M. Soccer faces critical Ivy foe

The Penn men's soccer team needs a win to stay in the Ivy title race. They did it. The Quakers finally threw the proverbial monkey off of their collective back. On Tuesday, the Penn men's soccer team dropped Temple 1-0 at home for its first win of the season. While the monkey may be down, none of the Quakers (1-5, 0-2 Ivy League) are ready to count him out just yet. "Temple was a big victory and a good result," Penn coach Rudy Fuller said. "But I don't think it was a good game for us. We used up so much energy dealing with getting that monkey off our back and getting our first win that we ran out of gas in the second half." However, the Quakers have a chance this weekend to finish that monkey off for good when they host Harvard (1-4-1, 0-2) at Rhodes Field Saturday at noon. "Getting that first win helps our confidence tremendously, but Temple was a weaker team," Quakers tri-captain Ralph Maier said. "A win over Harvard, though, would show everyone that we can compete with teams beyond the local Philadelphia area. It would be huge." Like the Quakers, Harvard has had its share of struggles in '98. The Crimson suffered their first winless five-game start to a season since 1978. They, too, managed a win this week, beating No. 22-ranked Boston University 2-1 in overtime. "Our team is finally starting to rebound after a pretty rocky start," Harvard midfielder Paul Cantagallo said. "Getting that first win under our belts helped us get our confidence back." If Cantagallo's statement sounds eerily similar to something one of the Quakers might have said, there is good reason for that. Harvard, like Penn, played a tough early-season schedule with little to show for it. The Crimson kicked off their five-game winless streak by dropping a 1-0 decision to No. 8 Stanford. The similarities between the Quakers, who bear scars but no victories from close contests with No. 18 William and Mary, No. 15 Dartmouth and then-No. 12 Boston University, and the Crimson run even deeper than the tough-luck losses show. "Scoring goals is not our strength. In our first four games, we scored three goals," Cantagallo, who started 15 games at midfield as a sophomore in '97, said. "We've been struggling to fill a void at forward." Penn's goals have been even fewer and farther between than the Crimson's. The Quakers have netted just three scores in their six games thus far. While Harvard had to struggle to crack the win column, there is no question that the Crimson, who defeated the BU Terriers in the 101st minute on Tuesday, are a better team than their Record indicates. "I can't say that we're a better team than Harvard, but I can't say we're a worse team either," Fuller said. "What you have in this game are two teams still trying to find themselves and get their first Ivy win." With that first Ivy win dangling like a carrot for both teams, this Penn-Harvard match is destined to be an all-out battle. "If you can't get pumped for an Ivy League game, then you can't get pumped up for anything," Penn defensive stalwart Ted Lehman said. "We're both shooting for that win," Penn tri-captain Mike O'Connor said. "It's going to be a low-scoring battle." While Penn and Harvard have both been kept in check on offense this season, not all of the Crimson's games have been low-scoring battles. Last Saturday, Harvard, participating in its 1,000th intercollegiate soccer game, fell victim 5-4 to Yale in a double-OT scoring fest. "Both coaches felt that their defense left a lot to be desired in that game," Fuller said. None of Harvard's goals were scored from the forward position. With that 1,000th game under its belt, Harvard will now be focused on getting revenge. Last year, the defending Ivy champion Crimson started their season with a loss to Penn at home. After finishing 16-2 in '96, they would sputter to a 6-7-4 finish in '97. "It was a long time ago, and a lot has changed for both teams," Cantagallo said. "But that game was a real let down. Ivy League losses are not easily forgotten." While both teams are still trying to find themselves, establish a consistent offense and salvage the '98 Ivy League season, the Quakers feel they hold the advantage. "We're the best 1-5 team in the country," Maier said. "If we can keep up the offensive attack that we started against Temple, then I say we'll beat them." Fuller hopes that the Rhodes Field crowd will give the Quakers the confidence needed to topple their Ancient Eight foe. "Home is a tremendous advantage. We had a really supportive crowd against Temple," Fuller said. "I hope people were excited by the win and that they'll pass the word on about the Penn-Harvard soccer game." After a season of near-misses and moral victories, the Quakers hope they can muster enough offensive fire-power to put away the Crimson in front of a parents weekend home crowd. Then, finally, the Quakers can get that Ivy League monkey off of their back.