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The Cornell Daily Sun (https://cornellsun.com/2003/11/07/m-soccer-looks-to-stop-losing-streak/)

November 7, 2003

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M. Soccer Looks to Stop Losing Streak

By wpengine | November 7, 2003

The Cornell men’s soccer team (5-7-1, 2-2-1 Ivy) will look to end its losing streak when it battles Dartmouth (5-8-2, 0-5-0) on Sunday in Hanover, N.H. The Red has lost its last four matches, including a heartbreaker in double overtime to Princeton last week. Dartmouth has struggled in the Ivy League, and has yet to garner a win in the conference.

However, Cornell is not overlooking this weekend’s contest against the Green. Dartmouth is coming off of a comeback win against Holy Cross last week. The Green was down 2-0 in the second half and managed to score three straight goals to close out the game, 3-2. Dartmouth seniors Matt LaBarre, Damien Quinn, and Rob Daly each scored in the game. Trio will look to provide the Red with a serious challenge Sunday.

Cornell will pull out its usual bag of tricks against Dartmouth. After four games without a win, this team will be hungry. Cornell was unsuccessful against Princeton last week when a desperation 3-5-2 pattern proved fruitless. The Red failed to grab the second goal it needed for the win. With the Red defense susceptible, the Tigers took advantage and closed out the game.

Cornell will have several key players to mark on the Green. Indeed, LaBarre, Quinn, and Daly, all goal-scorers the other night will be a factor; however, the Green’s depth does not end there. After all, this is the same team that ascended to No. 25 in the national rankings only about a month and a half ago after having its best start since 1987 after going unbeaten for six straight games. Expect to see strong play from several of the Green’s excellent recruiting class, including freshman Mark Limpert, who has been absolutely on fire this season.

If the Red can counter, it will require both the defense and junior goaltender David Mahoney to return to their all-star level of play that they were providing earlier this season. Mahoney and the defense have struggled as of late, with perhaps the best example taking place in the Red’s 4-0 loss to the Syracuse Orangemen.

Archived article by Michael Pandolfini

Related

Spikers Smash Quakers, Fail to Tame Tigers

By wpengine November 10, 2003

When sophomore Rachel Adomat flew into the air to hammer down the Red’s match-deciding kill in the final, nerve-wrecking game against Penn Friday night, smiles of pure elation involuntarily took hold of the Red’s players and coaches. Just one evening later, however, the looks on the faces of the Red told a completely different story. Following one of the most dramatic and exhilarating victories of the Red’s season, a valiant 3-2 win (31-29, 28-30, 27-30, 30-28, 15-13) over a Penn squad that had not been defeated in 20-straight Ivy League matches, the Red was handed a heartbreaking upset by the Princeton Tigers Saturday evening, losing 3-2 (30-26, 24-30, 12-30, 30-25, 16-14) in the seniors’ final game at Newman Arena. Both matches were decided in a critical fifth game, and both games were decided by exactly two points. “Friday night was a really great win,” head coach Christie Roes said. “The whole team was crying afterwards — we were really excited. On Saturday, we were just shocked that we didn’t take care of business. Princeton came out hard and hungry, and we were flat at the beginning. But our team fought hard and they should be very proud of themselves. Even though we lost, it was still a lot of fun.” Saturday’s loss sent the Red’s Ivy League championship hopes into a tailspin, yet mathematically the squad is not out of things yet. Cornell (19-4, 9-3 Ivy) currently sits in third place in the Ivy League, dropping a position after the loss to Princeton (15-6, 8-2). Penn (17-5, 10-1) remains in first place, with three Ivy contests remaining against Dartmouth, Harvard and Princeton. The Red can still earn a share of the Ivy title providing that it wins its final two matches and the Quakers lose two out of their remaining three. Cornell would also depend on Princeton, whose remaining matches come against Columbia, Harvard, Dartmouth, and Penn, losing at least once. But for Roes and the rest of the Red, the focus now can only be on taking care of what the team can take care of. “It’s sad that we lost, but we just have to move forward now,” Roes stated. “We still have to give all we have to the program for this final week. We are still in this, we’re still a great team, and we’re not going to give up.” The weekend indeed proved beyond doubt that this Red squad certainly is special. The team registered yet another record-breaking performance in the loss to Princeton, smashing the team block record of 20 (set versus Princeton in 1995) with 28.5 blocks against the Tigers. Senior middle blockers Jamie Lugo and Ashely Stover were a part of 14 of the team’s 28.5, with Stover breaking the individual block assists record (9, set by Becky Merchant ’90 in 1988) by tallying 14 block assists. The Red dominated the stat sheet in both matches, out-hitting Penn and Princeton by a combined .229 team hitting percentage to .161 for the Quakers and Tigers. Freshman outside hitter Elizabeth Bishop provided the offensive backbone for the weekend, leading the Red in kills with 46 on the weekend. Sophomore setter Whitney Fair played in her typically solid manner, notching 60 assists against Penn and another 49 versus Princeton. Classmate Hayley Grieve also came through for injured senior Debbie Quibell (emergency appendectomy), terminating 16 attacks Friday night and adding another 19 kills Saturday. Yet, despite the glowing statistics, the reality remains that the Red needs somewhat of a miracle to remain in the hunt for the Ivy League title. And the past weekend leaves Roes and company in a situation where many questions still remain, with relatively few answers. “I feel like we made all of the right decisions against Princeton, but we just did not come out strong enough at the beginning,” Roes said. “We were making a lot of mental errors in the first game and we had to keep picking ourselves up. It seemed like we didn’t have enough time to come down after beating Penn the night before. The officiating was also pretty bad — only [at Newman Arena] do the officials make it seem like we don’t even have home court advantage.” Officials at Newman Arena were booed loudly by a raucous crowd Saturday (which included former U.S. Attorney General Janet Reno ’60) after a questionable touch call was made in the decisive fifth game. Similar dubious calls were made in the match against Penn, again drawing severe disfavor from an energetic audience comprised of family, friends, and a particularly rowdy contingent of track and field athletes. The Red gets back on track for its final weekend of Ivy play next Friday at Yale, followed by potentially the last match of the season Saturday at Brown.Archived article by Kyle Sheahen
M. Soccer Shut Out by Dartmouth

By wpengine November 10, 2003

Late-season frustration continued for the men’s soccer team yesterday, as Dartmouth extended the Red’s losing streak to five games with a 2-0 win at Chase Field in Hanover, N.H. The Green (6-8-2, 1-5-0) scored only 2:23 into the contest and the Red (5-8-1, 2-3-1 Ivy) was never able to return the favor. Cornell’s current five-game losing streak immediately follows a five-game unbeaten streak that saw the Red improve its record to 5-3-1, including a perfect 2-0 in conference play. In the loss, the Red once again was the beneficiary of a strong effort by junior goalkeeper David Mahoney. Mahoney made five saves in the match, keeping the Red close throughout. “David’s been strong for us all year,” said freshman forward Nick Leonard. “He made some huge saves on some great shots and he kept us in the game.” Sean Eaton scored Dartmouth’s first goal of the game, receiving a pass from forward Matt LaBarre. Despite taking five shots in the first half, Cornell was unable to hit the back of the net, and remained behind 1-0 heading into halftime. “The first goal was a breakdown in the back,” said Leonard. “We weren’t able to clear the ball, and finally one of their players was able to get a foot on it and direct it into the goal.” The Red gave up the early goal in the second half when Dartmouth’s leading scorer Rob Daly notched his 10th goal of the year on an assist by Amar Takhar. The Red managed seven shots in the second half, but again failed to capitalize. The Green broke a losing streak of its own, winning its first Ivy League match of the season. This match was marked by a great deal of physical play, resulting in two yellow cards and a red card to each squad. The referees struggled to control the game, not particularly knowing when to give out cards, Leonard said. “I’d say it was a physical game not unlike most of the Ivy League games,” explained Leonard. “Both teams were playing physical and wanted to win.” Junior Steve Reuter received Cornell’s first yellow card late in the first half, while Mahoney garnered the team’s second late in the second half. Junior Peter Lynch received a red card along with LaBarre at 87:24. “LaBarre grabbed Lynch and tried throwing him to the ground,” said Leonard. “I don’t think either player was particularly deserving of a red card.” The Red will attempt to put an end to its skid when it returns home this Wednesday for its penultimate match of the season against Hartwick. “You really have to play for pride,” said Leonard. “We may not have any post season to play for but you definitely want to play your best, especially at home.”Archived article by Michael Pandolfini