W. Soccer Rocks Quakers, 2-1

PHILADELHIA, Pa.--One week ago Cal Ripken, Jr. ended his streak on his own terms. On Saturday the Penn women's soccer team had two of its streaks stopped, but the Quakers had little choice in the matter. HARVARD  2 PENN  1

Harvard (5-2-1, 3-0 Ivy) dominated Penn (6-1-1, 0-1-1) at Rhodes Field on Saturday afternoon for a 2-1 victory. The win by the Crimson ends the Quakers' seven-game unbeaten streak, and Harvard's first goal broke Penn's string of 729 consecutive minutes without allowing a goal.

"I'm happy that we won," Harvard Coach Time Wheaton said with a chuckle. "I don't pay that much attention to other people's streaks. Certainly we're happy to get two goals, enough to win the game."

Freshman forward Colleen Moore and senior forward Naomi Miller were the authors of Harvard's two goals, which came within 5:13 of one another. Moore's tally, the first by a member of the Class of 2002, knotted the score at 1-1, and Miller's unassisted goal turned out to be the gamewinner.

Penn junior goalkeeper Anne Kluetmeier had not allowed a goal this season, but that changed in the game's 70th minute when the Crimson's unrelenting offense finally broke through the Quakers' last line of defense.

Trailing 1-0, Harvard continued its onslaught at the Penn net as it had all day and notched a well-deserved goal. Miller started the play when she dumped a pass into junior forward Beth Zotter from the top of the box.

Zotter maneuvered around two Penn defenders toward the end line and sent a cross into the middle of the box where Moore had come free. The rookie one-timed the ball low to the center of the net past a diving Kluetmeier to tie the score at 1-1 and give the Penn defense its first blemish of the year.

"It felt incredible," said Moore, who has done an excellent job since replacing injured junior Gina Foster in the starting lineup. "It's just really exciting to contribute. It feels pretty good to put a dent in their season."

Harvard wasted no time in taking the lead for good. In the game's 75th minute, Harvard junior midfielder Ashley Berman fired a shot on goal that Kluetmeier stumbled forward to save, leaving her out of position with a rebound heading in Miller's direction.

Miller turned and fired high at the goal, where a well-positioned Penn defender leapt and headed the ball back

Miller turned and fired high at the goal, wherea well-positioned Penn defender leapt and headedthe ball back out. But Miller was there again, andshe refused to be denied twice.

The defending Ivy League Player of the Yearrocketed a shot high inside the far post thatKluetmeier never had a chance to save, and Harvardled, 2-1.

"I didn't think much about their streak; itdepends on competition," Miller said. "I justthought we were better. It's great, not because webroke their streak, but because we're 3-0 in theIvies. Our ultimate goal is to win Ivies."

Harvard controlled the game from the beginning,attacking the Penn goal in seemingly endlesswaves. The Crimson was the aggressor throughoutthe match, and it took its chances early andoften.

Co-captain Emily Stauffer led the charge withwhat may have been her most assertive performanceof the season. Despite constantly being marked bytwo or three defenders--as has become commonplacefor the All-American--Stauffer was able to lookfor her shot and set up her teammates more oftenthan in recent matches.

Zotter, Berman and co-captain Devon Binghamhelped keep the pressure on the Penn defense withoutstanding runs and accurate passes that createdquality scoring opportunities. Sophomoremidfielder Meredith Stewart and senior back AshleyMarynick also showcased their power with severalpotent crosses and shots, particularly near theend of the first half.

"We wanted to free up Emily Stauffer a littlebit, and I thought she had some good chancestoday," Wheaton said. "We wanted to put [Penn]under a lot of pressure as a team, and I think wedid that."

Despite its superior play, the Crimson couldnot find the back of the net, and a fluke goal bythe Quakers put Harvard in a second-half hole. Atthe 63:03 mark, Penn sent a corner kick sailinginto the Harvard box.

The ball was headed by a Penn player in frontof junior goalkeeper Anne Browning. Senior backJaime Chu attempted to head the ball clear of thebox, but the ball took a strange bounce off thedivot-filled ground and found it way into theHarvard net. It was ruled an own goal by Harvard.

If the Crimson was playing well before Penn'sgoal, it played superbly afterwards. As if newlyinspired, Harvard decided recess was over, andwithin 12 minutes, Moore and Miller had staked theCrimson to a permanent lead.

"We pretty much dominated the entire game, itjust wasn't going in," Miller said. "You knew itwas going to fall sometime, but you get a littlebit more anxious--you go after tackles a littleharder, you pick it up a little bit--after theyscore because you know, `I've got to get it donenow.' That sense of urgency helps boost you alittle bit more, and I thought it picked us up agood deal."

Harvard's defense looked formidable once again.The quarter of Marynick, Chu, sophomore LaurenCorkery and junior Jessica Larson held a quick andtalented Penn offense in check, while Browning hadanother solid outing in goal.

Penn's starting forwards--juniors KellianneToland and twin sisters Jill and AndreaCallaghan--had a combined 10 goals enteringSaturday's match, but they were effectively shutdown by the Crimson. Harvard outshot Penn 14-4 inthe game.

"There's nothing like being behind to get youon track and focused," Moore said. "Even though wehad dominated the entire way, once they got thatweird goal it was kind of like, `This is an IvyLeague game. We need to be in control. We want therings.'"

While the players provided the excitement onthe field, Penn Coach Patrick Baker provided thecomic relief from the sidelines. In the game's57th minute, a frustrated Baker angrily yelled atthe referee, "Hey, ref, are you blind and dumb?Why won't you talk to me?"

The referee, apparently not amused by Baker'scomment, signaled for a time stoppage. He calmlywalked over to the sideline and said to Baker,"The answer to your question is no." He thenissued Baker a yellow card.

HARVARD, 2-1 at Rhodes Field, Philadelphia,Pa.

Harvard  0  2  --  2Penn  0<  1  --  1

Scoring

Pen--Harvard own goal (unassisted) 63:03

Har--Moore (Zotter) 69:22

Har--Miller (unassisted) 74:35

Saves: Har--Browning 1; Penn--Kluetuchen4.CrimsonSeth H. PerlmanRUN OF THE MILLER: Senior NAOMIMILLER, who scored Harvard's second goal, dribblesaround a Penn defender.

Miller turned and fired high at the goal, wherea well-positioned Penn defender leapt and headedthe ball back out. But Miller was there again, andshe refused to be denied twice.

The defending Ivy League Player of the Yearrocketed a shot high inside the far post thatKluetmeier never had a chance to save, and Harvardled, 2-1.

"I didn't think much about their streak; itdepends on competition," Miller said. "I justthought we were better. It's great, not because webroke their streak, but because we're 3-0 in theIvies. Our ultimate goal is to win Ivies."

Harvard controlled the game from the beginning,attacking the Penn goal in seemingly endlesswaves. The Crimson was the aggressor throughoutthe match, and it took its chances early andoften.

Co-captain Emily Stauffer led the charge withwhat may have been her most assertive performanceof the season. Despite constantly being marked bytwo or three defenders--as has become commonplacefor the All-American--Stauffer was able to lookfor her shot and set up her teammates more oftenthan in recent matches.

Zotter, Berman and co-captain Devon Binghamhelped keep the pressure on the Penn defense withoutstanding runs and accurate passes that createdquality scoring opportunities. Sophomoremidfielder Meredith Stewart and senior back AshleyMarynick also showcased their power with severalpotent crosses and shots, particularly near theend of the first half.

"We wanted to free up Emily Stauffer a littlebit, and I thought she had some good chancestoday," Wheaton said. "We wanted to put [Penn]under a lot of pressure as a team, and I think wedid that."

Despite its superior play, the Crimson couldnot find the back of the net, and a fluke goal bythe Quakers put Harvard in a second-half hole. Atthe 63:03 mark, Penn sent a corner kick sailinginto the Harvard box.

The ball was headed by a Penn player in frontof junior goalkeeper Anne Browning. Senior backJaime Chu attempted to head the ball clear of thebox, but the ball took a strange bounce off thedivot-filled ground and found it way into theHarvard net. It was ruled an own goal by Harvard.

If the Crimson was playing well before Penn'sgoal, it played superbly afterwards. As if newlyinspired, Harvard decided recess was over, andwithin 12 minutes, Moore and Miller had staked theCrimson to a permanent lead.

"We pretty much dominated the entire game, itjust wasn't going in," Miller said. "You knew itwas going to fall sometime, but you get a littlebit more anxious--you go after tackles a littleharder, you pick it up a little bit--after theyscore because you know, `I've got to get it donenow.' That sense of urgency helps boost you alittle bit more, and I thought it picked us up agood deal."

Harvard's defense looked formidable once again.The quarter of Marynick, Chu, sophomore LaurenCorkery and junior Jessica Larson held a quick andtalented Penn offense in check, while Browning hadanother solid outing in goal.

Penn's starting forwards--juniors KellianneToland and twin sisters Jill and AndreaCallaghan--had a combined 10 goals enteringSaturday's match, but they were effectively shutdown by the Crimson. Harvard outshot Penn 14-4 inthe game.

"There's nothing like being behind to get youon track and focused," Moore said. "Even though wehad dominated the entire way, once they got thatweird goal it was kind of like, `This is an IvyLeague game. We need to be in control. We want therings.'"

While the players provided the excitement onthe field, Penn Coach Patrick Baker provided thecomic relief from the sidelines. In the game's57th minute, a frustrated Baker angrily yelled atthe referee, "Hey, ref, are you blind and dumb?Why won't you talk to me?"

The referee, apparently not amused by Baker'scomment, signaled for a time stoppage. He calmlywalked over to the sideline and said to Baker,"The answer to your question is no." He thenissued Baker a yellow card.

HARVARD, 2-1 at Rhodes Field, Philadelphia,Pa.

Harvard  0  2  --  2Penn  0<  1  --  1

Scoring

Pen--Harvard own goal (unassisted) 63:03

Har--Moore (Zotter) 69:22

Har--Miller (unassisted) 74:35

Saves: Har--Browning 1; Penn--Kluetuchen4.CrimsonSeth H. PerlmanRUN OF THE MILLER: Senior NAOMIMILLER, who scored Harvard's second goal, dribblesaround a Penn defender.