M. soccer hopes to salvage remnants of Ivy season against visiting Harvard

The Ivy League men's soccer picture is barely recognizable from a year ago.

Dartmouth, which finished second to last in the league last year, now rests at the top with also-undefeated Brown. Yale, which ended its season leading the league in overall wins with 12, is now last in the league with only five.

And then there's Princeton.

The Tigers, who won the Ivy League championship last year, now find themselves in a complete reversal of fortune. Princeton (6-5-1 overall, 0-3-0 Ivy League), which always seemed to find a way to win close games last year, has failed to win any league games this season. And the Tigers cannot find a reason why this season has fallen apart.

Princeton has only won two games in its last eight — quite the opposite from last year, when the Tigers were riding high on a five-game unbeaten streak when they faced Harvard in Cambridge, Mass. This season it is the Crimson that is riding a six-game unbeaten streak.

Harvard (7-3-1, 1-2-0) will be a tough challenge for the Tigers tomorrow night at Lourie-Love Field. The Crimson has improved greatly from last season, already surpassing its win total from last year with six more regular season games to go. While the Crimson hasn't been dominating on offense this season — nine of Harvard's 11 games have been decided by one goal — they have found ways to win the close contests.

The Crimson has relied primarily on forward Ryan Kelly to aid in goal production. Kelly leads Harvard scorers with four goals and five assists.

This year's Crimson squad has benefitted greatly from recruiting as well. While returning seven starters and 15 total varsity players from last year's team, Harvard strengthened its ranks this season with 13 new faces. Three of these freshmen have made an immediate impact for the Crimson, as they are the top scorers for Harvard after Kelly.

Both Princeton and Harvard are relatively low scoring teams which have relied heavily on their goalkeepers to keep the game competitive. Tiger sophomore Jason White has been phenomenal in goal so far this season with a 1.00 goals against average in non-league games. Harvard's Dan Mejias, who has a 1.04 GAA, has also been strong in the net.

The Crimson does command the edge in league play, however. Princeton has struggled to play a complete game in each of its three league match-ups this year, and White has struggled in the net. The sophomore only has a .667 save percentage in league play, while Mejias' is .806.

Falling behind

After the Tigers opened their season with four straight wins, they have failed to find offensive consistency. While there are many problems with finding a way to put the ball in the back of the net, Princeton has not been able to find a permanent solution.

Four of the Tigers' losses in the last eight games have been shutouts, and the two Princeton victories were each decided by one goal.

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Part of the offensive drought stems from injuries that the Tigers have sustained. Junior forward Mike Nugent, who leads both Princeton and the Ivy League with seven goals, has been unable to play in the Tigers' last two games. Junior midfielder Will Rodgers has missed playing time because of a back injury.

The question remains whether or not the Princeton bench can step up and contribute to the ailing Tiger offense.

The Tigers showed signs of life Wednesday in their 1-1 tie against No. 23 Loyola. Princeton played the Greyhounds well for two grinding halves, and then continued to show that they can still compete, holding Loyola scoreless for two overtime periods.

Princeton will need that kind of intensity for the entire game when it faces the Crimson tomorrow night in hopes of turning its Ivy League fortunes around.