Harvard, Penn, Princeton Alive for NCAA Berths

The Harvard women's soccer team clinched at least a share of the Ivy League title--its third in four years--when it defeated the Dartmouth Big Green on Saturday.

The No. 9 Crimson (13-1-0, 6-0-0 Ivy) came close to scoring three times in the first ten minutes of the game, as only the outstanding goalkeeping of Ivy League saves leader and defending Player of the Year junior Kristen Luckenbill kept the game close through the first half.

Harvard finally broke through in the game's 31st minute, after freshman forward Beth Totman found freshman midfielder Bryce Weed on a free kick. Weed launched a shot that trickled through the hands of Luckenbill, giving the Crimson a 1-0 lead. Harvard would go on to beat the No. 24 Big Green (8-7-1, 2-3-1), 2-1.

The victory came just three days after the Crimson, playing for the No. 1 ranking in New England, stunned then-No. 7 Connecticut 1-0 with a goal in the 82nd minute.

The game's lone goal was scored by co-captain Beth Zotter, who put the ball in the net after a corner kick by junior midfielder Meredith Stewart ricocheted off Huskies goalkeeper Maria Yatrakis's hands.

Freshman goalkeeper Cheryl Gunther, who leads the Ivy League in save percentage and goals against average, received Ivy Rookie of the Week honors for the second consecutive week. Gunther has allowed just seven goals all season and has shutouts in six of her last eight games.

The loss to Harvard was especially tough on the Big Green, which remained in the nation's top 25 with a strong performance last Wednesday against Boston University. Senior midfielder Melissa Roth led the way with two goals and an assist as Dartmouth won 3-1. The Big Green faces Columbia this Saturday in a game Dartmouth must win to keep its hopes of making the NCAA tournament alive.

The Crimson, meanwhile, travels to Providence this Saturday to face the Brown Bears. Harvard will try to clinch sole possession the Ivy title and make a forceful statement before entering the 48-team NCAA Tournament.

Brown (3-11-2, 0-5-1) is in the midst of a disappointing season, but will carry momentum in Saturday's match against the Crimson.

After a 12-game winless streak, the Bears scored three first-half goals against Providence yesterday en route to a 3-1 victory. Sophomore forward Kim Lanzire scored twice and added an assist for the Bears. Junior forward Bekah Splaine, Brown's scoring leader, touched Providence for a goal and an assist.

The Brown squad was in desperate need of a win after compiling an 0-10-2 record in its previous twelve games, including a heartbreaking 1-0 loss to Cornell at home on Saturday.

Penn (12-3-1, 5-1-0) will be watching the out-of-town scoreboard intently before its match against Princeton Saturday afternoon. The Quakers stand a chance to tie for the Ivy crown with a Harvard loss.

Penn heads to Princeton on the heels of a thrilling 1-0 victory at Yale last Friday. The win came in double overtime after the Bulldogs (2-2-2, 6-7-2) outshot Penn 9-3 in the second half but simply could not find the back of the net.

Yale--having just suffered a heartbreaking 2-1 overtime loss against Hartford three days earlier--saw its hopes crumble when Penn senior midfielder Deane Kocivar-Norbury found junior midfielder Kellianne Toland on a give-and-go for the decisive score. Yale also suffered a 5-0 defeat at the hands of UConn in a week that destroyed the team's hopes for an NCAA tournament berth.

Princeton rounds out the Ivy League's top three teams. The Tigers (12-3-1, 4-1-1), whose only Ivy loss this season came in overtime at Harvard, have allowed just three goals in their last nine games entering Saturday's match against Penn.

On Sunday, junior goalkeeper Jordan Rettig blanked Loyola to lead Princeton to a 2-0 win. Freshman forward Krista Ariss followed up a shot that had deflected off the opposing keeper's hands for her fifth game-winning goal of the season. Rettig also shut out Columbia 2-0 on Saturday. The Tigers can help their NCAA Tournament hopes with a victory at Penn on Saturday, which would give them sole possession of second place in the Ivy League.

Columbia (7-6-2, 0-5-1) had lost three of four going into last night's game against Stony Brook. The team hopes to notch its first Ivy League win this Saturday against Dartmouth.

Cornell (8-6-1, 2-4-0) rounds out the Ivy League picture. The Big Red narrowly defeated Brown, 1-0, Saturday on junior forward Erica Olson's game-winning goal with less than nine minutes remaining. Junior goalkeeper Meghan Cauzillo tallied seven saves for the shutout.

The Big Red victory came after a 2-1 loss at Syracuse last Wednesday. Cornell finishes its season Saturday against Yale in Ithaca.