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09132013_womenssoccervsdrexelcarolyn51
Women's Soccer vs Drexel Credit: Carolyn Lim , Carolyn Lim

Penn women’s soccer came into its match Friday afternoon at Harvard looking to snap a losing streak in Cambridge spanning two games and six years.

But another Quakers streak got snapped instead.

Penn’s undefeated status in the 2013 season through six games fell by the wayside, as Harvard notched a 2-1 victory over the Quakers in a match featuring two own goals and a Crimson comeback.

The first half saw little offensive action, with Penn failing to take a single shot while Harvard managed just one shot on goal in six attempts. Holding true to their stalwart defense put forth so far this year, the Quakers (4-1-2, 0-1 Ivy) and the Crimson (4-3-1, 1-0) reached halftime knotted at zero.

But the action picked up soon in the second half, with Penn’s sophomore forward Elissa Berdini taking a shot in the 60th minute that went high as well as one in the 64th minute that was blocked.

And then Penn got a present.

In the 67th minute, a Crimson defender tried to clear the ball out of her own box, but her header instead sailed past Harvard goalkeeper Bethany Kanten’s head and into her goal.

But eight minutes later, Harvard erased its self-inflicted deficit off its only corner kick of the match. Crimson senior midfielder Peyton Johnson took the corner, crossing the ball into the box, where it bounced off of sophomore defender Alika Keene before freshman forward Karly Zlatic knocked it home for the equalizer.

And it wasn’t long before Penn saw Harvard’s own goal and raised it another.

In the 80th minute, Harvard freshman Margaret Purce free kicked the ball into the box from 40 yards out, knocking the ball off a Penn defender and into the goal. The go-ahead score was all the Crimson needed the rest of the match.

Harvard outshot Penn, 9-4, and Penn failed to land a shot on goal. The game marks Harvard’s fourth straight win.

Penn will return home to Rhodes Field to play at home against Lehigh (2-4-1) on Sunday at 2:30 p.m.

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