Booters Breeze By B.C., 2-1

Harvard men's soccer Coach Mike Getman decided to do a little adjusting in yesterday's contest against Boston College at Ohiri Field.

Change a few names in the starting line-up. Switch the players around. Create some new combinations. Activate a new attacking style.

Anything to get his team to score a couple of goals. Remedy that deficient scoring column. Improve that mediocre record.

The Crimson responded with a 2-1 triumph over the Eagles in front of 75 spectators. A minor adjustment in the scoring column--and a major adjustment in play.

Harvard (4-2-1 overall, 1-0 Ivy League) played like a team that wanted its national ranking back. And wanted to preserve its chance for a repeat bid to the national tournament. And needed a win to get back on track.

Ranked number one at the start of the season, the Crimson had struggled the past two weeks, losing twice and tying once in a two-week span.

In case an embarassing 3-1 loss to Hartwick and a fall out of the national standings didn't rattle the team, Getman decided to shake things up a bit.

For three-and-a-half seasons, senior Ramy Rajballie had played at the right midfield position.

Not so yesterday. Rajballie became a forward--on the left wing.

And he didn't need much time to settle in. Rajballie picked up a ball from junior midfielder Paul Baverstock and fired a shot past Eagle goalie Mark Weinman 23:52 into the contest.

Adjust that zero in Rajballie's goal-scoring column to a one.

And give Harvard a 1-0 lead--it's first first-half advantage of the season.

"We played two [forwards] wide and one inside," Getman said. "It gave Ramy free reign to go forward. It was obviously effective for him."

The old system--three center forwards with the option to push out to the wings--had been deadly for Crimson opponents last season.

This season it was simply dead.

So Getman buried it.

Pull the right and left forwards out to the wings. Open up a little more space up front.

Bring on some fresh faces. Start a couple of rookies on the attack.

Getman lined up freshmen Brian Enge and Jeremy Amen in the right forward and midfield positions. The two had played together before, on a club team in California during high school.

And they hadn't forgotten each other's style.

Witness Crimson goal number two.

Enge pressured in the midfield and made a pick off a B.C. back. When the Eagles descended upon Enge to knock the ball loose, Amen picked it up and pushed forward to get the ball to Baverstock in the right corner. Junior forward Nick D'Onofrio connected on a Baverstock cross pass to give Harvard a 2-0 lead.

A little adjustment. A new combination. The Crimson's first two-goal lead of the season.

"The new line-up gives us a lot more space up front," Amen said. "It was easier to play the long ball. We were stringing more passes together coming out of the back."

Harvard was quicker on restarts, smoother in the midfield, and played with more intensity than it had since defeating Columbia, 1-0.

"We moved it faster, we were pretty sharp," Rajballie said.

B.C.'s lone goal came after Enge was taken down on a questionable tackle in the midfield. With the Crimson mobilized for the attack, the Eagles broke away for a clean shot at goal. Senior midfielder Pat Gilligan passed to forward David Sullivan, who fired the ball to the left of Crimson senior goaltender Stephen Hall.

"Brian was fouled in the midfield," Getman said. "It set them on a breakaway when we were pushing forward."