Going into halftime on Sunday night, the men’s soccer team seemed on track to add to a string of disappointing homecoming weekend defeats to Harvard. After the football and women’s soccer teams suffered tough losses Saturday, the Tigers fell behind 1-0 off a 28th-minute free kick, and Princeton’s offense was stifled for the rest of the half.
But in front of a packed, rowdy crowd at Roberts Stadium, the Tigers (9-3-1 overall, 4-0-0 Ivy League) were able to pull off a come-from-behind victory over the rival Crimson (4-5-5, 1-1-2) to end homecoming weekend on a sweet note. The offense came out in the second half with renewed energy, and senior midfielder Josh Walburn and sophomore forward Matt Sanner connected for back-to-back goals to put Princeton over Harvard for good.
This was the eighth win in a row for Princeton team, which has climbed up to No. 23 in national rankings after a perfect month and now shares first place in the Ivy League with Penn. Princeton has not sustained an eight-game winning streak since 1977, and the win — broadcasted nationally on ESPNU — gives the team some breathing room heading into the final four games of the season.
The Tigers started out the game in dominant fashion, outshooting the Crimson 7-2 and playing lockdown defense. Freshman defender Chris Benedict successfully shut down Harvard’s star forward Brian Rogers, keeping up with his quick dribbling maneuvers and stealing the ball on multiple occasions. It took just one slipup to hand the Crimson the lead, coming when a Harvard attacker was tripped up while dribbling toward the goal. The infraction appeared to occur inside the box, but the referee did not grant Harvard a penalty kick. Harvard midfielder Scott Prozeller did not seem to mind, knocking the free kick past Princeton’s wall and leaving senior goalkeeper and captain Sean Lynch frozen as the ball bounced into the back of the net.
“We shut them down most of the game, and they only did get one lucky break on a goalkeeper’s worst nightmare,” Lynch said. “A shot from that close, it could have gone either way. We knew that we had them on the ropes the whole game and they were lucky to get up, so we just kept fighting.”
Princeton’s offense started the second half with an energy that had been absent in the latter part of the first period, amassing three shots and a corner kick in the first four minutes of play.
“We knew we were going to win,” Sanner said. “We knew that we’d won seven games in a row, so we could come out with that confidence and that swagger and know that even though we got down, we could win this game.”
Assistant coach Steve Totten gave a more technical explanation for the Tigers’ success. “In the second half, it was pretty clear that our forwards put a lot of pressure on their backs, and our midfielders were behind it,” Totten said. “We played a lot more of the game in their half of the field.”
It paid off in the eighth minute of the half, when senior defender Teddy Schneider’s long free kick from 45 yards out sailed above the Crimson’s wall. Walburn jumped and headed it on an arc above the outstretched hands of leaping goalkeeper Austin Harms.
Just over two minutes after scoring the equalizer, Princeton's offense connected again for what would prove to be the game-winner. After one of sophomore defender Mark Linnville’s signature long throw-ins, the ball went loose and rolled toward the back of the box. Junior forward Antoine Hoppenot chased after it and bicycle-kicked it toward the right post. Sanner freed himself up to knock it in, scoring his second goal of the season and breaking what he referred to as his “sophomore slump.”
“I’ve been having a tough year; I haven’t been getting breaks,” Sanner said. “It was really great to [score] on such a large stage, with my family back at home watching it. And against our archrivals, coming from behind, it just doesn’t get much better than that."
The Tigers head to upstate New York next weekend to face Cornell and Colgate before returning home Nov. 6 for what should be a decisive game against No. 15 Penn. Princeton could secure a bid to the NCAA tournament with an Ivy League championship, but the Tigers might receive an at-large bid even if they lose one or more of their remaining three Ivy League games.
“Now there’s a little bit of space on the top of the league,” Totten said. “It’s a huge win because Harvard was right behind us in third place, and this gives us a little more distance.”
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