Harvard Unfazed by Loss to Former Coach

Two days after dropping the season opener to Duke 3-1, the No. 20 Harvard men’s soccer team bounced back with a resounding 3-1 win over North Carolina State on Sunday at the Duke/Nike Classic.

Senior co-captain Michael Fucito paced the Crimson (1-1-0) offense, scoring the lone goal against the Blue Devils (2-2-0) and sticking two in the back of the net against the Wolfpack. Along with junior forward Andre Akpan, Fucito was named to the 2008 Missouri Athletic Club’s Hermann Trophy Watch List, an honor bestowed upon the best collegiate soccer player in the country.

“The most impressive thing is that [Fucito] is coming off a serious surgery and is experiencing hamstring problems,” senior co-captain Luke Sager. “The fact that he can come in and score those three goals is amazing.”

Despite the opening loss to Duke, the team is optimistic about this season’s prospects when considering the results of this weekend’s action.

“I would like to think that the win [against NC State] would be a good indicator of how the season’s going to go,” co-captain Mike Fucito said.

DUKE 3, HARVARD 1

The season opener held particular significance for the Crimson, as it was the first meeting between Harvard and former Head Coach John Kerr. Kerr left Cambridge for Durham last December after nine seasons with the Crimson.

Despite the added incentive to come out with the win, Harvard was unable to implement a successful comeback against Duke.

“I know that the guys were looking forward to that game all year,” Sager said. “It’s too bad that we lost but it was our first game and their third game and it was a learning experience.”

The Blue Devils scored twice within three minutes early in the first half to set itself on track for a win.

“Soccer is a sport where it’s all about momentum and we had two early chances that we usually finish and we didn’t,” Sager said. “I think had we put those two away we might have had a different game.”

Fucito was able to put one into the back of the net at 34:48 in the first half when he converted an assist from senior Michael Giammanco on a play that started with a free kick.

Duke later added another tally at 81:32 to secure its win.

HARVARD 3, NC STATE 1

Fucito and senior midfielder John Stamatis teamed up twice to lift the Crimson to victory over the Wolfpack.

“Obviously the result [against Duke] wasn’t what we wanted to do but I don’t think anyone was really that upset,” Sager said. “It was great that we were able to come back with such a response in our second game – Coach Clark and Coach Junot really emphasized that.”

The first goal of the game came at 56:55 when Stamatis received the ball from junior goalkeeper Joseph Alexanded deep in NC State’s half. He passed the ball to Fucito, who shot it into the back of the net for a 1-0 advantage.

Minutes later, Fucito scored again—this time off a corner kick to give Harvard a 2-0 lead.

The win was more impressive given the fact that the Crimson was playing without the assistance of its freshmen, who were all back on campus for Camp Harvard events.

After NC State scored a tally at 59:17, junior midfielder Brian Grimm responded with an unassisted goal of his own.

Grimm made a run when he was about 30 yards from goal before cutting across the box to blast the ball with his left foot into the goal.

Despite the end score, the Wolfpack continued to press forward. NC State was responsible for 20 shots and nine corner kicks for the game. In comparison, the Crimson only managed seven shots and two corners.

Junior goalkeeper Joseph Alexander—in only his second start—made five saves for the team to help pull out the win.

“[Alexander] definitely made some important saves and came up big for the team,” Sager said.

Harvard will take the field next against Fairfield on Friday. It’s first home game will be on Sunday at Ohiri Field against Vermont.

“I think we have a pretty strong senior class and our class has a pretty strong influence on the team,” Fucito said. “I’m just looking to play well and set a good example.”

—Staff writer Lucy D. Chen can be reached at lucychen@fas.harvard.edu.