PRINCETON, N.J. --- In a game that saw as many near-misses as breakaway opportunities, Penn men's soccer senior captain John Elicker was privy to the only well-directed strike.
Too bad it struck him in the face.
"I'm still feeling that right now," Elicker said. "I got a little headache."
About 22 minutes into the Quakers' scoreless double-overtime tie at Princeton (5-9-2, 2-2-2 Ivy) on Saturday, which set up an all-or-nothing match with Harvard next week, a poorly aimed Tigers shot hit Elicker squarely in the noggin and put him on his back.
Indeed, it looked like Elicker and the Quakers (10-2-4, 4-1-1) had taken an early knockout blow from a ferocious Princeton team.
Guess you don't know John Elicker.
"He's the heart and soul of the team," Penn head coach Rudy Fuller said. "It's going to take more than that to knock Johnny Elicker out of a game."
Despite receiving a Rocky-esque blow, Elicker's grit and determination seemed to rub off on both teammates and opponents.
Thirty-eight fouls were called during the match, 21 against Penn and 17 on Princeton. These were in addition to yellow cards drawn by the Quakers' Kevin Unger and the Tigers' Brandon Busch.
But neither team would stop attacking, to the tune of 17 shots (six on goal )for Penn, 13 (seven) for Princeton.
"Both teams should have scored a few," Princeton coach Jim Barlow said. "Looking at the 0-0 score is a little bit misleading."
A lot of that misinterpretation came thanks to Penn goalkeeper Drew Healy and his Princeton counterpart, Joe Walter. Each recorded six saves in 110 minutes of terrific play.
Healy's 10th shutout of the year tied the Penn single-season record, and according to Fuller, it was no accident.
"He has found another level in his game," the coach said.
The Quakers will need him on his next level if they hope to make it to the next level; Healy's stonewall defense helped keep the Red and Blue's Ivy League title hopes alive.
With Harvard winning, 6-1, over hapless Columbia (which had beat Penn, 2-1, at Rhodes Field), the Quakers needed a win or a tie to ensure that next Saturday's season finale against the Crimson would be played for the Ancient Eight crown.
Now, a win will net the Quakers an automatic trip to the NCAA tournament and their first Ivy League championship since sharing the title with Dartmouth in 2002. A loss will put the Red and Blue in the market for some at-large lovin'.
But Healy and the Quakers feel that his goaltending and Elicker's intensity should help their chances in that matter.
"If we do what we can do defensively," Healy said, "we're going to be successful."
