PHILADELPHIA – The University of Pennsylvania men's soccer team won its first Ivy League match of the season on Saturday night, halting Harvard 2-0 at Rhodes Field.
Malachi Neal netted his first collegiate goal and the game-winner in the 17th minute to lift Penn to a 1-0-1 Ivy League record while Harvard fell to 0-2.
Quaker Notemeal
*
Patrick Cayelli dished out Neal's goal and scored one of his own to lead the offense with three points.
*The Quakers recorded five shots on net while the Crimson only attempted one which goalkeeper
Phillip Falcon III saved.
*Senior Cayelli's three points put him on top of the Ivy League statistics with 14 points.
How It Happened
The Quakers tried to get the offense going early as senior Cayelli acquired the ball from senior Sakaloksy right in front of the net in the fourth minute, but his shot was blocked by a Crimson defender. Penn tallied back-to-back shots from Cayelli and
Erickson Sakalosky in the 13th minute, but both were once again blocked by Harvard to keep the game scoreless early.
A corner for the Red and Blue, a few minutes later, allowed Cayelli to set up junior Neal, who headed in his first collegiate goal in the 17th minute to push Penn ahead 1-0. The goal seemed to wake Harvard up, as Ben Kelly and Andreas Savva attempted shots in the 18th and 21st minutes, with the first being blocked and the second saved by keeper Falcon.
Defender Neal tried to head in another seven minutes later, while Sakalosky slammed one towards Cullen MacNeil, but the keeper saved both to keep the deficit at one a little over halfway through the quarter. The last offensive attempt of the half came from
Jack Wagoner, who nearly headed one in, but goalie MacNeil stopped it before the lead could be doubled.
The Crimson came out of the break trying to make a statement, as Lucas Benuce Sarvas slammed one towards Falcon within the first three minutes, which soared high before any damage could be done. The Red and Blue's first chance of the half did come until the 53rd minute when Wagoner shot the ball wide right of the box. Three minutes later,
Gavin Seele and
Will Kelly tried back-to-back shots, but both were misdirected before they could reach keeper MacNeil.
Harvard tried to even the score again in the 61st minute, but defender Neal silenced Alejandro Palacio's shot before it could reach the net. A little later,
Marco Bottene recorded two straight shots in the 73rd and 74th minutes, but one was blocked and the other hit the crossbar.
The Quakers eventually doubled their lead in the 81st minute, as Bottene headed the ball to Sakalosky, who passed it to Cayelli to allow him to hit the back of the net. With time ticking down, the Crimson tried to rally with three straight shots, including two from Marcos Ojea Quintana, but all three were blocked by the Quakers to secure the 2-0 Ivy League victory.
Up Next
The Quakers (4-2-3, 1-0-1 Ivy League) close out Philly Soccer Six action on Tuesday, Oct. 7, heading to Temple for a 7 p.m. contest.
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