NEW YORK — The Columbia men's soccer team (1-6-4, 0-3-1 Ivy) will host Harvard (5-4-4, 1-2-1 Ivy) in a pivotal Ivy League match on Saturday at Rocco B. Commisso Soccer Stadium. Kickoff is slated for 6 p.m.
 
ALUMNI DAY
The Lions will be hosting their annual Alumni Day on Saturday. The men's soccer program's coaches, staff and students are proud to welcome back all men's soccer alumni.
 
GAME COVERAGE:
Fans unable to make it to the game can watch live on ESPN+. Fans can also track the live stats courtesy of GoColumbiaLions.com. In-game updates will also be provided on the @CULionsMSOC social media accounts.
 
HOME SWEET HOME
The Lions hope to bounce back from their first home loss of the season two weeks ago, when they fell to Dartmouth in a close contest, 2-1. Columbia is now 1-1-2 at home this season. Prior to the loss against the Big Green, the Lions drew Villanova, 0-0, in the home opener, defeated Manhattan, 2-0, back on September 15, and drew Penn, 2-2, in the Ivy League opener on September 28.
Columbia is outscoring opponents, 5-4, outshooting opponents, 54-44, and putting 35.2 percent of their shots on goal at home this season. Defensively, Dean Kelliher has played all 360 minutes in goal with a home goals against average of 1.00, 10 saves, two shutouts and a save percentage of 71.4 percent.
 
In contrast, the road has not been kind to the Lions. They are 0-5-2 away from home, getting outshot 103-81, putting just 22.2 percent of their shots on goal. Opponents average 1.57 goals against Columbia, put 40.8 percent of their shots on goal, and allow the Lions just 0.71 goals per game.
 
LAST TIME OUT
Columbia was on the road to challenge Princeton last weekend. The Tigers came into the game ranked No. 5 in the United Soccer Coaches Poll, No. 1 in the NCAA RPI and had the No. 1 ranking by the NCAA Selection Committee. Ultimately, the Lions gave Princeton everything it could handle over 90 minutes, but the Tigers prevailed, 2-0.
 
Two big moments helped decide the outcome. The first of them came when the Tigers (10-1-1, 4-0-0 Ivy) were awarded a penalty kick for a handball in the 31st minute for a handball called against Andrew Hilton II. The second came when Joe McDaid was issued a red card in the 74th. Columbia (1-6-4, 0-3-1 Ivy) still managed to keep it a one-goal game until the 87th minute.
 
Due to the red card, the Lions will be without starting center-back Joe McDaid for Saturday's game against Harvard.
 
ABOUT THE LIONS
Columbia has scored 11 goals in 10 matches so far this season. Leading the way is junior midfielder Jack McDaid with three, followed by a pair from senior Alessandro Franciosa and first year Stepan Kapranov, as well as one apiece from sophomore Andres Garcia, sophomore Andrew Hilton II and first-year Henning Myrvang. McDaid has a team-leading eight points. He, his brother Joe McDaid and Andres Garcia have a team-leading two assists apiece.
 
In goal, senior Dean Kelliher has played and started nine of the team's 11 matches. He owns a goal against average of 1.22 and a save percentage of 73.2 percent.

SCOUTING THE OPPONENT
Harvard averages 1.39 goals per game and allows 1.08 per game, ranking fourth in the Ivy League in both categories. They enter Saturday on a four-game unbeaten streak, which includes back-to-back wins in their two most recent games against Stonehill College, 4-2, and last weekend against Brown, 4-2. Adam Poliakov scored two goals in the win over Brown and now shares the team lead with three goals on the season. Andres Savva and Dyla Tellado have also scored three times. Saava has a team-leading 10 points by way of his four assists. The goalkeeping has been pretty much evenly split between Cullen MacNeil and Lucian Wood. Both keepers have allowed seven goals and posted two shutouts.
 
THE SERIES
Columbia leads the all-time series, 31-28-6. However, Harvard has not lost to Columbia since 2019, posting a record of 3-0-1 against the Lions since that time. The Crimson have also won each of the last two series matchups at Commisso Soccer Stadium, picking up a 3-1 win in 2023 and a 3-2 win in 2021.

2025 SEASON NOTES
 
MCDAID NAMED OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Junior midfielder Jack McDaid was named the Ivy League Offensive Player of the Week for games played September 22-28. A native of Havertown, Pennsylvania, McDaid scored two goals during the week, one in each of Columbia's matches. His first came at Hofstra, when he blasted home a perfectly placed free kick to cut the Pride's lead in half in the 70th minute. Then, in the Ivy League opener against Penn, he opened the scoring with a left-footed blast from outside the box in the game's 13th minute.
 
This was the first Ivy League Offensive Player of the Week selection for McDaid. It was the first time a Lion had been named a player of the week for an offensive performance since John Denis in 2019.
 
NON-CONFERENCE RECAP
Columbia went 1-3-2 entering Ivy League play and will play two additional non-conference matchups in October against Army West Point (Oct. 14) and Fordham (Oct. 28). After dropping a close battle in their season opener at Lehigh, 2-1, the Lions went on a three-game unbeaten streak, drawing Villanova, 0-0, drawing Fairfield, 1-1, and defeating Manhattan at home, 2-0. The unbeaten streak was the team's longest since 2018, as head coach Michael Casper looks to bring a historically strong Columbia program back to prominence.
 
Junior midfielder Jack McDaid scored two of Columbia's five goals through its first six non-conference matches. He had the opening goal against Manhattan, heading home a short corner sent in from Joao Lima. He scored his second goal in Columbia's last match, blasting home a free kick from just outside the 18 to cut Hofstra's 2-0 lead in half in the 87th minute. McDaid also owns an assist for a team-leading five points. Five of his eight shots have been on frame.
 
The Lions outshot their opponents by a total of 81-75. Their 13.5 shots per game ranked fourth in the Ivy League. Columbia took a season-high 23 shots in the win over Manhattan, its most shots in a game in eight years.
 
Defensively, the Lions allowed an even 1.00 goals per game. They've shut out both Villanova (Sept. 5) and Manhattan (Sept. 15), with both of those matches coming at home.

RETURNING
The Lions return 22 players from last year's team. Of them, 18 returners played in eight or more matches last season, while 10 players started at least half of last season's 14 matches.
 
In goal, senior Dean Kelliher returns with the most experience. He started nine matches a year ago in his first season as the primary keeper. It included his first collegiate shutout in a 1-0 victory over the previous season's Ivy League tournament champion, Yale. He would later make a career-high six saves in a one-goal loss to Harvard. Alexander O'Brien played and started four matches in his rookie season. They will both compete for the starting spot alongside first-year Aris Taki.
 
The defensive half and the back line also return a lot of game experience. Staples to last year's defensive formation included senior Carmine Falco, junior Joe McDaid, junior Jack McDaid, junior Jackson ten Oever and sophomore Andrew Hilton II. All five started at least 12 of 14 matches, with Falco and Joe McDaid starting all 14. Jack McDaid and ten Oever each scored twice and shared the team lead in goals. McDaid was named Second Team All-Ivy League, while ten Oever earned All-Ivy Honorable Mention.
 
Returners in the attacking half include senior Ryan Yang, senior Joao Lima, sophomore Luke Zielinski and senior Alessandro Franciosa. Those four started at least half of last season's matches with Lima earning one goal and one assist.
 
Columbia returns 89 percent of its scoring from last season, but will look for an uptick in goal production. They managed to find the back of the net just nine times last season, averaging just 0.64 goals per game. Will Case, Luka Peric, Peter Chang and Andres Garcia also got plenty of experience last season, all playing in 10 or more matches. Garcia came away with a goal and an assist as a rookie.
 
THE CAPTAINS
Columbia men's soccer announced that its captains for the 2025 season are senior Carmine Falco and junior Jackson ten Oever. Falco has played in 38 matches and started 37 of them heading into his senior year. Last season, he totaled 1,075 minutes on the field and went the full 90 four times. Ten Oever was a 2024 All-Ivy League Honorable Mention and was also named to the College Sports Communicators (CSC) Academic All-District Team. He was named Ivy League Player of the Week following his game-winning goal while preserving a shutout against Yale. The Brooklyn native has played and started 27 matches in his career.
 
THE NEWCOMERS
In late June, Columbia announced the addition of eight new players to the 2025 roster. In the announcement, head coach Michael Casper stated, "We want players that fit the model of what we want Columbia men's soccer to look like – hard-working and technical with the ability to become difference makers."
 
Among the newcomers are goalkeeper Aris Taki, defenders Conor Owen and Sage Kinner, midfielders Yianni Goulandris, Stepan Kapranov, Oli Sacks and Amir Yahalom, as well as forward Henning Myrvang.
 
YEAR THREE UNDER CASPER
In what is now his third season leading the Lions, head coach Michael Casper will look to turn the corner and bring the program back to prominence. Last year saw a step in the right direction, when Columbia put an end to a five-year Ivy League winless drought by defeating the 2023 tournament champion Yale, 1-0, at Rocco B. Commisso Soccer Stadium. With key defensive pieces returning, he will look to a talented group of returners and newcomers to increase goal production.
 
ABOUT COLUMBIA MEN'S SOCCER
The 2025 season marks the 78th varsity season of men's soccer at Columbia University. The program was established in 1906 but discontinued as a varsity sport from 1916-57. The program regained its varsity status in 1957 and played 63 straight seasons until the 2020 campaign was canceled due to COVID.
 
Columbia men's soccer came to prominence in the late '70s, advancing to their first NCAA Tournament in 1978 before going all the way to the Final Four in 1979. After multiple NCAA Tournament appearances and Ivy League championships through the early '80s, the Lions made a run to the NCAA Tournament Championship Game in 1983. Columbia defeated UConn, 4-0, in the Final Four to take on Indiana for the National Championship. The Hoosiers outlasted Columbia, 1-0, in overtime.
 
Columbia owns 10 Ivy League championships and 13 NCAA Tournament appearances all-time.
 
FOLLOW THE LIONS:
For the latest on Columbia men's soccer, be sure to follow the team on Twitter and Instagram (@CULionsMSOC), on Facebook (ColumbiaMensSoccer), or by visiting GoColumbiaLions.com.