Men's soccer seeks out first Ivy win

A 5-2 smashing of in-state rival Rutgers on Tuesday brought a little bit of solace to the men’s soccer team, following a crushing 2-1 overtime defeat to Dartmouth in the team’s Ivy opener last weekend. But as the days grow shorter and the air becomes brisker, the Tigers (4-3-2, 0-1 Ivy League) begin to care less and less about weekday results, as each weekend match decides their fate in the run for the Ivy League title. That quest will continue on Saturday afternoon, as Princeton hosts Brown (3-3-3, 1-0) for both teams’ second Ivy match of October.

Similar to Princeton, the Bears found themselves tied in their Ivy opener last weekend as the clock approached the 90th minute mark. But it was senior forward Ben Maurey who provided the late-game heroics for Brown. A corner kick in the 89th minute led to a scramble for control of the ball in the box, when the 6-foot-5-inch senior sent a bouncing ball to the back of the net on a one-timer to give Brown the 1-0 victory over the Lions. Low-scoring play has been the story of the season thus far for the Bears, who have only scored multiple goals in two of their nine games thus far. Despite Brown’s low scoring total, its .500 record is attributable to a staunch defense that averages just over one goal allowed per game.

For the Tigers, this weekend holds more significance than any other point so far: anything but a win will continue to distance Princeton from its Ivy opponents in the quest for the league title and an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. A fair-weathered September in which the Tigers went 3-2-2 means that it would be incredibly difficult for Princeton to receive an at-large bid to the postseason should they fail to win the conference. So with Brown’s arrival on Saturday comes a moment where the Tigers will determine how they react with their backs against the wall.

“This is a must win game, Brown is a really physical team,” junior forward Nico Hurtado said. “We have to make sure we come out with a lot of energy from the start. Getting the first goal is gonna be huge in this game. We need to get the ball quickly to our attacking four, and I think we will be successful.”

“Brown is always a solid team, so we know they’ll be ready for a battle,” junior back Josh Miller said. “Definitely a must-win for us, so we will have to come out aggressively and confidently.”

And with junior forward Thomas Sanner and senior forward Cameron Porter continuing to lead Princeton in goal-scoring during Tuesday night’s performance, the story for Saturday afternoon is set: a bombastic Princeton offense against a stalwart Brown back line. Kickoff is set for 4 p.m. at Roberts Stadium.