The odds did not favor Penn goalie Alanna Butera against Harvard on Saturday: she faced 10 shots on goal. Three found their way past her. Meanwhile, Crimson goalie Kylie Stone faced just five shots, and, predictably, only yielded a goal.
Penn dropped to 0-4 with the 3-1 defeat. More importantly, it starts its Ivy League season out in a distinct hole.
As is the trend this season, Margaretha Ehret took the lion's share of shots for the Quakers. Only one other player, junior midfielder Rachel Eng, registered a shot.
Ehret scored Penn's only goal, her team-leading third of the year, but it came off a short corner with less than ten minutes to play in the game and with Harvard already sporting a three-goal lead.
Harvard launched a barrage of shots; their game plan called for them to shoot right after entering the circle.
Five of them came from junior Tami Jafar. Two found their way past Butera for the Crimson's second and third goals. Jafar's first score came off a short corner that deflected into goal in the first half; the second on a loose ball in front of goal that she converted.
In earlier games this season, the Quakers have been able to regroup for a stronger second half. However, this wasn't the case Saturday, as Penn was only able to record one shot on goal after halftime: Ehret's goal.
The Crimson continue their dominance over the Red and Blue - the game marked Penn's 10th loss to Harvard in its last 11 tries.
