Many things rode on Saturday's men's lacrosse game between 11th-ranked Harvard and 16th-ranked Brown. There was a chance to start the Ivy season with a win. A chance to move up in the national rankings. And of course, a chance to taste sweet victory over an archrival. In what has become one of the top lacrosse rivalries in the nation, Bruno earned bragging rights with a 13–11 victory over the Crimson at Harvard Stadium.
Brown 13, Harvard 11
The Bears jumped out to a 5–0 lead to set the pace for the game. In the words of Head Coach Lars Tiffany '90, Bruno played a "go 100 miles per hour and ask questions later" kind of game. It seemed liked Bruno couldn't miss with Thomas Muldoon '10 making a 360-degree shot in front of the goal and David Hawley '11 launching a shot from 15 yards out.
Charlie Kenney '10 and Seth Ratner '11 dominated the midfield, capturing 16 of 26 faceoff opportunities and allowing Bruno to have more scoring opportunities.
"We crushed 'em," said goalie Matt Chriss '11. "We had a great game, controlling the field. The Ivy opener is always a big game. Harvard's a great team but, well, we just wanted it more."
Brown's defense had a strong showing behind Chriss, who made nine saves and even went the length of the field to make a shot, only to have it called back on a penalty. Poking fun at former Brown All-American goalie Jordan Burke '09, Chriss said, "I don't think Burke ever tried scoring a goal."
Harvard was able to rally back several times in the second half. Crimson standout Terry White found the goal four times, as did teammate Jeff Cohen.
"We played all 60 minutes of that game," said Harvard Head Coach John Tillman. "It's hard though when you have to keep digging yourself out. It wastes a lot of time and energy."
Tiffany said teams must walk a fine line when they're up big in the second half. "It's the 4th quarter. Do you keep pushing or do you kill the clock? It's hard."
This led to some errors on behalf of the Bears as they tried to pass the ball around the field to run time off of the clock.
Andrew Feinberg '11 answered the Crimson rallies, finding the goal four times, with some shots looking almost impossible.
When asked which goal was his favorite, Feinberg said, "I'm not sure. I don't really remember the shots. I'm just glad we won."
The Bears will be at home Tuesday for a 4 p.m. game against the University of Massachusetts at Amherst.
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