W. Soccer Earns Ivy Share, Beats Datmouth 2-1

After a year away from the throne, the Harvard women's soccer claimed at least a share of what it covets most, the Ivy League crown.

On Saturday afternoon the No. 15 Crimson (13-1-1, 6-0 Ivy) posted a 2-1 victory over Ivy rival and No. 25 Dartmouth, avenging a defeat to the defending champs by the same score last year.

The Big Green jumped out to an early 2-0 lead in last season's match-up, stunning Harvard en route to its 2-1 victory. The loss cost the Crimson the Ivy championship and left the players--both freshman and underclassmen alike--thirsting for payback.

"We definitely came in looking for revenge for last year," freshman midfielder Bryce Weed said. "As freshmen, we hadn't felt it as much, but those who were here were really hurt by the loss, and we felt it through them."

Junior forward Colleen Moore netted Harvard's second goal of the day in the 65th minute off of a sensational feed from senior midfielder Ashley Berman, to give the Crimson a 2-0 lead it would not relinquish.

With the victory Harvard captured at least a share of the Ivy League crown that it surrendered last season to Dartmouth. With a win or a tie next Saturday over Brown, the Crimson will claim sole possession of first place in the league and an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.

With a 1-0 lead--courtesy of a first-half goal from Weed--already in hand, Harvard put the game out of reach at 25:17 of the second half with Moore's goal.

Berman was the catalyst for the score, creating Moore's scoring chance with a great pass. Berman took possession on the right side near midfield and evaded two Dartmouth defenders before sending a long drive with her left foot down the center of the field to the streaking Moore.

The pass led Moore perfectly, as she found herself alone with Big Green junior goalkeeper Kristin Luckenbill, last year's Ivy Player of the Year. Moore composed herself, drove left, waited for Luckenbill to commit and sent the ball into the lower right corner of the goal for the score and a 2-0 Harvard lead.

"[Moore's] goal was just awesome," Harvard Coach Tim Wheaton said. "They have a tendency to overslide and Ashley made a great pass. And Colleen was just so composed with the ball"

"I really didn't do much [for the goal]," Moore said. "I was just there and Ashley played a brilliant ball."

Having dominated the game throughout most of the contest and with a two-goal lead, it seemed as if it would be just a matter of running out the clock for the Crimson victory.

But with just under three minutes left in the game the Harvard defense that had been stellar all afternoon had a momentary lapse, giving Dartmouth a last chance at a comeback.

Big Green freshman midfielder Devon Haskell lobbed a nice pass to senior forward Jessica Post, who had sneaked by two Crimson defenders.

Post dribbled the ball into the Harvard box and sent a drive into the right corner of the net past freshman goalkeeper Cheryl Gunther.

The goal spoiled what would have been the Crimson's seventh shutout in eight games, as Harvard held the Big Green scoreless the rest of the way, to preserve the 2-1 victory.

"It was unfortunate to give up that one goal at the end," Wheaton said.

Nonetheless, Harvard's defense--which entered the game No. 1 in the nation in goals allowed with seven--was sensational throughout.

Led by great play in the backfield from co-captain Jess Larson and senior back Gina Foster, the Crimson made life difficult all afternoon for the Dartmouth front line.

And when the Big Green did get by the Harvard defense, Gunther was ready to turn it away. Gunther has been sensational all season, leading the Ivy in goals-against average as well as in save percentage. And yesterday was no exception, as she tallied 12 saves on the afternoon to keep Dartmouth at bay.

With the support of a raucous home crowd at Ohiri Field, the Crimson exploded out of the blocks, applying pressure on the Big Green from the outset, dominating play throughout the first half.

"The crowd for the game was awesome, " Wheaton said. "We really appreciate the support that the fans have been giving to both the women and men's teams. Today the community really stepped it up for us."

Just 15 seconds into the contest, after Dartmouth had kicked off, Weed raced into the center of the field, intercepted a pass and pushed the ball deep into the Big Green zone, setting the tone for the game early.

The Crimson continued to keep the heat on Dartmouth, earning several corner kicks in the first seven minutes of play. Harvard created scoring chances early and often, but could not convert in the early going off of Luckenbill.

At the 43:40 mark Foster boomed a shot off of a Berman corner kick just left of the goal, marking the first of several Harvard near-misses.

Just two minutes later freshman forward Beth Totman dribbled into the Dartmouth box and let fly a strong shot just over Luckenbill's outstretched arms. The goal was not to be, however, as Totman's blast hit off of the crossbar and was cleared out of danger.

Harvard once again had a golden opportunity to get on the board off of a corner at the 37:15 mark. Berman passed out of the left corner to co-captain Beth Zotter who penetrated near the left side of the net. The ensuing shot was deflected out near the right post, where Totman appeared to punch toward an open net. From out of nowhere, however, Luckenbill made a diving save, as the ball was then kicked away.

The Crimson continued to force Luckenbill and the Dartmouth defense to step up big to preserve the scoreless tie. In the 17th minute Totman received a pass from freshman forward Joey Yenne, dribbled into the right side of the Big Green box and ripped a shot on goal. Harvard was denied once again, though, as the shot was kicked away by a Dartmouth defender just before it could cross the line.

Luckenbill, meanwhile, continued to show the form that made her the league's top player as a sophomore, as she made yet another great save in the 25th minute. Moore received a nice pass from Foster and sent a high, hard shot at the net, before Luckenbill leaped to make the acrobatic stop.

Although it was held scoreless early on despite its dominance, the Crimson did not get frustrated or panic.

"It's always tough when you dominate a game and don't score," Wheaton said. "When that happens you have a tendency to want to change things, but we just kept playing the same way."

"It's a little hard when you play well and don't score," Weed said. "But we knew it was just a matter of time."

Dartmouth went to the well too many times, however, as the Crimson finally got one past Luckenbill at the 14:54 mark of the first half.

Totman took a free kick from the right side of the field and dished off to Weed. Weed took control, saw an opening and ripped a shot headed right over Luckenbill's head. The Dartmouth goalkeeper managed to get both hands on the shot, but could not hold on, as the ball squirted out of her grasp and into the back of the net.

"It was a tough save to make," Wheaton said. "Bryce got the ball on a free kick and the change of direction made it difficult."

"The ball was just laid across for me on the free kick," Weed said. "I don't know if it was goalie error, I just kicked it really hard and it went through."

Harvard didn't let up on the Big Green with a goal in hand, however. Just a minute after Weed's goal the Crimson barely missed extending its lead to two goals. Yenne lofted a long pass to a streaking Totman down the left side of the field. Totman dribbled ahead of two defenders and ripped a shot past Luckenbill toward the right post. Totman's attempt, however, sailed just inches wide of the net.

Despite its many near-misses, Harvard took an all-important 1-0 lead into the half, forcing Dartmouth to play from behind for the final 45 minutes.

The victory capped one of the more successful weeks in the program's history, as the Crimson pulled off a 1-0 upset win at No. 7 UConn last Wednesday in addition to Saturday's victory. With the two victories, Harvard is poised to enter the NCAA tournament as the No. 1 team in New England.

But before it looks to the postseason, the Crimson travels to Providence on Saturday to face Brown as it looks to win the Ivy League outright. The Bears don't look to pose much of a challenge for Harvard, entering the contest with a 2-11-2 record overall, including a 0-5-1 mark in the Ivy.

Although victory would seem well in hand, the Crimson will not take anyone for granted.

"Ever since the Princeton game [a 1-0 win on October 23] we have viewed the rest of our schedule as a second season," Wheaton said. "Every team that we face from that point is very good and can dominate a game, so we can't look past anyone."