THE SPORTING SCENE

Rarely, if ever, has one soccer game crammed so many dramatic elements into 88 minutes as the varsity's win over Brown last Saturday at Providence. Performances that would normally have drawn rave notices were eclipsed by efforts surpassing mere excellence.

Of Tadhg Sweeney's miraculous playing at center forward, much has already been said. His was, simply, the outstanding individual performance in a season notable for fine showings.

Crimson goalie Tom Bagnoli gave a vivid demonstration of courage, making many saves and quarterbacking the defense despite a broken right hand. One day earlier, it was extremely doubtful that Bagnoli would even see action. In practice Friday, Bagnoli was determinedly trying to convince Bruce Munro that he was ready to start the Brown game.

Munro was then firing shots at his goalie in an effort to find out what Bagnoli could do. And, truth to tell, Bagnoli wasn't faring too well. He had trouble catching the ball with the cumbersome cast on his hand, and had developed a mental block about diving to his right. But although Munro had some serious doubts, he still could not discount Bagnoli. "He can do anything he wants to do," Munro said.

And Saturday morning found Bagnoli in the nets, with all his limitations overcome. For sheer bravery and ability, few players in Crimson history have matched his performance.

At right halfback, Charlie Steele played a fine game on two heavily bandaged legs. With his speed cut in half, Steele still was magnificent on defense, and his passes set up one goal and nearly led to another. Munro had expected to start Bill Driver in Steele's spot, but the tough halfback refused to be benched. Many, including Munro, have said that Steele is the most improved player on the squad; his effort Saturday was a sterling display of talent and know-how.

Captain Lanny Keyes went the distance at fullback despite pulled muscles and bruised insteps that had forced him to forgo kicking for distance. But he too, even in his crippled condition, was tough to deal with.

The game was marred by frankly partisan officiating. Two Rhode Island referees, who consistently amazed the large homecoming crowd by shouting "our ball" when Brown had possession, also alerted the Bruin goalie when a Crimson threat was brewing, and made several questionable calls.

Bruins Score on Penalty

A blatantly erroneous hands penalty on Keyes gave Brown its only tally and pulled the Bruins within reach of the varsity, 2 to 1. When Keyes blocked a Bruin pass with his chest, the referee, standing directly behind him, called hands. The penalty was so preposterous that any sort of protest was obviously useless. Brown halfback Pat Jones then scored on a beautiful penalty kick into the upper right-hand corner of the Crimson goal.

Varsity to Meet Yale

Brown's hopes for the Ivy title ended with this defeat. The only team with a shot left at the Crimson is the Yale eleven, which gave up the League lead by bowing to Princeton, 1 to 0. The Elis confront the varsity Friday in the championship showdown. The Ivy crown, an NCAA bid and the honor of victory in the traditional series will ride on the outcome.