Peller's Late Goal Lifts M. Soccer Over Cornell

ITHACA, N.Y.—Senior midfielder Mike Peller was frustrated after a half of scoreless soccer against Cornell last Saturday, just as he’s found himself frustrated after three years without an Ivy League title.

On Saturday, he eliminated one frustration with an eye on taking out the other.

A streaking Peller redirected a cross from junior Marc Buan late in the game to give the Crimson a 1-0 victory under the lights at Cornell’s Berman Field. The win was the second straight Ivy nailbiter for Harvard (7-2, 3-0 Ivy) following last Saturday’s rainy 1-0 home victory against Princeton. It was also the Crimson’s fourth straight shutout.

The decisive goal came in the 73rd minute, after Buan took possession of the ball along the left sideline near midfield. Buan ran the ball along the sideline past a defender and took advantage of the space he created to send a pinpoint pass that found Peller just outside the box on the right side. Before Cornell netminder Doug Allen could react, Peller one-timed the ball into the right corner of the net for the game’s only score.

“Marc Buan is an impact player,” Peller said. “He’s just class out there. You know that whenever one of us isn’t playing all that well, he can come off the bench and do good things.”

Buan created the scoring opportunity that worked, but Harvard Coach John Kerr was quick to give credit to a number of players who came off the bench to keep the pressure on Cornell, particularly in the second half.

“The players who haven’t played a lot for us, Marc Buan, Colin Eyre and Charles Morrow, they made the difference today,” Kerr said.

The Crimson would still have to work to protect its lead in the closing minutes, as Cornell mounted a late assault that contrasted sharply with the first half’s lethargic pace. But the Crimson defense was solid in front of freshman goaltender Jamie Roth and managed to keep the Big Red from getting off any good shots. Junior back Mike Lobach made a potential game-saving play with less than ten minutes remaining when he deflected a shot from Cornell’s Steve Reuter with his leg.

The first half was less than spectacular for the Crimson, which failed to establish an offensive presence early. Cornell outshot Harvard in the first half, as the Crimson struggled against a Big Red defense that had allowed 0.33 goals per game in its three previous home games—including a 3-1 upset over No. 19 Penn State last Wednesday.

But the Crimson did not help its own cause with several passing miscues and defensive lapses.

“We didn’t really play in the first half,” Kerr said. “Our passing game was poor, and if it wasn’t for Cornell missing several opportunities, we would’ve been down.”

The Crimson attack was far more potent in the second half, and the opportunities came more frequently. Sophomore midfielder Kevin Ara missed a header inside the box early in the second half, and a Morrow ball that rolled to the right of the goal could have given the Crimson more of a cushion.

Still, the pressure was there, and Buan and Peller would eventually break through. And although he was only rarely tested, Roth made four saves to record his second straight Ivy blanking in his newfound starting role.

“Roth has done a great job for us,” Kerr said. “But you know you have [senior goalie] Dan Mejias working his tail off back there, too. It’s a great decision for a coach to have to make.”

The young Crimson continues to storm through the fall season, and will play three of its remaining four conference games at home. The prospect of Harvard controlling its own destiny in its bid for an NCAA berth “feels unbelievable,” according to Peller.

“These past three seasons, we always either started off well and finished badly or we just started off badly,” Peller said. “But you go to practice now and everyone’s smiling, everyone’s excited, and we’ve got games at home coming up.”