Men's soccer needs win versus Crimson to avoid Ivy cellar

It may be lonely at the top, but it is certainly lonelier at the bottom.

This Saturday, the men's soccer team (3-6-1 overall, 0-2-0 Ivy League) travels to Cambridge, Mass., in hopes of breaking out of the bottom of the Ivy League with a win against Harvard (4-6-1 overall, 0-3-0), which is also winless in league play. The winner of the match will have the added benefit of snapping its current losing streak, which for Princeton stands at three and for Harvard at five.

The Tigers then return to Princeton for a rescheduled match against Northwestern (7-4-1), which was originally planned as an early-season match but was cancelled due to unplayable field conditions. The Big Ten opponent will provide the Tigers with a brief respite before continuing their Ivy League schedule.

Princeton heads to Cambridge on the heels of a tough loss against nationally ranked Seton Hall. The Tigers battled with the Pirates for 90 minutes, took the lead early and did not give it up until the 79th minute, when the Pirates went ahead 2-1 in what would become a 3-1 loss for Princeton. It was the Tigers' third straight loss.

There were several bright spots for the Tigers in the losing effort. The match marked the return of senior forward Adrian Melville and sophomore midfielder Robbie Morgenroth to the starting lineup. Both regular starters had been on the bench with leg injuries, but immediately jumped back into their normal routines. Melville took two of the Tigers' five shots, and Morgenroth helped contain the potent Seton Hall offense.

Harvard hopes to rebound from an equally crushing loss against Brown. Despite getting off 12 shots against the Bears, Harvard was unable to get on the scoreboard. The Crimson is scoreless in its last two games, and winless in its last five. After starting the season 4-1-1, the Crimson has stalled in mid-season and has not recorded a win since Sept. 25.

Entering the weekend, both teams are looking to turn things around, but only one will break out of the Ivy League cellar.

To leave Cambridge with a win, Princeton needs to intensify its offensive pressure. During their current three-game losing streak, the Tigers have netted just one goal off eight shots on goal.

The Tigers' inability to mount a consistent offensive pressure has not only limited their scoring opportunities, but also has put added pressure on the defense. In its one game against Princeton, 20th-ranked Seton Hall had eight shots on goal and three scores. For the season, Princeton has been outshot by 35 attempts but has only been outscored by four goals. Though the Tigers have been unable to match the pressure their opponents have placed on them, they have at least been able to limit their scoring.

Senior goalie Bobby Guelich has led this defensive effort. The Tigers have never lost by more than a margin of two goals, and have only rarely been more than one score back during a game. In this way, the Tigers' losing record is very misleading. Though they are 3-6-1 overall, the team has yet to be blown out even against three nationally ranked opponents.

Perhaps the most important key to a Tiger victory will be the team's ability to continue its high-intensity play into the final minutes of the match. In several of Princeton's matches this season, the team has played solidly throughout the first three quarters of the match only to falter in the closing minutes. The Tigers gave up two goals in the final 20 minutes of Tuesday's match against Seton Hall. Earlier in the year, Rutgers tied Princeton, 1-1, with just five minutes remaining in the game, and nationally ranked Akron defeated the Tigers, 1-0, with less than three minutes of regulation time remaining on the clock.

A loss is never easy, but with another loss this weekend, the Tigers might find themselves in the loneliest spot of all — alone at the bottom.