W. Soccer Bites Bulldogs Back

The Harvard women's soccer team's game against Yale on Saturday was billed as an epic showdown between bitter rivals a la Ali-Frazier. It turned out to be a good old-fashioned butt-whipping more along the lines of Tyson-McNeely.

Goals from juniors Ashley Berman and Gina Foster powered Harvard (4-2, 2-0 Ivy) to an easy 2-1 victory over Yale (4-2, 1-1) at Ohiri Field. The win avenges the Crimson's only Ivy loss of the past five seasons, a 3-2 overtime defeat in New Haven last year, and runs the seniors' career Ivy League record to a remarkable 24-1. YALE  1 HARVARD  2

"Revenge was definitely a factor," said senior forward Naomi Miller. "I had a dream the night before about our 23-1 record, and the one kept getting bigger and bigger. It wasn't difficult to get up for this game."

Against the backdrop of weekend festivities celebrating the 25th anniversary of Ivy League women's athletic championships, Harvard Coach Tim Wheaton achieved a milestone of his own. The victory over Yale was Wheaton's 100th as Harvard's coach, and it came with several Harvard soccer alums in the crowd.

Wheaton now owns a career record of 100-56-17 in 12 years at the helm for the Crimson.

"We have a great bunch of kids who work like crazy," Wheaton said. "My name goes on that, but it's those guys who earned it, along with all the kids who have come before."

"It's nice, particularly, to have that 100th win happen this weekend with the 25th anniversary celebration and so many kids who have played for our program here today," Wheaton continued. "It's nice to have it happen because they all shared in that."

Despite the outcome of the game, Harvard did not emerge unscathed from the contest. Just four and a half minutes into the match--3:19 after staking Harvard to a 1-0 lead--Foster went down with a sprained ankle. X-rays indicated that there were no broken bones, but Foster is expected to miss about two weeks.

"It's a huge loss because [Foster] is a great player," said co-captain Emily Stauffer. "She really provides a spark for us. We just want to get her healthy and get her playing."

While the final result of the match was a one-goal victory for the Crimson, Harvard dominated the action for nearly the entire afternoon. Ball control, accurate passing and excellent positioning characterized Harvard's play. The Elis were noticeably frustrated and obviously overmatched, a fact punctuated in the second minute of play.

Junior Beth Zotter sent a corner kick into the box where it was handled by Miller. She touched the ball to co-captain Devon Bingham who shot past Yale goal- keeper Sarah Peterson.

A Yale defender blocked the shot, but therebound came off to Stauffer on the right side ofthe box. Stauffer crossed the ball to Foster whoone-timed it into the upper right corner of thenet for a quick 1-0 Harvard lead.

It was Foster's third goal of the season andStauffer's fifth assist. The two are now tied forthe Harvard scoring lead with seven points apiece.

"The early goal certainly changes things,"Wheaton said. "You get an early goal, and it takesthe wind out of people's sails a little bit. Itgives us a little confidence and makes it a littletougher on them."

The cheers from the crowd had barely died downwhen almost every spectator, player and coach fellsilent. In the fifth minute of play, Fosterchallenged a Yale player for a header on the nearsideline in front of the team benches. Foster wonthe ball but then fell to the ground, writhing inpain.

The team's athletic trainer attended toFoster's ankle while Wheaton held Foster's hands.She was eventually carried from the field andapplauded by the fans.

"[Foster] is a great frontrunner for us,"Wheaton said. "It would be a big loss if she can'tplay."

Freshman forward Colleen Moore replaced Foster,the match continued and Harvard continued itsdomination. The Crimson created several excellentscoring chances, including breakaways by Stauffer,Berman and Zotter that all resulted in shots goinginches wide of the goal.

Despite the slim 1-0 lead, Yale never mountedmuch of an attack. Harvard's defense playedbrilliantly once again, and there was never a realthreat of the Elis tying the score.

Junior sweeper Jessica Larson anchored anaggressive defense that challenged Yale's forwardsfor control of the ball before the Elis couldchallenge the Harvard goal. Sophomore LaurenCorkery and seniors Jaime Chu and Ashley Marynickconsistently won balls from Yale's strikers andfilled in behind one another well.

"Our defense is always awesome," Miller said."I love watching them play. I don't see anotherdefense in the country that is as good as ours."

Junior goalkeeper Anne Browning recorded foursaves, returning to the starting lineup afterbeing sidelined with an injury for the last twogames. Seniors Jen Burney and Meredith Bagleyfilled in for Browning while she was hurt, andHarvard did not miss a beat.

"We don't think of Jen as being a second-stringgoalkeeper; we think of them both beingfirst-string goalkeepers who can play for us,"Wheaton said. "We have absolute confidence in allof our goalkeepers."

While Harvard's defense kept Yale in check, theCrimson kept trying to notch an insurance goal. Inthe 60th minute, the Harvard offense finally brokethrough, thanks in part to some fancy footwork byStauffer.

Harvard worked the ball up the left side withsome nice combinations, and it finally came toStauffer, who made a gorgeous pass to Moorethrough the legs of a stunned Yale defender. Asthe crowd gasped in awe of Stauffer's mastery andthe Elis' defense attempted to get back into itscollective shorts, Moore crossed the ball toBerman who blasted a shot inside the near postpast a diving but helpless Peterson.

"Yale is definitely a good team, and we knewthat coming in," Stauffer said, "but we knew thatif you looked at our rosters, we had more talentthan they did."

"It was really nice to dominate right from thebeginning, but I wouldn't say that we were allsurprised," Stauffer added. "I think we've come toexpect that from ourselves, and it's nice thatwe're finally doing it."

Yale's only tally of the match came with 13seconds remaining and proved inconsequential,except where pride is concerned. Yale juniorTheryn Gibbons' goal snapped Harvard's string of315 minutes without allowing a goal. It was alsothe first goal allowed this season by Burney, whoreplaced Browning with five minutes remaining.

Even before the start of the match, it wasclear that the Crimson was prepared for anychallenge Yale might have presented. Harvard'splayers marched onto Ohiri Field in two singlefile lines cheering and chanting during the secondhalf of the men's soccer game that preceded theirown.

"We just came out with enthusiasm," Millersaid. "We had so much energy and so much desire. Ican't explain it. I could tell we were going towin. We were very ready."

The Crimson outshot the Elis 14-9 and tookseven corner kicks to Yale's two. Harvard'soffense has been excellent since the Crimson's 1-0double overtime victory at Columbia on Sept. 19and is showing no signs of slowing down.

"We're starting to play better," Berman said,"but we have the potential to be even morepowerful. We're just going to explode."

Behind already-brilliant play and constantimprovement, Harvard may be well on its way to afourth consecutive Ivy League championship.

HARVARD, 2-1at Ohiri FieldYale  0  1  --  1Harvard  1  1  --  2

ScoringHar--Foster (Stauffer) 1:11.Har--Berman (Moore, Miller) 59:54.Yale--Gibbons (Unassisted) 89:47.Saves:Yale--Peterson 9; Har--Browning 4,Burney 1.

A Yale defender blocked the shot, but therebound came off to Stauffer on the right side ofthe box. Stauffer crossed the ball to Foster whoone-timed it into the upper right corner of thenet for a quick 1-0 Harvard lead.

It was Foster's third goal of the season andStauffer's fifth assist. The two are now tied forthe Harvard scoring lead with seven points apiece.

"The early goal certainly changes things,"Wheaton said. "You get an early goal, and it takesthe wind out of people's sails a little bit. Itgives us a little confidence and makes it a littletougher on them."

The cheers from the crowd had barely died downwhen almost every spectator, player and coach fellsilent. In the fifth minute of play, Fosterchallenged a Yale player for a header on the nearsideline in front of the team benches. Foster wonthe ball but then fell to the ground, writhing inpain.

The team's athletic trainer attended toFoster's ankle while Wheaton held Foster's hands.She was eventually carried from the field andapplauded by the fans.

"[Foster] is a great frontrunner for us,"Wheaton said. "It would be a big loss if she can'tplay."

Freshman forward Colleen Moore replaced Foster,the match continued and Harvard continued itsdomination. The Crimson created several excellentscoring chances, including breakaways by Stauffer,Berman and Zotter that all resulted in shots goinginches wide of the goal.

Despite the slim 1-0 lead, Yale never mountedmuch of an attack. Harvard's defense playedbrilliantly once again, and there was never a realthreat of the Elis tying the score.

Junior sweeper Jessica Larson anchored anaggressive defense that challenged Yale's forwardsfor control of the ball before the Elis couldchallenge the Harvard goal. Sophomore LaurenCorkery and seniors Jaime Chu and Ashley Marynickconsistently won balls from Yale's strikers andfilled in behind one another well.

"Our defense is always awesome," Miller said."I love watching them play. I don't see anotherdefense in the country that is as good as ours."

Junior goalkeeper Anne Browning recorded foursaves, returning to the starting lineup afterbeing sidelined with an injury for the last twogames. Seniors Jen Burney and Meredith Bagleyfilled in for Browning while she was hurt, andHarvard did not miss a beat.

"We don't think of Jen as being a second-stringgoalkeeper; we think of them both beingfirst-string goalkeepers who can play for us,"Wheaton said. "We have absolute confidence in allof our goalkeepers."

While Harvard's defense kept Yale in check, theCrimson kept trying to notch an insurance goal. Inthe 60th minute, the Harvard offense finally brokethrough, thanks in part to some fancy footwork byStauffer.

Harvard worked the ball up the left side withsome nice combinations, and it finally came toStauffer, who made a gorgeous pass to Moorethrough the legs of a stunned Yale defender. Asthe crowd gasped in awe of Stauffer's mastery andthe Elis' defense attempted to get back into itscollective shorts, Moore crossed the ball toBerman who blasted a shot inside the near postpast a diving but helpless Peterson.

"Yale is definitely a good team, and we knewthat coming in," Stauffer said, "but we knew thatif you looked at our rosters, we had more talentthan they did."

"It was really nice to dominate right from thebeginning, but I wouldn't say that we were allsurprised," Stauffer added. "I think we've come toexpect that from ourselves, and it's nice thatwe're finally doing it."

Yale's only tally of the match came with 13seconds remaining and proved inconsequential,except where pride is concerned. Yale juniorTheryn Gibbons' goal snapped Harvard's string of315 minutes without allowing a goal. It was alsothe first goal allowed this season by Burney, whoreplaced Browning with five minutes remaining.

Even before the start of the match, it wasclear that the Crimson was prepared for anychallenge Yale might have presented. Harvard'splayers marched onto Ohiri Field in two singlefile lines cheering and chanting during the secondhalf of the men's soccer game that preceded theirown.

"We just came out with enthusiasm," Millersaid. "We had so much energy and so much desire. Ican't explain it. I could tell we were going towin. We were very ready."

The Crimson outshot the Elis 14-9 and tookseven corner kicks to Yale's two. Harvard'soffense has been excellent since the Crimson's 1-0double overtime victory at Columbia on Sept. 19and is showing no signs of slowing down.

"We're starting to play better," Berman said,"but we have the potential to be even morepowerful. We're just going to explode."

Behind already-brilliant play and constantimprovement, Harvard may be well on its way to afourth consecutive Ivy League championship.

HARVARD, 2-1at Ohiri FieldYale  0  1  --  1Harvard  1  1  --  2

ScoringHar--Foster (Stauffer) 1:11.Har--Berman (Moore, Miller) 59:54.Yale--Gibbons (Unassisted) 89:47.Saves:Yale--Peterson 9; Har--Browning 4,Burney 1.

ScoringHar--Foster (Stauffer) 1:11.Har--Berman (Moore, Miller) 59:54.Yale--Gibbons (Unassisted) 89:47.Saves:Yale--Peterson 9; Har--Browning 4,Burney 1.