amounts of playing time last year and should be major contributors to the defense this year as well. In addition, freshman Ashley Meredith--a midfielder who has been converted to a fullback--will see a lot of action.

Playing time might be hard to accumulate because there are just too many talented players at each position, but that "problem" doesn't faze Wheaton.

"There are definitely more players that deserve to start that there are positions," Wheaton said, "but all will have significant playing time."

Goaltending

Few teams get away without any injuries, and the Crimson is no exception. Sophomore Dana Krein, who played every game last season, is taking the season off to recuperate from shoulder surgery.

Krein's backup--junior Phoebe Cummings--also has to miss the upcoming season due to injury. Thus, Harvard's goaltending situation looms as the team's only big question mark.

The competition at netminder will lie between freshmen Merideth Bagley and Jennifer Burney, who both have had strong training camps, according to Wheaton.

"It's a little disconcerting that we lost two goalies to injury, but the freshmen have been outstanding," Wheaton said. "I feel totally confident with either one."

The Schedule

It isn't hard to notice Harvard's biggest game of the season. The facts that it is against defending champion Brown, that it is against the 16th ranked team in the nation, that it starts under the lights at 7 p.m. on the road and that it again is the final regular season game make it hard to ignore.

"In practice, people say, 'Do these last two sprints for Brown,'" Stauffer said. "But consistency [in other games] is important."

Indeed. To make the Brown clash meaningful, Harvard cannot afford any letdowns, as it did in a season-opening 2-2 tie against a pathetic Columbia team despite outshooting the Lions by about 40 shots.

A road game at Fairfield this past Friday and a home contest this past Sunday (see sports page of Monday's Section A) opened the season, and the Crimson plays its next four contests on the grass at Ohiri Field.

The Crimson's Ivy League opener again comes against the mediocre Lions in the first game of the Harvard Invitational on September 22. Harvard faces Monmouth--a team that barely missed qualifying for the NCAA Tournament last year--two days later in its other game in that tournament.

From there, Harvard faces a slew of appetizingly beatable Ivy League and Northeastern teams before ending the regular campaign with its three toughest contests: October 28 at No. 19 Dartmouth, October 31 at No. 6 Connecticut and Brown.

Feeding time has commenced once again, and time will tell whether Harvard can finally digest its dinner.

"The team looks great, and a strong freshman class raises our level of play," Stauffer said.

Defense

Noonan and junior Meg Kassakian headline Harvard's defensive corps. Both are rugged players, rarely beaten by the opposition.

Many eyes will also focus on freshman Jaime Chu, who was selected the Sonny Carter Scholar/Athlete award winner--given to the top male and female high school scholar-athletes for soccer.

Sophomores Rebe Glass and Jessica Henderson both saw extended amounts of playing time last year and should be major contributors to the defense this year as well. In addition, freshman Ashley Meredith--a midfielder who has been converted to a fullback--will see a lot of action.

Playing time might be hard to accumulate because there are just too many talented players at each position, but that "problem" doesn't faze Wheaton.

"There are definitely more players that deserve to start that there are positions," Wheaton said, "but all will have significant playing time."

Goaltending

Few teams get away without any injuries, and the Crimson is no exception. Sophomore Dana Krein, who played every game last season, is taking the season off to recuperate from shoulder surgery.

Krein's backup--junior Phoebe Cummings--also has to miss the upcoming season due to injury. Thus, Harvard's goaltending situation looms as the team's only big question mark.

The competition at netminder will lie between freshmen Merideth Bagley and Jennifer Burney, who both have had strong training camps, according to Wheaton.

"It's a little disconcerting that we lost two goalies to injury, but the freshmen have been outstanding," Wheaton said. "I feel totally confident with either one."

The Schedule

It isn't hard to notice Harvard's biggest game of the season. The facts that it is against defending champion Brown, that it is against the 16th ranked team in the nation, that it starts under the lights at 7 p.m. on the road and that it again is the final regular season game make it hard to ignore.

"In practice, people say, 'Do these last two sprints for Brown,'" Stauffer said. "But consistency [in other games] is important."

Indeed. To make the Brown clash meaningful, Harvard cannot afford any letdowns, as it did in a season-opening 2-2 tie against a pathetic Columbia team despite outshooting the Lions by about 40 shots.

A road game at Fairfield this past Friday and a home contest this past Sunday (see sports page of Monday's Section A) opened the season, and the Crimson plays its next four contests on the grass at Ohiri Field.

The Crimson's Ivy League opener again comes against the mediocre Lions in the first game of the Harvard Invitational on September 22. Harvard faces Monmouth--a team that barely missed qualifying for the NCAA Tournament last year--two days later in its other game in that tournament.

From there, Harvard faces a slew of appetizingly beatable Ivy League and Northeastern teams before ending the regular campaign with its three toughest contests: October 28 at No. 19 Dartmouth, October 31 at No. 6 Connecticut and Brown.

Feeding time has commenced once again, and time will tell whether Harvard can finally digest its dinner.