Women's Soccer Continues Winning Streak Against CCSU

Harvard freshman Midge Purce continued to dominate offensively for the Crimson (5-3-1, 1-0 Ivy), scoring her fifth goal of the season Sunday night against Central Connecticut State University (2-7-0) in a 2-0 win.

In the 61st minute, Purce took advantage of a Blue Devil turnover and escaped the defense, giving her a one-on-one opportunity against goalkeeper Nikola Deiter. A quick shot to the back corner of the net put Harvard up 2-0, a score that would hold until the end of the match.

Purce leads the team in goals and points overall with nine. She is now ranked third in the Ivy League in goals scored, number one in shots, and tied for third in overall points.

Overall, the freshman players have added a major spark to the team, contributing significant skill early on in the 2013 season. Freshman players Karly Zlatic, Bailey Gary, and Lizzie Durack have seen significant playing time despite this being their first season at the collegiate level.

“[Purce] is an exciting and dynamic player, very strong on the ball,” said Crimson head coach Ray Leone. “She’s added a lot to our team, along with many other players.”

Coming off a victory against Penn on Friday, the team looked to keep their winning ways in tact. Prior to the contest, the team had won four games in a row following a tough start to the season.

In 2012, Harvard tied the Blue Devils in double overtimem 0-0. Although the Crimson dominated the shot count, 31-9, the team was unable to find the back of the net. In Sunday evening’s match, however, Harvard scored early in the first period and held the lead for the remainder of the contest.

The Crimson gained momentum early when a corner kick by co-captain midfielder Peyton Johnson was received by sophomore defender Emily Mosbacher, who was able to head the ball past the Central Connecticut goalkeeper into the top left corner.

“It was a great corner kick, “ Leone said. “It was a good opportunity for us. The goalkeepers were both really strong so it was going to take a really good goal tonight to get somewhere, so that was an excellent go-ahead that we needed.”

The Blue Devils came close to scoring on two separate occasions in the contest.  The first scoring opportunity came off of a corner in the first half when sophomore Cailynn Harding attempted a header toward the net, but the ball sailed clear over the crossbar. Later in the second period, freshman Morgan Santoro received the ball just inside the box, but a key save by Durack kept Central scoreless.

Freshman defender Bailey Gary was key to the Harvard defense. Providing backup to Durack, Gary was able to clear many Blue Devil crosses in front of the net. The Crimson defender was also vital in clearing the ball to the midfield line to shift the momentum and put Harvard on the offensive. The freshman has started every game this season, as her solid performance along with the rest of the defense has been crucial to recent team success.

Although Harvard has been rotating its three goalies in recent games, Durack was between the pipes the full 90 minutes and recorded four saves on the night. The freshman keeper has only allowed one goal in four games played, two of which she started. Sunday night was Durack’s second shutout of the season.

Although the two teams were close in shots, Harvard outnumbered the Blue Devils in shots on net, 10-4. Overall, the Crimson had 15 shots compared to the Central Connecticut’s ten. Junior midfielder Meg Casscells-Hamby led Harvard with three shots.

If there was one thing the team could work on, Leone said, it would be possession. Although the team’s possessing against the Blue Devils improved from the Penn game, it is something the team is still looking to get better at for the games to come.

“Moving the ball a little bit quicker is definitely something we will work on this week,” Leone said. “Overall it was a good game. It was a really challenging fast-paced game against an excellent Central Connecticut team.”

Harvard returns to Ivy League play next weekend as it faces rival the Yale Bulldogs. Both teams remain undefeated within the Ancient Eight, but only one will escape unscathed.