Women's Soccer: Early-season finishing woes return in Cambridge

The women’s soccer team’s aspirations of winning the Ivy League have ended with two conference games remaining in the season. Harvard won Saturday’s fixture 2-1 in Cambridge, Mass., sending the Tigers on an undoubtedly gloomy bus ride back to Princeton. The hosts scored once in each half before junior striker Jen Hoy grabbed a consolation goal minutes before the final whistle.

The Tigers (5-9-1 overall, 1-4 Ivy League) stepped onto the field at Soldiers Field Soccer Stadium buoyed by a four-game win streak, understanding that only a win would suffice for a run at the title. The revitalized Princeton attack had scored freely in recent matches, suggesting that the team had consigned its frustrations to the past and could buttress its attractive, flowing soccer with matching results. However, the home spectators filed out of the stadium grateful that the visitors rediscovered their early-season struggles to convert chances into goals.

Although Harvard (10-4-1, 4-0-1) had the better of the early going, recording the first two shots of the game, Princeton settled into a fluent rhythm quickly, taking four shots and two corners and having another chance foiled by an offsides call in the span of just over seven minutes. Nonetheless, the Crimson snatched the lead against the run of play, as midfielder Mai Le pounced on a clumsy pass between two Princeton defenders to lash the ball powerfully into the net in the 28th minute.

Having gifted their opponents the lead, the Tigers promptly sought to make amends, pressuring Harvard through the rest of the half. From the moment the Crimson scored until 45 minutes were up, the Tigers built up a 3-1 shot advantage but still failed to find the back of the net.

Princeton opened the second half brightly with three shots in the first 11 minutes, but Harvard increased its lead with the decisive goal of the match. Crimson midfielder Meg Casscells-Hamby found herself with the ball on the left wing and located striker Melanie Baskind in space. Baskind, who scored twice when Harvard visited Roberts Stadium last year, swept the ball past junior goalkeeper Kristin Watson to double her team’s advantage.

The visitors continued to press hard and, in a trend unforgivably familiar throughout the season, outshot their opponents to no avail. In the process, the Tigers managed to rack up the only three yellow cards of the match. They recorded 15 shots to Harvard’s seven but only managed to score once. Hoy put away a cross from freshman defender Gabrielle Ragazzo to notch her seventh goal of the season — and fourth in eight days — in the 88th minute, but it came as little consolation, as the Tigers fell out of contention in the conference while permitting rival Harvard to inch closer to an Ivy League title.

Statistically, Princeton had the upper hand during the match. In addition to more than doubling the hosts in shot attempts, the Tigers also earned three corner kicks while the Crimson had none. Though they created several opportunities in the penalty box, the Tigers once again failed to consolidate their dominance into victory.

Sophomore midfielder Gabriella Guzman confirmed that the Tigers “played really well” but ultimately didn’t score enough to achieve the win. “I think we had the edge for the majority of the game,” Guzman said. “It was very competitive.”

The Tigers have now failed to win despite outshooting their opponents six times this season. Profligate in front of the goal, they are paying the penalty for a lack of sharpness in their opponent’s box by no longer being able to challenge for the title with two games still remaining. They will also finish with a losing record in the conference for the first time since 2006 and only the second since 1998, regardless of the results of their remaining Ivy League matches.

The Tigers host Cornell in their penultimate match of the season at Roberts Stadium on Oct. 29 before finishing their season against Penn on the following Saturday.