The Boston University men’s soccer team is back in action tonight against Harvard University. After a week off, the Terriers (2-4-2) return to Nickerson Field, where they boast a 2-1-1 record this season.
The last time the Terriers lost at home was Aug. 31 at the Terrier Tailgate. BU fell, 3-2, in two overtimes to the University of Massachusetts-Amherst. But the Terriers went 2-0-1 on their last homestand two weeks ago, outscoring their opponents 8-2.
During that three-game homestand, BU bested the University of Rhode Island and Colgate University in explosive 4-0 and 4-2 wins, respectively. BU also battled the defending Ivy League champion, Brown University, to a scoreless draw last week.
“It’s always good to play at home. We’ve played well at home. We’re obviously comfortable there,” BU coach Neil Roberts said.
The BU defense will need to be on point tonight, as Harvard (3-2) is a strong offensive team. The Crimson has scored three goals in each of its three wins and has only been shut out once. Senior midfielder Michael Fucito, the Crimson’s leading scorer, has five goals and one assist.
“They’re a very good offensive team,” Roberts said. “They’ve probably got three of the top strikers in the country and they’re very dangerous. That’s going to be our biggest problem tomorrow — being able to control them.”
But the numbers are in BU’s favor. Harvard’s 0-2-0 on the road and the Terrier defense has been particularly sharp this season. BU has recorded three shutouts this year, and senior goalkeeper Hrafn Davidsson has allowed only four goals in the last six games. Davidsson boasts a 1.08 goals-against average and a .757 save percentage.
“We just want to see that defensively we can be sharp like we’ve been at times. We have to be able to have the intensity to be able to put long stretches of play together,” Roberts said.
The Terrier offense will need to come alive again tonight, as it often has at Nickerson this fall. After being shut out in last week’s game at Northeastern University, the offense hopes to break down the Crimson defense and find the back of the net.
“I think at times with our offense we’re a pretty good team,” Roberts said. “So it’s just a matter of us being able to possess the ball and open up spaces in their defense.
“We need to be able to stabilize their front runners and be able to open them up and be dangerous. It should be a good game. Harvard’s a good team.”
Tonight marks BU’s final non-conference game of the season. Starting Saturday, the Terriers will face eight straight America East opponents to close out the regular season. Roberts said he thinks the past week has been useful for his team. The week off was used to re-evaluate where the team stands before it enters conference play.
“We worked on everything,” Roberts said. “We just tried to clear everything up. As we get closer to conference play, we’ve got to work on just being a little bit sharper in everything that we do.”
