Freshman midfielder Christian Sady, shown here in previous action, and the Harvard men’s soccer team look to bounce back on Saturday from a 2-1 loss at the hands of Yale last season.

For the Harvard men’s soccer team (6-3), last year’s Ivy League opener was rock bottom.

Having won just one of its first eight games in non-conference play, the Crimson preached "new start—new season." The team stressed urgency; then-co-captain Kevin Harrington ’14 said before the game that “it’s win or go home.”

Harvard started strong, taking a 67th minute lead on a sliding goal by A.J. Agha ’14. It was the team’s first goal in three games. 

The blows from Yale came one after the other. The first was an 88th minute strike from Conner Lachenbruch—a scramble in front of the goal where an errant bounce left the Yale then-junior with a clear shot at the net.

Barely 90 seconds later came the decider—a free kick rocket that bounced off a Harvard defender and straight into the goal.

“When you put everything out on the line, sometimes you’re going to lose,” coach Pieter Lehrer said at the time, regarding the talk he had with his players. “As we keeping putting it out there, the results are going to change in our favor.”

Lehrer’s words proved prescient. The team ended the season on a 5-1 tear, finishing second in the Ivy League and beating the defending league champion, Cornell, on the road.

The defense, headed by the leadership of then-sophomore co-captain Mark Ashby, allowed just three goals in the subsequent four conference games.

One year later, Harvard appears to be hitting its stride. The team has scored 16 goals in five straight wins after netting a total of 20 in all of 2013.

The Crimson has battled back from 2-0 deficits in each of its last two games, both 3-2 wins over area rivals Northeastern and Massachusetts.

Suffice to say, the team is ready for the rematch in New Haven on Saturday.

“I’m really excited for the Ivies to start, just as everyone else is,” junior forward Andrew Chang said. “I’m ready to do what I can for the team.”

The team enters the game boasting an undefeated home record and a diverse group of weapons on the offensive end.

Ten different Crimson players have scored a goal this year, and 11 have recorded an assist.

The offensive success has led to increased confidence. Even after finding itself down two goals in the early moments of its last game, a 3-2 victory over Massachusetts where Harvard did not allow a shot against after the 18th minute, the team hardly blinked.