Men’s Soccer Secures First Ivy League Regular Season Title in 14 Years - The Cornell Daily Sun
By Google News Sports ·
With the opportunity to claim the first Ivy League title under head coach John Smith and host the Ivy League tournament for the first time, the emotions ran high for this Cornell team on Oct. 24.
Cornell (5-0-0 Ivy, 10-3-0) faced Dartmouth (2-2-1 Ivy, 4-5-4) with the Ivy League regular season title within reach.
“It was a tough game, it was a tight one,” Smith said. “There was a lot of emotion going into it because we knew what was at stake.”
The Red struck twice in the first half to establish an early lead. Senior captain and midfielder Connor Miller delivered a cross into the box to set up freshman forward Andrew Miles for a header to open up the scoring.
Cornell was swift to get its second goal. Two minutes later, Miller switched the field with a pass to junior defender Aidan Martin, who finished with a left-footed shot into the bottom-right corner to double the Red’s lead.
Dartmouth responded in the second half, coming out of the break more energized than Cornell. The Big Green earned a penalty in the 48th minute after Martin clipped a Dartmouth forward in the box. The resulting goal cut Cornell’s lead in half, putting pressure on the Red to find another goal and regain some breathing room.
Junior midfielder Dominik Kolbl answered the call in the 56th minute. Having not appeared on the field since Cornell’s match against Binghamton on Sept. 22, Kolbl made his way onto the scoresheet with his first collegiate goal, once again giving Cornell a two-goal lead.
A section of fans cheering for the Red during its title-clinching game against Dartmouth.
With Miller’s third assist of the match coming off a corner kick, Kolbl headed the ball past Dartmouth’s goalkeeper to secure the final goal of the match.
“I thought [Dartmouth] started the second half better than…
Originally published by Google News Sports
