Penn Edges Men's Lacrosse in Weekend Matchup

Entering this past Saturday, the members of the senior class of Harvard men’s lacrosse had beaten every team in the Ivy over the course of their careers except Penn. A trip to Philadelphia to face the Quakers presented one final chance to do so, and with the Crimson coming off a big road win against Cornell a week earlier, a victory over Penn seemed within its grasp.

Franklin Field has historically not been kind to Harvard, as the team has not earned a victory over the Quakers there since 2006. However, when Crimson senior attackman Devin Dwyer found the back of the net with 1:12 remaining in the fourth quarter, the score was tied at 13 and the game was there for either team’s taking.

Penn won the ensuing faceoff, and after a composed possession in which almost everyone on offense touched the ball, sophomore attackman Reilly Hupfeldt capitalized on an opening on the right side of the field to fire a shot home. The goal came with just 0:15 remaining, leaving Harvard no time to respond.

“We broke down systematically on the last play,” Crimson captain and defender Stephen Jahelka said. “They got a good matchup in their favor and we didn't support well enough off the ball.”

Hupfeldt’s strike proved to be the difference in the contest, as the Quakers (6-5, 3-2 Ivy) sent their fans home happy with the 14-13 victory over Harvard. The win ensured that the team will qualify for the four-team conference tournament following the regular season, as they hold tiebreakers over Cornell and Princeton by virtue of head-to-head results against them. The Crimson (6-6, 2-2 Ivy), meanwhile, slip down to fourth in the Ivy standings, only a game ahead of the Big Red and the Tigers.

While Harvard and Penn went back and forth throughout the game, a three-minute stretch in the first quarter during which the Quakers scored four times gave them an upper hand for the rest of the afternoon. Three of the goals were unassisted as the Crimson simply had trouble stopping Penn players from penetrating.

“Our lack of energy at the beginning of the game really cost us,” Harvard coach Chris Wojcik ’96 said. “It’s hard to play with a deficit, and doing that for almost the entire first half made it difficult to maintain pressure towards the end of the game.”

The Crimson did have the energy for a big run at the beginning of the second half, however. After entering halftime down 6-4, it ripped off five straight goals in the first ten minutes of the third quarter to take a 9-6 lead. Sophomore attackman Morgan Cheek led the way with two goals and an assist during the sequence.

Not rattled, Quakers countered with an even bigger rally. They found the net six times in nine minutes spanning the end of the third period and beginning of the fourth, flipping the score and taking the lead themselves. Five different players contributed goals, with Hupfeldt tallying two more on his way to finishing with four goals in total.

“It was a game of big momentum swings, and you never want to get into those on the road,” Wojcik said. “We needed to do a better job of maintaining possession and getting smarter shots when Penn was getting on a roll.”

The Quakers remained in control for the rest of the fourth quarter, and ended up outshooting Harvard 16-5. In a few minutes of efficiency on offense, however, the Crimson scored three times on three shots to tie the score and set up the frantic finish.

With the game knotted up at 12-12 at that point, Penn sophomore defender Connor Keating and Dwyer traded goals. Dwyer finished with four for the afternoon just like Hupfeldt, who scored the game-winner.

“Penn is a great team that finds a way to make winning plays at crucial times,” Jahleka said. “We are looking forward to getting back to work this week, and hopefully we’ll earn another chance to see Penn in the Ivy League tournament.”

—Staff writer George Hu can be reached at yianshenhu@college.harvard.edu.