Defense Defines Ivy League Slate

A year ago today, the Harvard men’s lacrosse team sat at a 2-2 record on the eve of the start of the conference slate, hovering within the realm of the same Ivy mediocrity that had plagued the program for the ten years prior.

What followed to conclude the year was a similarly-themed 4-4 record, but an improved Ivy League meant a sympathetic NCAA selection committee, and for the Crimson, its first NCAA tournament birth in a decade.

But the 2007 season has taken an entirely different route. Through four contests, Harvard sits at the bottom of the conference standings, the only Ivy League team without a win. And in stark contrast with an ’06 squad captained by a defensemen and a defense-minded midfielder, this year’s Crimson has struggled mightily to find leadership in its own zone.

“There have been a lot of defensive breakdowns that have been the result of miscommunications,” co-captain attackman Brian Mahler said. “We’re looking for that one guy, whoever it is, whether it’s a freshman or a senior, to anchor the defense and get us going.”

In fact, Harvard has no senior defensemen on its entire roster, and the inexperience has shown in the season’s early goings. The team has given up no less than 11 goals in any contest, only matching that total itself in last Sunday’s 18-11 loss at Fairfield. Opponents are scoring five and a half more goals per game than the Crimson, while also sporting a shot percentage that nearly doubles Harvard’s .217 average. Teams are also getting more shots on goal, have racked up almost twice as many assists, and have been more efficient on their man-up opportunities.

Put mildly, the defense has struggled—but it’s not because of any lack of talent.

“These guys are unbelievable athletes, the best we’ve ever had on that end,” said co-captain midfielder John Henry Flood, “but we’re still looking for some leadership out on the defensive end. We’re looking for them to be more mature as games go on.”

The need for defensive stability has been especially apparent in light of the shift in philosophy in goal for Harvard. As opposed to a system last year that saw sophomore Joe Pike and junior Evan O’Donnell share time in net, Pike has cemented himself as the starter this year. His first season as full-time goalie, however, has been characterized by opponents’ abilities to create not simply plenty of shots, but ones of a very high percentage.

“We’ve got to figure something out,” Mahler said bluntly. “Our defense is looking for some leadership.”

The team’s struggles have not simply been of the defensive variety. The Crimson’s first two games, a pair of losses in which Harvard totaled just 12 goals compared to 13 in each game for Ohio State and Stony Brook, were played without senior attackman Evan Calvert. The offense has scored 21 goals since the return of the team’s leading scorer from last year, but the production—33 goals on 152 shots thus far—still leaves much to be desired.

It has some believing that the defense has taken too much of the blame.

“I don’t know how much it’s hurt us,” senior attackman Greg Cohen said of the team’s young defensive unit. “We have a bunch of great defensemen. They’re not gelling as a unit, but they’re getting better, and I have a lot of confidence in them.”

The Crimson hopes that confidence will finally translate into a win this Saturday, when the team opens the Ivy League season at home against Penn at 1 p.m. at Jordan Field.

“It’s incredibly important,” Flood said of the game. “We’ve been saying ‘next game, next game’ all year. Realistically, we’re going to have to do very well in the Ivy League to accomplish our goal of making the NCAA tournament.”

That will be a tough task, considering that the nation’s number one team, Cornell, as well as also undefeated Yale—not to mention perennial powers Dartmouth and Princeton—all grace the second half of Harvard’s schedule.

The challenge they’ll present, however, has not deterred the Crimson. Cohen called the game a “must-win,” while others have been equally direct in stressing the importance of the coming games.

“We’ve got to play our best lacrosse, and this is a great week to turn it around and seriously figure out what’s going on,” Mahler said. “Our playoffs start this week. That’s where it really counts.”

The great significance of conference play has, however, put the early struggles into a bit of perspective.

“None of these games have mattered other than the fact that they’re tune-ups,” Flood said. “We need to win six Ivy games.”

—Staff writer Malcom A. Glenn can be reached at mglenn@fas.harvard.edu.