Men's Soccer Aims To Rebound Against Connecticut

UPDATED: September 10, 2015, at 3:23 p.m.

After seeing its nine-game home winning streak snapped over the weekend, the Harvard men’s soccer team (0-1-1) will look to right the ship in its final home tilt of the month against Connecticut (0-0-3) on Thursday.

The Crimson will be seeking its first victory of 2015 at a familiar venue bearing an unfamiliar name. The Athletic Department announced Wednesday that Soldiers Field, the team's primary home field, has been renamed to Jordan Field in honor of Jerry Jordan '61, a former end for the Harvard football team.

Thursday's tilt was moved to Jordan Field just a few hours prior to kickoff. The game was originally scheduled to be played on the natural grass surface of Ohiri Field, where the team practices during the preseason but has played just five games over the last three seasons—including one against the Huskies in 2012.

In that contest, an NCAA Tournament-bound UConn squad brought what former Harvard coach Carl Junot called “the perfect storm,” as the Huskies held the Crimson without a single shot on goal in a 6-0 rout.

But three years removed from the blowout at Ohiri, Harvard has transformed from a team that had to scrap for its three wins in 2012 to a legitimate conference contender.

“All us seniors, even the guys who came here after us, we all know what happened, and we still remember back to that day,” senior forward Jake Freeman said. “But I think we’re all aware how much the program has turned around, and now we feel like we’re in a position to be right there with them…. We feel like we can really bring it to them.”

Nonetheless, the Crimson will have its work cut out against a UConn defense that has thus far been flawless. Dating back to last year, the Huskies have gone 797 consecutive minutes without conceding a goal—part of a 10-game unbeaten streak.

But despite three consecutive clean sheets for redshirt sophomore Scott Levene, the rest of the UConn squad has not yet been able to provide their netminder with any offensive support. The Huskies have mustered just 13 shots on goal through three games and have yet to find the back of the net.

UConn’s offensive struggles bode well for Harvard, but if the Crimson is going to become the fourth team in a row to shut out the Huskies, the team will likely have to do it without its top defender.

Center back and returning co-captain Mark Ashby sat out Harvard’s first two games with what he described to The Crimson on Wednesday as a quadriceps strain. Ashby says his status is “day-to-day,” but he does not expect to play against UConn.

“It’s tough, but this happens to every player, so I’m just doing my rehab [and] getting great treatment from the training staff,” Ashby said. “I can’t really be sure when I’ll be back, but I’m definitely working my hardest to get back on the field.”

With Ashby watching from the sideline, Harvard failed to come away with a victory on the season’s opening weekend.

Thanks to a 73rd minute strike from sophomore forward Alvaro Madrigal, Loyola Marymount (4-0-0), now ranked No. 20 in the nation, squeaked by with a 1-0 win over the Crimson on Friday. Then on Sunday, Harvard played to a 2-2 draw with then-No. 23 Southern Methodist (2-1-1).

Among those stepping up in the absence of Ashby were senior Andrew Chang and junior Alex Leondis, who started both games on the back line and also helped aid the offensive attack on Sunday with seven combined shots.

“It’s always a challenge when the captain goes down, but we’re a team that’s blessed with so much depth, especially back there on the back line,” Freeman said. “It’s kind of a ‘next man up’ policy. We know that no matter what happens...the next player up will step up and fill the role as best as they can and with as much effort as possible.”

The Crimson attack, which Chang and Leondis helped kick into gear on Sunday, came to life after struggling to find its rhythm on Friday, when LMU keeper Paul Blanchette only had to make four saves. Against SMU, Freeman and senior forward Oliver White each got on the scoresheet. As a result of the adjustment, Freeman feels good about the team’s chances moving forward.

“We didn’t think we had our best performance on Friday, so we tweaked some things over the weekend,” Freeman said. “Coming into Sunday, we think we really put up our best performance. Unfortunately, we didn’t get the outcome we want, but we feel like we’re moving in the right direction.”

—Staff writer Jake Meagher can be reached at jake.meagher@thecrimson.com.