Men's Soccer Mounts Late Comeback to Defeat Iona

When a team trails for most of the game after allowing an early goal, it can often be difficult to break down tough, gritty opponents that choose to park the bus and protect the lead late in the game. But most teams aren’t the Harvard men’s soccer team (3-3-1). With less than nine minutes left in the game, and down 1-0, it seemed like the Iona (1-7-0) would pull out its second win of the season-- a win it would need to keep up momentum upon starting conference play on Tuesday. But a relentless Harvard offense found a way to find the back of the net -- not once, but twice, to give win the game 2-1.

With just three minutes left in the game, senior forward Jake Freeman fed a ball through Iona’s defense to junior midfielder Christian Sady, who slid the ball in near post to put Harvard up 2-1 and clinch the win.

“It was definitely a battle today,” senior defender Alex Leondis said. “Both of our goals came pretty late. That just shows that the team doesn’t quit or stop fighting…. Today was an especially big one, we needed it. Hopefully the momentum continues. Everyone worked so hard today, and we needed it. It was a good team win.”

The Crimson stepped onto Mazzella Field in New Rochelle, NY., eager to bounce back from a pair of losses and gain momentum heading into Ivy League play.

The game got off to a shaky start for Harvard, though, as Iona’s Teddy Forson fed a ball through the Crimson defense, which forward Daniel Huertas picked up and chipped over junior goalkeeper Kyle Parks in just under eight minutes to put the Gaels up 1-0. The team did not capitalize on the early advantage, though, as Harvard’s defense solidified to allow only two more shots in the rest of the first half.

Offensively, the Crimson was unable to get the equalizer, for as much as Iona’s offense was unable to gain momentum and find more chances, its defense was determined to thwart any of Harvard’s attempts on goal. Harvard did find itself in its attacking third several times-- racking up eight corner kicks in the first half-- but was not able to capitalize on the set pieces. It ultimately had to settle for just three shots on goal.

In the second half, the Crimson came out strong, with the defense shutting out Iona, and the offense beginning to break down Iona’s defense. The team outshot Iona, 10-4, and had more shots on goal, but were unlucky in finding the back of Iona’s net for the majority of the game.

With less than nine minutes left to play, Harvard stepped up its intensity. Co-captain Andrew Wheeler-Omiunu connected with Leondis off a deflected cross, and Leonis found a way to do what Harvard been trying to do for the past 81 minutes: get the ball past Iona’s goalkeeper, Kellar Sirstins.

“We were pushing in the second half, we were getting a lot of chances, and eventually everyone was just battling,” Leondis said. “It felt great to get the goal. It felt great to get one as a team because I thought we deserved one.”

At this point, many would be content to go shore up its defense to force the game into overtime, which would allow time to reset and prepare for another chance to win the game. But in true Harvard fashion, the offense did not let up, even with the clock ticking down.

Six minutes after Leonis tied up the game, Freeman teed up Sady for the game winning goal.

“Obviously we’re really happy with the result,” senior defender Dan Smith said. “But I think even more significantly is something we’ve been saying the whole season, that we’re a team that fights, even when the result isn’t going our way. We’re a team that fights for each other and grinds for 90 minutes, and today we were really rewarded for that.”

These goals were the first of the season for both Leonis and Sady. With so many players stepping up and contributing to both offense and defense, Harvard has proven that it has what it takes to get through gritty games and come out on top.

“We’ve always been a program that is proud of demanding that everyone step up and contribute, from freshmen to seniors, and I think we’re seeing that so clearly this year. It feels good and we’re going to keep doing that."

–Staff writer Katherine H. Scott can be reached at katherine.scott@thecrimson.com.