Princeton was awarded a free kick from 45 yards out in the 54th minute, and Teddy Schneider used the opportunity to send a long pass to Walburn, who put the ball into the left bottom corner of the net.

It didn’t take long for the winning goal to come. Less than three minutes later, a bicycle kick by Hoppenot sailed wide before Matt Sanner redirected the shot into the goal.

“I don’t know if that was a lack of pressure on our part or inspiration on their part, playing in front of a home crowd,” sophomore forward Zack Wolfenzon said. “But they just brought it, and you could really see some of their intensity.”

Freshman forward Connor McCarthy had the only shot on goal for Harvard in the second half, with 17 minutes to play—a ball that Lynch had no problem saving.

Harvard managed to get eight shots off in the second half, but the Tigers doubled that figure to end up with 16 shots in the period. Overall, Princeton outshot the Crimson, 23-10.

In the final nine minutes, co-captain Robert Millock and sophomore defender Richard Smith provided some of the offense, attempting a total of four shots. Nothing went in for Harvard, though, as the visiting side couldn’t come up with a comeback on national television.

“The last 35 minutes, we were playing catch-up, and no soccer team likes to do that,” Wolfenzon said.

Yesterday’s game was the first loss for the Crimson in Ivy League play, but it knocks Harvard down from third to fourth place in the standings, making its chances to defend its title very difficult.

—Staff writer Brian A. Campos can be reached at bcampos@fas.harvard.edu.