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Around the Ivies — Men’s Soccer

Ivy League soccer is beginning to hit full swing, as many teams from the Ancient 8 will play the third of their seven league games this coming weekend. It’s a dogfight as usual, and many questions remain before the season is over.

Dartmouth(6-3-1 overall, 2-0 Ivy League): The Big Green picks up right where it left off last season, as it follows up an NCAA bid with a perfect start to league play. A stalwart defense has been this team’s calling card so far as it’s allowed just .80 goals per game on the season and has yet to give one up in Ivy League play.

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Harvard(4-4-2, 2-0): Last year’s third-place finishers are making a strong case for themselves to kick things off. Besides their wins against intra-league foes, they’ve shown that they can hold their own against the best of the NCAA, having brought (then) no. 23-ranked Southern Methodist and (then) no. 9-ranked University of Washington to ties.

Brown(6-4-1, 1-0-1): A goal in the 86thminute against Princeton keeps the Brown Bears out of the loss column and in the thick of the race as they take on aforementioned leader Harvard this weekend. For their high standing and for the tie against the Tigers, they have superstar freshman Jack Hagstrom to thank. The rookie put in the game-tying goal in the 85thminute, his fifthon the season, as he ranks second in the league in goals.

Columbia(6-3-1, 1-1): While the Lions have cooled down after an impressive 4-0 start, they remain steady in the league, as they look to put the woeful seventh-place finish in the 2014 season behind them. They haven’t had any standout performers so far — no player on the roster has scored more than 2 goals so far.

Princeton(5-3-2, 0-1-1): It’s amazing how little moments can drastically shape a season. One defensive lapse against Dartmouth, and allowing the last-minute goal against Brown, and the Tigers find themselves having to do some major climbing. However, this team has shown they have talent in spades, especially on the offensive end. Two of the top five Ivy goal scorers rep Nassau Hall — senior forward Tom Sanner and senior midfielder Brendan McSherry.

Penn(2-7-1, 1-1): The Quakers’ win against Cornell has been a lonely bright spot, as it’s been rough outing after rough outing so far. While the team opened the season against tough foes, fans must worry whether the initial six-game losing streak sets the tone for the season.

Cornell(2-9-1, 0-2):Finding the back of the net has been a challenge for them to say the least. The Big Red is pulling up the rear in scoring, as it’s scored only five times so far this season and has failed to score in eight of its 12 games on the season.

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Yale(1-9, 0-2): If the season so far has been any indication, another winless Ivy League season could very well be in the Bulldogs’ future. If they want any chance at redemption, they’ll have to fix some glaring problems on defense. They’re dead last in the league in goals allowed in on the season at 25 — no other team has let in more than 17.

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