Tellado Strike Propels Men’s Soccer Over Columbia, 1-0

After a three-week stint away from its home pitch, Harvard men’s soccer (2-5-1, 1-1 Ivy League) returned to Ancient Eight action at Jordan Field on Saturday, beating the Columbia Lions (3-2-2, 0-1), 1-0, in front of a modest crowd of 365 people.

A sole strike from captain and forward Dylan Tellado in the 38th minute proved enough for head coach Josh Shapiro’s men to secure their second victory of the season – and snap a six-game slump.

Shapiro fielded a lineup that retained eight out of the 11 starters from its most recent Ivy League game against the RV Cornell Big Red. Sophomore defender Alejandro Palacio, senior midfielder Ben Kelly, and sophomore forward Adam Poliakov made way for sophomore defender Maxwell Mobray, junior defender Nayan Das, and junior midfielder Shane Lonergan as Harvard adopted a more defensive setup.

The visiting Lions – riding off a red-hot four-game unbeaten streak – were slated to begin Ivy action against Brown, but that match was ultimately postponed as last week’s Nor’easter swept across New York City.

The Crimson turned on the afterburners right after kickoff, searching for attacking opportunities down both flanks and repeatedly dishing passes to junior winger Xavier Tanyi. Junior defender Tim Langenbahn also pushed the ball forward as Harvard hunted the netting for an early breakthrough.

Columbia, however, maintained its shape in midfield, and neither side was able to register a shot through the opening 15 minutes. The visiting team produced the first hint of danger when a well-delivered corner flashed through a scrambling box, before the ball was cleared by Crimson captain forward Andres Savva.

Harvard’s first clear chance came in the 24th minute: Savva’s low cross from the right wing met an unmarked Tanyi in the box, who threw himself toward goal, only for his attempt to ricochet off the left post. Amidst the ensuing chaos – consecutive passes and saves – the ball fell to Langenbahn for a tap-in goal, but another player was ruled offside, and the match remained scoreless.

The Crimson’s offensive pressure finally paid off in the 38th minute. Tellado collected a ball from Palacio and drove toward the penalty spot through the middle with little resistance, before placing a calm shot into the bottom-left corner beyond the Lions’ goalkeeper for the go-ahead tally.

Tellado’s goal sent Harvard into the halftime break with the lead for the first time since its Sept. 12 match against the University of Connecticut, where it also led 1-0 through the opening 45 minutes.

During halftime, players from the Crimson’s 1986 Final Four team and its 1996 and 2006 Ivy League-winning squads were recognized as part of the 2026 Friends of Harvard Soccer Alumni Weekend.

The second half opened in Columbia’s favor, as the away side came out with urgency and nearly equalized in the 47th minute. Sophomore forward Henning Myrvang laid a transition ball off to sophomore midfielder Stepan Kapranov in the middle, but his attempt went wide. The match soon settled back to a more even, end-to-end stalemate that had defined the opening minutes.

Poliakov, who came on as a substitute, made his presence felt, producing two saved efforts in the 54th and 60th minutes. The latter nearly deflected to Kelly in no-man’s land, but the game ensued without a second goal. On the opposite side of the pitch, Poliakov later picked up a yellow card, registering his third booking of the 2026 campaign and tying for the team high.

In the 77th minute, freshman midfielder Gil de Souza attempted a volley from distance, forcing Columbia’s sophomore goalkeeper Aris Taki to stretch fully to clear the danger. The shot on goal seemed to spark a brief push for another goal, with Harvard sustaining possession in the Lions’ half.

After the referee let several heavy challenges go unpunished, both benches became fired up and increasingly animated as the two sides traded tackles and interceptions.

As the game clock wound down, however, the Lions committed numbers forward in search of a last-minute equalizer – with goalkeeper Taki advancing and positioning near midfield. Columbia pushed for its final opportunity in the 88th minute, but the ensuing shot came off the side netting.

Saturday’s shutout marked sophomore keeper Jason Broome’s first clean sheet of his collegiate career, and the Crimson’s first since its Nov. 1, 2025 draw with Cornell.

Harvard will once again return to the road for the next three contests, concluding its non-conference schedule against the Northeastern Huskies (5-2-2, 2-2-1 CAA) in neighboring Brookline, Mass., on Tuesday – a matchup rescheduled from last week due to scheduling issues. Harvard will then take two road trips along the Northeast coast, continuing Ivy play against the Brown Bears in Providence, R.I., and rival Yale Bulldogs in New Haven, Conn.

Coach Shapiro’s squad will hope to maintain Saturday’s momentum as it looks to improve on its 0-4 record beyond the familiar confines of Cambridge.

—Staff writer Jason Deng can be reached at [email protected].