Second-half effort stalls in final minutes

After an impressive start to the season, the men's soccer team opened the Ivy League portion of its schedule with a disappointing loss to Yale (4-3-1 overall, 1-0-0 Ivy League). Despite brilliant play by senior goaltender Justin Oppenheimer, Princeton (3-3-2, 0-1-0) fell to the Bulldogs by a score of 3-2 in Saturday afternoon's match in New Haven, Ct. For the day, the Tigers were outshot by a margin of 23-13.

Trailing 2-0 entering the second half, Princeton was able to put up two quick points to even the score before succumbing to the Bulldogs' tremendous offensive pressure. Yale's Jordan Raybould booted the game winner with just eight minutes remaining in regulation on a rebound off the post.

Yale strikes first

The Tigers were playing catchup from the start. Just over five minutes into the game, Yale took the lead on a strong shot from Alex Munns. Taking a pass from teammate James Stewart, Munns kicked it past Oppenheimer from the right wing.

Twenty minutes later, the two Bulldog teammates reversed their roles for the same scoring result.

At 25:11 into the first half, Munns found Stewart in the center of the field. This time it was Stewart who found the back of the net with a quick strike from in front of the net. Yale would carry this two-goal lead into the second half.

Princeton freshman midfielder Devin Muntz brought the Tigers to within one of the Bulldogs on a spectacular unassisted goal 9:24 into the second half. Muntz recovered a loose ball from just inside the box and blasted a left-footer past Yale's Erik Geiger for a goal, Muntz's first as a Tiger.

Four minutes later, senior midfielder Jame Wunsch connected with sophomore midfielder Brian Brady for the game-tying goal. Wunsch, who had control of the ball at the end line, found Brady lurking near the front of the net. Brady completed the play for his first goal of the season.

Despite giving up two quick scores, the Bulldogs did not let up in their offensive intensity. In the second half alone, the Bulldogs outshot the Tigers by eight tries. By the end of the game, Oppenheimer would make 12 saves, many of which came in the clutch minutes as the clock began to wind down. Oppenheimer's counterpart in the opposite net was forced into making a save only four times in 90 minutes.

Raybould seals win

The Bulldogs' winning goal came with eight minutes remaining in regulation. Stewart just missed scoring the game-winner himself, deflecting a header off the post. The rebound came to Raybould, who kicked it in from the right side. The score would remain locked at 3-2 for the final few minutes of regulation.

The Tigers will head to Lewisburg, Pa., on Wednesday to take on the Bucknell Bison. The game will certainly be a challenge for the sputtering Tigers, who have lost their last three games. Bucknell is playing its best soccer in recent years, tallying only one loss in its first 10 games. A Princeton loss would put its loss column ahead of its win column and put the team at its lowest winning percentage of the season at the critical start of league play.