W. Soccer Looks for Ivy Prefection at Brown

With the No.1 ranking in New England all but insured as it enters the NCAA Tournament, the Harvard women's soccer team has only two things left on its mind: beating Brown and attaining Ivy League perfection.

Harvard enters the weekend coming off its two biggest wins of the year over UConn and Dartmouth--then ranked No. 7 and No.25, respectively. With the win over the Big Green the Crimson (13-1-1, 6-0 Ivy) earned at least a share of the Ivy League championship and the No. 9 spot in the national rankings.

Now primed to cap a perfect Ivy season and win the title outright, Harvard travels to Providence tomorrow morning to take on the hapless Bears (2-11-2, 0-5-1).

"This game is very important for us, and especially for the seniors," co-captain Jess Larson said. "It means a lot to go undefeated in the Ivy League, and we definitely don't want to be co-champs. We take pride in winning the title."

Harvard needs only a tie to clinch sole-possession of the championship.

Standing in the way of the Crimson's third title in four years is a struggling Bears team. Brown has been in a tailspin of sorts ever since its third game of the year. After beginning the 1999 campaign with a 2-1 record, the Bears have gone winless the rest of the way, losing 10 of its last 11 games.

Brown has proven to be fairly inept in all aspects of play this season, allowing 23 goals, while scoring only 10 this year. Despite the apparent mismatch, however, Harvard believes that the Bears will give it everything it can handle.

"Playing at Brown is always tough," Larson said. "They will be pretty emotional, and will be looking forward to the chance of upsetting us as we try to win the Ivy title."

Brown's lack of offensive firepower--the team is averaging just 0.67 goals per game--will likely force the Bears to play a defensive minded game. Harvard is expecting the Bears to stack the backfield with defenders hoping to score solely on counter- attacks.

"Brown really likes to pack the box and make it difficult to score," Larson said. "We expect that they may even move a player out of the midfield and put them in the back."

The Crimson is prepared to battle for goals, looking to not get too anxious to score.

"We'd like to score early to put the pressure on them to try to get goals," Larson said. "But we know that controlling the ball for much of the game without getting a goal is a possibility, so we just have to be patient."

While the goals may not come easy against the Bears, Harvard brings an offensive attack that should be able to crack the Brown defense.

Freshman forwards Beth Totman and Joey Yenne lead the Crimson attack with 16 points apiece on the year. Yet another freshman, midfielder Bryce Weed, is right just behind the duo up front with 13 points of her own.

But despite the sensational play from its freshman, Harvard still looks to its veterans to make big plays. Co-captain Beth Zotter tallied the game-winning goal in the 1-0 win over UConn last week, while senior midfielder Ashley Berman and junior forward Colleen Moore connected for a score in 2-1 victory against Dartmouth.

With the superior talent up front, Harvard looks to have control of the ball for much of the afternoon, continually putting pressure on the Bears defense.

And when Brown does get the ball, the Crimson should be in good shape. Harvard has proven itself to be among the best defensive teams in the country all season long. The Crimson has allowed just eight goals all season--tied for the lowest mark in the nation--and has posted shutouts in six of its last eight contests.

Larson--a perennial All-Ivy selection and a leading candidate for Player of the Year honors--anchors the defense in the sweeper position, and senior back Gina Foster has been sensational.

And in goal, freshman Cheryl Gunther has proven to be one of the biggest surprises in the Ivy League. Gunther's 0.43 goals against average and .922 save percentage are both tops in the league. Additionally, she has been named Ivy Rookie of the Week for two weeks running, giving her a total of three for the year.

So barring an upset the Crimson should achieve what it has striven for from the season's outset: Ivy League perfection.