Men's Lacrosse Continues Tough Stretch Against No. 3 Cornell

This Saturday, two of the Ivy League’s most antithetical teams will face off in a conference showdown at Soldiers Field.

The Harvard men’s lacrosse team (4-5, 0-2 Ivy) enters the match on a four-game skid, with three of its four losses coming to opponents ranked in the current top 14, while No. 3 Cornell (7-2, 3-0) has won its last four, including three victories over fellow Ancient Eight teams.

Last season saw a similar matchup between the two squads, as Harvard entered that game in Ithaca as the underdog against the then-No. 2 ranked and undefeated Big Red. The Crimson upset its Ivy League opponent 14-9, snapping a nine-game winning streak for Cornell to open the 2014 season.

The Harvard win drastically altered the remainder of the season for each team, as the loss for Cornell was the start to a 2-5 finish in its final seven games, while Harvard won four of its last six and advanced to its second Ivy League championship game in program history.

“We’ve put together a tough out-of-conference schedule,” Harvard coach Chris Wojcik ’96 said. “While we’ve lost some of those games in that [non-conference stretch], I think our team has come together over those losses…and we’ll be ready for Saturday.”

There is little doubt that Harvard will rely heavily on its offense to lead the way this weekend, as the Crimson have averaged 13.89 goals per contest, good for seventh-best in the country.

Spearheading that offensive charge will be junior attackman Deke Burns, who leads Harvard in goals this year, with 23 tallies through nine games. Burns also has a history of success against the Big Red, recording three goals and two assists in last season’s victory.

The Jamesville, N.Y., native assisted or scored on the three goals that brought the Crimson back from a 4-1 deficit and scored the go-ahead goal in the third quarter that secured the Harvard lead for the rest of the game in last year’s Harvard-Cornell matchup.

Burns’ partner-in-crime on the offensive end for the Crimson this year has been fellow junior attackman Devin Dwyer.

Dwyer, who tied Harvard team records with 12 points and eight assists in a single game earlier this year against Holy Cross, leads the Crimson with 36 points and 23 assists.

The Garden City, N.Y., native, who was named to the Tewaaraton Award Watch List before this season, leads the Ivy League in assists this year and is fifth in points.

While the Crimson offensive has found success so far this season, junior co-captain Sean Mahon believes the key to this Saturday’s game will be the Harvard defense.

“We had some success last year,” Mahon said. “[Cornell senior midfielder] Connor Buczek...is an All-American midfielder. We had our [senior defenseman] Brian Fischer cover him last year, which worked out well. Limiting their shots, taking away their strong hands, and playing fundamental team defense will be our game-plan going in.”

Leading the Crimson defense most recently has been junior goalkeeper Bryan Moore, who stopped 23 shots against No. 10 Albany in his last outing, the second-most saves of any goalkeeper in the NCAA this year and the most for an Ivy League goalie since 2010.

Moore will have his hands full as Big Red brings an offense tied for 11th in the country, led by four seniors who all started the game in last year’s loss to the Crimson. Leading the offensive unit are senior attackman Matt Donovan, who has led Cornell with 40 points and 27 goals this season, and Buczek, who was last year’s Ivy League Player of the Year.

“After we beat them last year, they are definitely out to get us back this year,” Mahon said. “We’re ready for a battle, we’re ready for a grind…and it will probably come down to a couple of possessions or a couple of ground balls. It’s going to be a very fast and physical game.”