Big Green capitalizes on Quakers' slip-up

In the game of soccer, possession changes frequently, opportunities are scarce, and little mistakes can often be the difference between a victory and a loss. In yesterday's 1-0 Penn loss, the Dartmouth men's soccer team capitalized on a lapse in the Quakers' defensive coverage. With 34 minutes left in the second half, Dartmouth's junior midfielder Bobby Meyer headed in teammate Zach Samol's deflected free kick. Without anyone picking up the Dartmouth player, Meyer was able to place the ball past Quakers goalkeeper Mike O'Connor for the lone goal of the game. Unlike last Wednesday's 4-3 overtime comeback win against La Salle, the Quakers (2-1, 1-1 Ivy League) were unable to make up the difference. Trying to start the game where they left off against the Explorers, Penn had a hard time distinguishing Dartmouth's defense. "Dartmouth has a set system of play that they executed really well," Penn sophomore midfielder Brian Foote said. "In the first 20-to-25 minutes we did not come out and pressure the ball as much as we should have to keep their system from working." Once the Quakers understood the system, they tried to attack it, but without any positive results. Although the lone goal won the game, the key to Dartmouth's victory was out-hustling Penn. The Big Green's aggressiveness shut down the Quakers and their chances to score and get back into the game. By beating the Quakers to the majority of the 50/50 balls, the Big Green (2-1, 1-0) crushed Penn's offensive attempts. "They pressured the ball real well," Quakers forward Jason Smoke said. "They didn't give us much time with the ball, and that is to their credit. They didn't give us good looks. They made it hard on us to play up. We weren't aggressive enough to play at that tempo." Scoring with a few minutes left on Wednesday, the Quakers ran out of time yesterday. In not learning from their mistakes, O'Neill felt that the subject had been brought up enough in practice. "We spoke about this yesterday," O'Neill said. "We spoke about before the game, and they all said they understood it. They were going to do something about it, and they didn't."

Please note All comments are eligible for publication in The Daily Pennsylvanian.