Continuing its recent trend of playing just well enough to win, the Harvard men’s soccer team emerged with a 2-1 victory over Providence yesterday at Ohiri Field.

It was the fifth straight win for Harvard (6-1, 1-0 Ivy) since a blowout loss to Rhode Island. Four of those wins have come by a single goal.

Harvard used an early second-half surge to overcome a characteristically slow start and hand Providence (2-8) a bitter defeat. The match featured heated physical confrontations that became more frequent as the game progressed.

“We didn’t have any energy in the first half,” junior midfielder Kevin Ara said. “We might have still been tired from our game last Saturday against Brown.”

Despite its initial lethargy, the Crimson did manage to string together some impressive first-half sequences and take a 1-0 lead at 13:15 when junior midfielder Ladd Fritz deflected a shot from senior midfielder Marc Buan into the left corner of the goal.

“I just tried to rotate my body to get a toe on it,” Fritz said. “I was looking to redirect it in.”

Fritz had a productive first half, controlling the tempo of the game with his precise ball distribution. Fritz teamed with sophomore forward Jeremy Truntzer and senior midfielder Marc Buan to create most of Harvard’s first-half offense.

Although the Crimson managed to pressure the Friars’ defense, it failed to convert on the open shots it created or maintain possession for significant periods of time.

“We don’t need to make it hard for ourselves,” freshman midfielder Brian Charnock said. “We need to put the games away”

Providence mounted an energetic counterattack following Harvard’s goal, and tied up the game at 28:30 when midfielder Ian Wexler headed in a free kick from midfielder Carlos Suero past the hands of sophomore Crimson goalie Jaimie Roth. If Wexler’s animated shirt-removing celebration following his score wasn’t enough to motivate the Crimson, Harvard Coach John Kerr’s halftime talk must have done the job.

“He told us to play the ball out wide more, move the ball quickly, and make more angles,” Charnock said.

Kerr’s plan of attack worked well for the Crimson, as it was able to create even more openings and offensive opportunities than in the first half.

Ara converted on this surge of energy in the 54th minute as he controlled a deflected ball and directed it into the bottom left corner of the goal past Providence goalkeeper Jeff Newman.

The Friars remained composed following Harvard’s score, unleashing a flurry of shots on Harvard freshman goalkeeper Ryan Johnson. Johnson—who replaced Roth at halftime—responded with numerous critical saves, many of them coming against minimal defensive coverage. Most of these shots came from Wexler, who beat the Crimson defense on numerous occasions.

“We made some defensive mistakes in the second half,” freshman defender Will Craig said. “We overplayed the ball, and [Wexler] slid in behind our backs.”

The Crimson kept its composure through the end of the game, despite the increasingly physical nature of the contest. Officials were forced to stop play on multiple occasions to warn players about throwing elbows and other unnecessary contact.

Harvard will sample West Coast competition this weekend as it travels to California to play the University of San Francisco and Santa Clara this weekend.