Women's Soccer Pops Princeton

PRINCETON, N.J.--Are you ready for some futbol? The Harvard women's soccer team certainly was on Saturday night. HARVARD  1 PRINCETON  0

Playing under the lights at Lourie-Love field, Harvard (9-3-1, 5-0 Ivy) extended its winning streak against Princeton(9-5, 3-2) to six consecutive matches and remained unbeaten in conference play with a 1-0 victory over the tigers.

The win keeps Harvard tied with Dartmouth atop the Ivy standings, setting a dramatic stage for this Saturday's match between the nationally-ranked rivals.

"[Princeton] is always tough", said Harvard Coach Tim Wheaton, a New Jersey native and former Princeton assistant. "They're a good team, they defend very, very well, they're really organized. They play defensively, and they get out fast. I'm glad we got it done."

Harvard registered the lone goal of the match at the 71:14 mark, when junior midfielder Ashley Berman one-timed a feed from co-captain Emily Stauffer, burying it in the back of the Princeton net.

The play began when senior forward Naomi Miller led Stauffer with a nice ball down the left flank. Stauffer maneuvered her way deep into the box past three Princeton defenders and touched the ball in Berman's direction.

Berman wasted little time before she rewarded her teammates' efforts,. From five yards out, she rocketed a left-footed blast inside the near post past diving Princeton goalkeeper Jordan Rettig. It was Berman's third goal of the season.

"My man was king of off me so I just accelerated into the space," Stauffer said. "I pushed it by [another defender], cut it back across the box and Ashley just had a brilliant finish--one-timed it into the back of the net. It was awesome."

Harvard was in control of the match from startto finish, outshooting Princeton 10-4 on thenight. The Crimson possessed the ball so oftenthat the Tigers were unable to complete twoconsecutive passes until 6:04 had elapsed, andHarvard goalkeeper Anne Browning did not make herfirst save until the 59:57 mark.

The Crimson came out firing against a Tigersquad that was looking for its first win overHarvard since 1992. But a Princeton victory wasnot to be, as Harvard had chances early and often.

In the game's fourth minute, Miller touched aball over to junior forward Gina Foster whoblasted a shot that sailed high over the Tigers'goal. Four minutes later junior forward BethZotter, penetrated through the heart ofPrinceton's defense and left a ball for Staufferthat the All-American ripped just over thecrossbar.

"This is the style we expected," Wheaton said."We knew that we'd have a lot of the ball; we knewwe'd have to be really patient and move the ballquickly to get after it. For most of the game, Ithought we did that."

Zotter had an excellent match, consistentlyoutrunning Princeton players to balls and leadingHarvard's runs at the goal. She also authored thematch's climactic play.

With the contest still scoreless in the 63rdminute, Princeton sophomore forward Amee Reyesraced in behind the Harvard defense and fired ashot on goal past a charging Browning. The ballwas destined for the Harvard net, but Zotter racedback and made a sensational save to turn back theTigers.

Harvard was the aggressor from the openingkick, hustling to win balls and attacking thePrinceton defense with well-spaced runs andwell-timed passes. Princeton played a moredefensive game, sitting back in its end and usingcounterattack breaks as its primary offensiveweapon.

"Every time we come down here, they get us onthis crap-hard field, pack it in, and then boot itout and hope to run on it," Stauffer said. "It's achallenge for us because we're used to havingplayers mark us up, and they just stand backthere--almost in a zone--and don't challenge ourdefenders at all. It just gets really crowded inthere, and it's really frustrating, but we're gladto get the win."

In the end the Tigers did not mount much of athreat at all, thanks in large part to anexcellent performance by the Crimson's defense.

Anne Browning made several crucial saves in thesecond half, including a snare of a Princetondirect kick in the 90th minute. Junior sweeperJessica Larson continued to demonstrate why shemight be the Ivy League's best defender,consistently stripping Princeton's forwards ofpossession and thwarting the Tigers' scoringchances.

"I thought Jes Larson had an amazing day,"Wheaton said. "I think she is the best defender inthe league, and I think she proved that. She shutthem down and cleaned everything up, and I wasreally proud of her."

The match was extremely physical all night,with several players on both sides hitting theground quite often. Berman and Princeton sophomoreJennifer Lankford, both of whom wear No. 4, had aparticularly rough battle throughout the match.

At one point, both players tackled each otherwhile fighting for a ball along the sideline.

"[Lankford] actually turned out to be kind ofnice," said Berman, downplaying the melee. "Shewas just fouling and pulling some dirty tricks atthe beginning of the game.

"They were very physical. I was impressed withhow they went to the ball," Berman added, "butthey didn't really build any attack."

Harvard did not emerge from the matchcompletely unscathed. In the 71st minute, Fosterwas tackled and aggravated an earlier sprain ofher left ankle. The injury is not as serious asthe original sprain, but Foster left the game anddid not return.

The native of Davie, Fla. will likely sit outHarvard's match at Vermont tomorrow, but sheshould be able to play against Dartmouth onSaturday. Foster's injury apparently inspired herteammates; the Crimson scored its goal just 29seconds after Foster exited the game.

Miller also aggravated an existing ailment. At73:42, she chased a ball into the Princeton box,where Rettig secured possession. As Miller avoidedthe Princeton keeper, Rettig threw her body atMiller, and the two went down in a heap.

Miller stood up immediately remained in thematch and showed no ill effects. However, thedefending Ivy League Player of the Year hassuffered from a painful cyst on her ankle bone allseason, and she was in a good deal of pain afterthe match.

Rettig, though, apparently inflicted moredamage upon herself than she dealt out. The keeperwrithed in pain on the field after the collisionand eventually left the game.

"[The match] didn't go the way I wanted it togo," Berman said. "I think it was good to get awin, but it's always difficult to play against ateam that packs it in. No matter how much we areconscious of the fact that they are packing it in,it's always frustrating to not be able to play theway you want to play."

Three yellow cards were issued in the match,one to a Harvard player, one to a Princeton playerand the third to Wheaton. Harvard's coach earnedhis second yellow card of the season for beratingthe referee following Foster's injury.

Harvard, 1-0at Lourie-Love field, Princeton, N.J.Harvard  0  1  --  1Princeton  0  0  --  0

ScoringHar--Berman (Stauffer, Miller) 71:14.Shots: Har 10; Prin 4.Saves: Har--Browning 2; Prin--Rettig(73:42) 2, Iacona (16:18) 1.

CrimsonSeth H. PerlmanEM BUTTERFLY: Co-Captain EMILYSTAUFFER, who notched an assist Saturday, pursuesthe ball in earlier action.

Harvard was in control of the match from startto finish, outshooting Princeton 10-4 on thenight. The Crimson possessed the ball so oftenthat the Tigers were unable to complete twoconsecutive passes until 6:04 had elapsed, andHarvard goalkeeper Anne Browning did not make herfirst save until the 59:57 mark.

The Crimson came out firing against a Tigersquad that was looking for its first win overHarvard since 1992. But a Princeton victory wasnot to be, as Harvard had chances early and often.

In the game's fourth minute, Miller touched aball over to junior forward Gina Foster whoblasted a shot that sailed high over the Tigers'goal. Four minutes later junior forward BethZotter, penetrated through the heart ofPrinceton's defense and left a ball for Staufferthat the All-American ripped just over thecrossbar.

"This is the style we expected," Wheaton said."We knew that we'd have a lot of the ball; we knewwe'd have to be really patient and move the ballquickly to get after it. For most of the game, Ithought we did that."

Zotter had an excellent match, consistentlyoutrunning Princeton players to balls and leadingHarvard's runs at the goal. She also authored thematch's climactic play.

With the contest still scoreless in the 63rdminute, Princeton sophomore forward Amee Reyesraced in behind the Harvard defense and fired ashot on goal past a charging Browning. The ballwas destined for the Harvard net, but Zotter racedback and made a sensational save to turn back theTigers.

Harvard was the aggressor from the openingkick, hustling to win balls and attacking thePrinceton defense with well-spaced runs andwell-timed passes. Princeton played a moredefensive game, sitting back in its end and usingcounterattack breaks as its primary offensiveweapon.

"Every time we come down here, they get us onthis crap-hard field, pack it in, and then boot itout and hope to run on it," Stauffer said. "It's achallenge for us because we're used to havingplayers mark us up, and they just stand backthere--almost in a zone--and don't challenge ourdefenders at all. It just gets really crowded inthere, and it's really frustrating, but we're gladto get the win."

In the end the Tigers did not mount much of athreat at all, thanks in large part to anexcellent performance by the Crimson's defense.

Anne Browning made several crucial saves in thesecond half, including a snare of a Princetondirect kick in the 90th minute. Junior sweeperJessica Larson continued to demonstrate why shemight be the Ivy League's best defender,consistently stripping Princeton's forwards ofpossession and thwarting the Tigers' scoringchances.

"I thought Jes Larson had an amazing day,"Wheaton said. "I think she is the best defender inthe league, and I think she proved that. She shutthem down and cleaned everything up, and I wasreally proud of her."

The match was extremely physical all night,with several players on both sides hitting theground quite often. Berman and Princeton sophomoreJennifer Lankford, both of whom wear No. 4, had aparticularly rough battle throughout the match.

At one point, both players tackled each otherwhile fighting for a ball along the sideline.

"[Lankford] actually turned out to be kind ofnice," said Berman, downplaying the melee. "Shewas just fouling and pulling some dirty tricks atthe beginning of the game.

"They were very physical. I was impressed withhow they went to the ball," Berman added, "butthey didn't really build any attack."

Harvard did not emerge from the matchcompletely unscathed. In the 71st minute, Fosterwas tackled and aggravated an earlier sprain ofher left ankle. The injury is not as serious asthe original sprain, but Foster left the game anddid not return.

The native of Davie, Fla. will likely sit outHarvard's match at Vermont tomorrow, but sheshould be able to play against Dartmouth onSaturday. Foster's injury apparently inspired herteammates; the Crimson scored its goal just 29seconds after Foster exited the game.

Miller also aggravated an existing ailment. At73:42, she chased a ball into the Princeton box,where Rettig secured possession. As Miller avoidedthe Princeton keeper, Rettig threw her body atMiller, and the two went down in a heap.

Miller stood up immediately remained in thematch and showed no ill effects. However, thedefending Ivy League Player of the Year hassuffered from a painful cyst on her ankle bone allseason, and she was in a good deal of pain afterthe match.

Rettig, though, apparently inflicted moredamage upon herself than she dealt out. The keeperwrithed in pain on the field after the collisionand eventually left the game.

"[The match] didn't go the way I wanted it togo," Berman said. "I think it was good to get awin, but it's always difficult to play against ateam that packs it in. No matter how much we areconscious of the fact that they are packing it in,it's always frustrating to not be able to play theway you want to play."

Three yellow cards were issued in the match,one to a Harvard player, one to a Princeton playerand the third to Wheaton. Harvard's coach earnedhis second yellow card of the season for beratingthe referee following Foster's injury.

Harvard, 1-0at Lourie-Love field, Princeton, N.J.Harvard  0  1  --  1Princeton  0  0  --  0

ScoringHar--Berman (Stauffer, Miller) 71:14.Shots: Har 10; Prin 4.Saves: Har--Browning 2; Prin--Rettig(73:42) 2, Iacona (16:18) 1.

CrimsonSeth H. PerlmanEM BUTTERFLY: Co-Captain EMILYSTAUFFER, who notched an assist Saturday, pursuesthe ball in earlier action.

ScoringHar--Berman (Stauffer, Miller) 71:14.Shots: Har 10; Prin 4.Saves: Har--Browning 2; Prin--Rettig(73:42) 2, Iacona (16:18) 1.

CrimsonSeth H. PerlmanEM BUTTERFLY: Co-Captain EMILYSTAUFFER, who notched an assist Saturday, pursuesthe ball in earlier action.

CrimsonSeth H. PerlmanEM BUTTERFLY: Co-Captain EMILYSTAUFFER, who notched an assist Saturday, pursuesthe ball in earlier action.