Heading into the fourth weekend of the season, soccer (1-2, 1-0 Ivy) faces Harvard (2-1, 0-1 Ivy), the defending Ivy League champion.
Narrowly defeating New Hampshire, 28-23, in final week’s matchup, the Crimson visits Ithaca Friday night below the lights at Schoellkopf Field. Cornell will probably be debuting a model new all-black alternate jersey for the prime-time rivalry matchup.
The Red is coming off a 31-10 loss towards the University at Albany, the place senior quarterback Jameson Wang recorded 187 yards and a landing, with sophomore large receiver Samuel Musungu main the Red with six receptions for 87 yards. While the Red led the sport 7-6 on the half, the Great Danes managed the third and fourth quarters, including 25 factors to its complete.
Holding robust for 60 minutes is one thing Cornell is repeatedly engaged on.
“If you continue to make mistakes within this program and you don’t fix it — whether you are not tough enough or mentally locked in, then we are going to put you on the bench,” mentioned head coach Dan Swanstrom. “We need super high-level execution to have an opportunity — and we are demanding more from our players.”
Despite the quick week of preparation and the nationwide TV ingredient of this week’s matchup, the crew practiced as regular, reflecting on the sport towards Albany earlier than shifting ahead to Harvard.
“I’m not measuring [this year] by outcomes. I’m measuring it by growth and how we compete. I think the way we came out of practice this week and are working through a bunch of things shows a lot about where we are going as a program,” Swanstrom mentioned. “This week’s game will look similar to last week. With the size, the speed, and the strength of Harvard, it will be tough.”
Last 12 months’s matchup between the 2 groups featured Harvard quarterback Charles DePrima having a profession day, throwing for 209 yards and three touchdowns in addition to speeding for a complete of 152 yards and three extra touchdowns. While DePrima now performs large receiver for the Crimson, Swanstrom and the Red view him as a menace that should be dealt with.
“DePrima might be the fastest kid in our league,” Swanstrom mentioned. “He is electric on film and brings a lot of problems to the table — he is dynamic with his speed, and paired with [quarterback Jaden Craig] will be a challenge.”
Cornell will probably be closing out its three-game homestand with one in every of its most storied rivalries up to now, relationship again 134 years. Harvard has a considerable edge within the general collection, and a win over the Crimson on Friday would hand the Red its first victory towards Harvard since 2018. That 28-24 win got here proper on Cornell’s dwelling turf.
Kickoff is about for 6 p.m. at Schoellkopf Field with protection on ESPN2.
