Danler Trifecta Lifts Cornell Past Laxmen At Frigid Ohiri Field

When the air is cold and the wind is blowing, sometimes the ball just doesn't bounce your way.

The Harvard men's lacrosse team braved freezing conditions Saturday against Cornell, but couldn't generate any offensive heat, dropping its home opener at Ohiri Field, 8-3.

With just one goal in the first half and two in the second, the Crimson showed that it is still having problems getting the ball in the net.

The game started out close, and it looked as if Harvard would be able to keep up with Cornell's aggressive play. But the Big Red struck first, as Cornell's own freshman phenom Chris Danler (three goals) scored three minutes into the first quarter on a man-up opportunity.

Harvard responded a minute later as sophomore attacker Mike Porter took a feed from freshman Dan Nicklas and fired the ball past Cornell goalie Tim Shea (22 saves).

After one quarter of play, Cornell led 2-1, but from then on things just got colder and colder for the Crimson. The Big Red shut Harvard out for the next two quarters, while it scored six goals of its own.

"They had the ball more than we did in the second and third," Co-Captain Paul Faust said. "When you control ball possession the way they did, you're going to score."

Cornell blew the game open with two goals in the second quarter and four in the third. The Big Red also massacred Harvard in the ground ball battle, picking up 48 (compared to 34 for the Crimson).

The most telling statistic, however, was in the shots column. Although the Crimson only had four fewer shots than Cornell (26 to 30), the Big Red offense was able to take advantage of its attempts on goal, while Harvard floundered.

Despite its problems on Saturday, players said the offense looked much better than it did against C.W. Post.

"Our transition game looked smooth, and we were much better this time at controlling the ball and working it around," senior defender Pete Welch said. "But we just couldn't put the shots in the net."

The low point for the offense came in the third quarter when Harvard could not take advantage of a six-on-four (two Cornell penalties) situation.

The Crimson's young offense is still treading tenderly on the intercollegiate playing field, and Faust said that the players just need some more time before they are able to live up to their potential.

"It's all a question of experience," Faust said. "There are some things in the game that veterans take for granted and that young players have to grow used to."

Cornell's high pressure defense gave the Crimson fits for most of the game, but in the fourth quarter, Harvard looked more composed and put together some offense of its own.

Midfielder Faust took the ball to the hole himself 3:44 into the fourth and scored unassisted to double the Crimson tally.

Freshman midfielder Spencer Rice added another score a minute later, taking a pretty feed on the left side of the goal from fellow freshman Steve Gaffney and cranking the ball past Shea.

On the defensive end, the Crimson played a solid game holding the Big Red to a reasonable eight goals and shutting Cornell out in the fourth.

Senior goalie Chris Miller came up with 21 saves, and the defense was able to clear the ball successfully, something it had problems with against Post.

"Defensively, we cleared up a lot of mistakes," Welch said. "And we held them to enough goals that you should win."