The Crimson soccer team battled cross-town foe Boston University to a 1-1 tie last night under the lights of rain-slickened Nickerson Field.

Harvard and B.U., ranked third and sixth in New England respectively, played two 10-minute overtime periods of scoreless ball which followed the 90 minutes of regular play.

Leftfooted sophomore fullback John Sanacore ripped a direct kick past Terrior goaltender Howie Friedman with four minutes gone in the second half, after a B.U. back was called for pushing. The goal gave Harvard its third tie in eight contests and a 4-1-3 season record.

B.U. initiated the scoring in the contest at 15:52 of the first half. Crimson winger Matt Bowyer tapped an errant pass deep into Harvard's defensive zone. B.U. center forward Mike Pilger picked up the loose ball and slid the slippery sphere past helpless Harvard goalie Fred Herold.

Other than this costly error, the Crimson defense over powered the Terrier attack. Freshmen backs Michael Smith and Steve Yakopec dominated the middle of the Astro-Turf field. Smith, a hard-nosed Englishman, consistently and brilliantly out-leaped his foes, directing the all-important head balls to his teammates. Yakopec also demonstrated excellence at his midfield position with his tackles and head balls.

B.U.'s offense pounded 16 shots at the Harvard goal, but Steady Jim Langton, hustling Lorenzo Dibonaventure, and intensely aggressive Sanacore, Smith and Yakopec protected the Harvard goal with such skill that goaltender Herold had to make only three saves.

Offensively, the Crimson had trouble penetrating the B.U. zone. The water-soaked Astro-Turf caused well-kicked balls to skip like stones on a lake, making ball control difficult to say the least. The Crimson did manage seven shots in the first half, versus nine for the Terriers.

In the second half juniors John Hsiao and David Updike replaced starters Lee Nelson and Walter Diaz at the striker positions in an effort to produce a quicker short-passing attack. The result was better pressure by the entire Crimson offense and Sanacore's goal at 4:00.

B.U. threatened late in the second half. Winger Tony Clair's shot hit the goalpost for the Terriers in a very near miss. Harvard's Diaz nearly connected toward the end of the stanza with a blistering kick, but goalie Friedman made an outstanding save for the home team, sending the game into overtime.