CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – Junior
Bobby Cupps, senior
Marko Isakovic, and junior
Nicholas Nyquist each scored a goal as Harvard University men's soccer defeated Merrimack College, 3-1, on Tuesday night at Jordan Field in its first match in the month of October.
Playing at home for the first time since Aug. 31 following a five-match road swing, the Crimson (1-3-3) took a 1-0 lead at halftime and scored twice inside the final quarter hour to top the visiting Warriors (1-8-0) and improve to 1-0-1 at home in 2024.
Cupps opened the game's scoring with a marker in the 42
nd minute before Isakovic pushed the Crimson's lead to 2-0 in the 77
th minute. After the Warriors cut the margin to 2-1 with a goal in the 80
th minute, Nyquist closed the game's scoring with a tally in the 86
th minute. Nyquist posted a game-high three points on a goal and an assist as eight different members of the Crimson tallied a point in the match.
Harvard Highlights
- Junior Nicholas Nyquist posted a career and game-high three points on a goal and an assist. He notched his first points of the year on his first career goal and second career assist.
- Senior Marko Isakovic netted his second goal of the season and third career goal. Isakovic netted his first career game-winning goal.
- Junior Bobby Cupps netted his first career goal after joining the Crimson prior to the 2024 season.
- Senior Kristján Gunnarsson posted his second assist of the year and fourth of his career.
- Junior Matus Vician notched his first assist of the year and fifth of his career.
- Junior Zachary Sardi-Santos registered his second assist of the season and third of his career.
- Junior Rustin Khosravi and first-year Alexander Castel each notched his first career assist.
- Among the Crimson's field players, senior Jan Riecke and first-year Alexander Castel each played the full 90 minutes.
- Sophomore Andreas Savva tallied a game-high five shots while sophomore Dylan Tellado added four shots and a game-high two shots on goal.
- First-year Phoenix Wooten made his collegiate debut.
- For the match, Harvard led in shots (21-2), shots on goal (5-1), and corner kicks (7-1). In the first half, the Crimson held advantages in shots (7-0), shots on goal (1-0), and corners (7-0), and in the second half, the hosts maintained edged in shots (14-2) and shots on goal (4-1).
Gallery: (10-1-2024) Men's Soccer vs. Merrimack
How It Happened
- The Crimson started the contest on the front foot, taking five shots in the first 11 minutes, earning five corners in the first 22 minutes. A header from junior Marcos Ojea Quintana went off the crossbar in the 11th minute to highlight the opening quarter hour.
- Junior Bobby Cupps broke through in the 42nd minute. After junior Matus Vician played a pass to first-year Alexander Castel, Castel sent a long ball up the field where Cupps ran onto it and slotted a shot past the goalkeeper.
- Senior Marko Isakovic doubled the Crimson's lead to 2-0 in the 77th minute. Junior Zachary Sardi-Santos sent a ball into the box from the left side onto the foot of junior Nicholas Nyquist who carried the ball across the face of the goa, allowing Isakovic to run onto the ball and knock a shot into the back of the net.
- Merrimack made the score 2-1 in the 80th minute behind a goal from Carlo Romei following a free kick.
- The Crimson capped the game's scoring in the 86th minute behind Nicholas Nyquist's goal. Junior Rustin Khosravi kept the play alive, giving senior Kristján Gunnarsson a chance to send a ball forward to Nyquist who beat the keeper and provided the Crimson with insurance.
Next Up
Harvard hosts No. 25 Penn in its Ivy League home opener on Saturday, Oct. 5 at 1:00 p.m. (ESPN+).
