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The freshman soccer team held up staunchly against Brown here yesterday and tied, 2-2, despite a capricious wind and a rash of injuries.
"Brown played the most brutal soccer I've ever seen," said Harvard captain Dan Potts. "They pulled just about every variety of physical foul against us." Crimson starters Jerry Heslinger. Leroy Thompson, Brock Walsh, and Potts all had to leave play as the opposition plowed them from behind, knocked them over, or followed through on kicks to their shins and knees.
Goalie Peter Zurkow weathered Brown's violent attack with a number of fine saves. "Brown's favorite trick was to lob the ball just outside the penalty area in hopes of drawing me out of the goal's mouth," said Zurkow. "I fell for that a couple of times and they went around me or ran me over."
The hard wind affected long passes. "The game degenerated to chip and run," said half Frank Gerold. "Once we got the ball all we could do was boot it up past the defense and let the linemen sprint."
Gerold and the rest of Harvard's backfield kept Brown's shots on goal to a minimum. "We halfbacks worked pretty tight together and broke up a lot of plays," said Terry Ferguson. Ferguson himself--who is 6'3"--headed the ball superbly.
The Crimson attack, with its taste for elegant passing and fakery with little hard contact looked slower and less aggressive than in the past. Center Dragan Vujovic brought his season's record to nine goals by hammering in one score in the first quarter on a throw-in and another in the third quarter on a penalty shot. "But even Dragan wasn't hustling up to par," said Potts.
"We on the attack all let Brown bully us around a little too much." Potts added.
The Harvard offense had trouble scoring even in the clear. Vinnie Vanderpool-Wallace and Jerry Heslinger both muffed shots on an open goal.
Loud dissensions from the Brown ranks against referees' decisions spiced the game. The referees had to expel both Brown coach George Goedtz and one of his players for ungentlemanly remarks.
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