After a long five-hour journey to the home of the cheesesteak, some well-deserved rest, and a sumptuous breakfast, we loaded back onto the bus and wove our way through the intricate jungle gym of the UPenn Athletic Complex. Crossing railroads, bridges, and uncharted territory, the boys got a quick morning practice in with Sam “Bam” Groves and Tim “the Ranga” Whalen making the highlight reel with a full field banger and some deftly accurate post-strikes respectively.
After a pregame meal at Allegre Pizza on Penn campus – where we watched some Penn students really get after the “homecoming spirit” at around 4 p.m. – we boarded the bus once more. All that could be heard over the soft guitar noodlings of the Bus speakers were Pepe and Edu engaging in what sounded like a ferocious reenactment of their favorite Telenovela (Spanish for Soap Opera), as we hummed our way to the Quakers’ field.
The whistle blew, and before the tempo or feel of the game had even been established, the Bears found themselves up 1-0. The goal came after some clever play from Gavey on the wing as he whipped in a ball to Belair, who then deftly laid it back to Big Ben Maurey. And, with the fiery passion that dwells deep inside the heart of the volatile striker, Big Ben sent an absolute rifle into the top left “cheddar” of the goal after just 4 minutes of play. This was the start the Bears had been hoping for.
However, this excitement quickly dissolved as the momentum shifted in favor of the Quakers. All of a sudden the Quaker forwards began running dangerously at our backline, causing chaos and revealing some sloppy defending at times as Schloss was forced to come up with a succession of vital saves for the Bears. In the center of the park we seemed stagnant at times, finding ourselves watching the clever Quaker footwork as they one-twoed around our cone-like tracking.
Finally we were able to possess as we took advantage of the space their 4-3-3 midfielders granted us with Tmac, Dyl and Gavey pushing strongly up on the wings, creating chances and corners. Ben used his “big boned” frame once more to body a defender off the ball and create a breakaway for himself, though his shot flew wide of the net. Moments later, Tmac produced one of the cheekiest attempts I have seen in awhile as he juggled two defenders and rifled a shot toward the top right corner of the goal (much like this Maicon display)
Though the first half saw our defense straying from their usual stalwart authority at times including a near nutmeg breakaway against McDuff, the central midfield strengthened with the support of Jameson and Jack “G” Gorab who breathed energy into the game, playing with confidence and composure at a vital time for the Bears. Connecting passes and setting up chances from our refortified midfield, Tmac and Belair both had several more attempts on frame, but the half closed with the Bears clinging to their early lead, needing another for security.
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But the coveted second goal was not to be found for either side. Though the Bears continued to dominate throughout the second half, creating chance after chance and returning to their wall-like defense...
...a goal would simply not come. Unlike the explosive offense and dubious defending of the first half, the second half brought with it a return to “chippy” tackles, fouls, and a refusal from both sides to grant the opposition any clean shots.
Though both keepers remained busy with the Quaker goalie coming up with several big blocks and Schloss remaining alert for his brief encounters with the ball – including a frighteningly close call in the 85th minute – the game ended as the first half had, with the Bears in front 1-0. A huge sigh of relief was breathed in unison by the Bear’s many supporters as the final whistle sounded. Once again Brown had not only come up with a hard-fought victory, but they had done it on the road, with yet another game winner from Big Ben, and had shutout a high-scoring Penn offense in the process.
The Bears now move to 4-0-1 atop the Ivy League and are ranked as one of the top ten teams in the country. Though their poise and consistency has been proven, the Bears will face a tough end of the season run, first against a hungry Yale squad, and then against their 2011 Ivy League Co-Champions, Dartmouth. The weeks ahead promise excitement as both the Ivy League Title and a berth in the NCAA tournament depend upon these next two results. A huge thank you to Mr. Whalen for all of the quality photos, and don’t forget to vote for Ryan McDuff for the Senior Class Award
Cheers!
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