Women’s Soccer Rallies for 3-2 Victory Against Brown

This past Saturday, the Harvard women’s soccer team pulled off a thrilling rally against Brown, improving to 6-5-1 on the season with 3-2 win over the Bears in Providence, R.I. The Crimson scored three goals in the second half to take down the Bears (5-7-1, 1-3-0 Ivy League) in its first come-from-behind victory since rallying to beat Yale in October of 2016. After surrendering two goals early, Harvard (6-5-1, 3-0-1) bounced back with second-half goals from sophomore Murphy Agnew, senior Leah Mohammadi, and freshman Taylor Nielsen.

“I was incredibly impressed with the way we bounced back,” said Crimson head coach Chris Hamblin. “The team was very resilient.”

Brown came out with a potent offensive attack and gained early momentum because of the scoring opportunities they had at the start of the game. One of the Bears’ top scorers, Star White, found the back of the net in the fourth and sixteenth minute to propel Brown to a 2-0 lead. Both these goals came against set pieces that exploited Harvard’s defense. According to Hamblin, the Crimson will work on their defensive setup against set pieces in order to prevent these types of goals from happening for the rest of their games this season.

Following their two quick goals at the outset of the game, the Bears managed to shutout Harvard for the remainder of the half with strong defensive play that stifled the Crimson’s offensive attack.

Unphased by Brown’s two goal lead, Harvard went into the second half determined to rally from behind and win the game. They were more aggressive on the offensive side of the ball, pushing the ball up the field, and securing more scoring opportunities that would allow them to put the Bears’ defense on edge.

Senior midfielder Leah Mohammadi was instrumental to the Crimson comeback, by setting up quality shots on goal and scoring herself. The Upland Calif., native’s impressive efforts in leading their rally earned her the distinction of Ivy League Player of the Week.

Mohammadi and the rest of the Harvard team began their comeback early in the second half. In the 49th minute, Agnew capitalized on the setup given to her by Mohammadi and freshman Jillian Wachira, scoring from 20 yards out to finally get the visitor’s squad on the board.

The goal, Agnew’s first of the season after countless close calls through the first 11 games, was instrumental in swinging the momentum towards the Crimson. The reigning Ivy League Rookie of the Year would return the favor to the senior by helping to set up Harvard’s equalizer in the 70th minute. Agnew drew a penalty that was then slotted home by Mohammadi, for her team-leading seventh goal of the season.

The Crimson would complete their comeback with a breathtaking sequence near the end of regulation. With seven minutes left in regulation and the game in a deadlock, freshman Jordan Diverniero had a long flip-throw to put the ball into play. Freshman Sophie Hirst would then cross the ball to her fellow first-year Taylor Nielsen, who broke the tie with a powerful volley into the back of the net.

Harvard would shut out Brown for the rest of the game and secure the 3-2 victory. The comeback win puts the Crimson into a tie for first place in the Ivy League standings and improves their record against the Bears to 28-19-4.

Having struggled so long when playing from behind, the win was an example long in the making of the Crimson’s revamped offensive abilities. Saturday’s game illustrated how the youth movement, with ten rookies all being given substantial playing time, has given Harvard a new identity after a trying 2017-18 season on the offensive side of the ball.

After the game, Coach Hamblin was thoroughly pleased with his team’s performance and the resilience they displayed. To keep up the momentum, Coach Hamblin stated, “We need to continue our offensive threat and work on our early defense.”

Harvard’s next test is an enormous one. With just three games remaining, in order to stay atop the Ivy league, the Crimson will have to take down Ivy giants Princeton on the road next Saturday at 1 PM EST (ESPN+).