PHILADELPHIA — In a thrilling Ivy League Tournament championship match, Yale defeated Brown 2-1 on Sunday afternoon at Dunning-Cohen Champions Field to claim the inaugural Ivy League Men's Soccer Tournament title. With the win, the Bulldogs earned the league's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.
Yale opened the game of the front foot, applying the pressure early in the content with multiple shots on goal, but two saves from Brown's
Hudson Blatteis kept the score tied at zero midway through the first half.
The Bears answered back halfway through the first period, however, earning back-to-back corner kicks, but could not convert on either as the match went into the halftime break at 0-0.
It wasn’t until the 68
th minute when Yale broke through as
Ryan Cote took a pass from Max Rogers and launched a shot off his right foot that found the back of the net for a 1-0 lead.
Just minutes later,
Eric Lagos, who was named the Tournament's Most Outstanding Player, doubled the Bulldogs' lead after fighting off a Brown defender. The celebrations would not last long, however, as the Bears responded in the 76
th minute with a goal of their own. Off a corner kick,
Tanner Barry found
Harri Sprofera, who found the net to half the deficit.
Brown pushed for an equalizer in the closing moments of the contest, but were unable to find one as Yale took home the title.
For the match, Yale held a 17-7 edge in shots, including an 8-4 advantage in shots on goal. Each team had six corner kicks in the match.
Yale will wait to hear their name called on tomorrow's NCAA selection show at 1 p.m. ET.
All-Tournament Team
Eric Lagos, Yale (Most Outstanding Player)
TJ Presthus, Yale
Max Rogers, Yale
Jonathan Seidman, Yale
Hudson Blatteis, Brown
Kojo Dadzie, Brown
Harri Sprofera, Brown
Alessandro Arlotti, Harvard
Jan Riecke, Harvard
Leo Burney, Penn
Stas Korzeniowski, Penn