Mike McLaughlin/Cornell Athletics
Men’s Soccer Wins Ivy League Title
The men’s soccer team enjoyed unprecedented success in 2012, posting a 15-2 record, winning the Ivy League championship, and producing the program’s first Ivy League Player of the Year. Daniel Haber ’14 was a unanimous selection as the top player after scoring 18 goals and making seven assists to lead the nation in goals (1.06) and points (2.53) per game. He was also named a first-team All-American and a semifinalist for the Hermann Trophy, college soccer’s highest individual honor, which will be awarded in January. Five other Big Red players earned All-Ivy honors, with goalkeeper Rick Pflasterer ’13, defender Patrick Slogic ’14, and forward Tyler Regan ’14 joining Haber on the first team. Cornell, which was ranked as high as 10th nationally, earned its first outright Ivy League title since 1977 and made its first NCAA tournament appearance since 1996.
Sports Shorts
GARDEN FRESH After an uneven start that left the team with a 3-3-2 record in mid-November, men’s hockey posted three solid wins to close the fall semester. The standout was a 5-1 victory over Michigan in the Frozen Apple at a sold-out Madison Square Garden on November 24. Goalie Andy Iles ’14 made 26 saves against the Wolverines and was named the ECAC Goaltender of the Week. Senior forward Greg Miller had two goals and an assist in the contest, Cornell’s first win at the Garden since 1976. Returning to Lynah Rink the following week, the Big Red notched 3-1 victories over ECAC foes Clarkson and St. Lawrence on successive nights.
GRIDIRON GREAT In 2011, quarterback Jeff Mathews ’14 became the first sophomore to win the Bushnell Cup award as the Ivy League’s Offensive Player of the Year. In 2012, he was again named one of the two finalists for the award after throwing for a league-best 3,196 yards and finishing second in the nation with 355.1 passing yards per game. Mathews is now Cornell’s all-time passing leader, and his career total of 8,331 yards is second in Ivy League history—with one more year to go. He was the second-team All-Ivy pick at QB behind Harvard’s Colton Chapple, who won the Bushnell Cup this season. Offensive tackle JC Tretter ’13 and receiver Luke Tasker ’13 were unanimous picks for the All-Ivy first team; receiver Grant Gellatly ’14 joined Mathews on the second team, and linebacker Brett Buehler ’14 received honorable mention.
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SUPERIOR HARRIERS A 13th-place finish at the NCAA Division I Championships capped an outstanding season for the women’s cross country team, which also repeated as Heptagonal champions and posted the program’s highest national ranking when it reached seventh in October. Rachel Sorna ’14 was the Big Red’s top finisher at nationals, placing 34th with a time of 2:12.0 on the six-kilometer course; Katie Kellner ’13 was close behind in 36th, and both were named All-Americans.
WIN/LOSE SITUATION The 1940 “Fifth Down” game against Dartmouth is one of the most storied contests in Cornell football history. In their book Honor on the Line, Robert Scott, MRP ’73, and Myles Pocta provide a detailed look at that famous game and the entire 1940 college football season, which saw Cornell contend for a national title. Extensively footnoted, the book relies heavily on contemporaneous accounts to explain what happened that day in Hanover—and afterwards. For more, go to www.honorontheline.com.
BEATING THE ODDS Unlike most people who go to Vegas, the men’s basketball team came home winners, earning the 2012 Continental Tire Las Vegas Invitational lower-bracket title. Led by all-tournament selection Shonn Miller ’15, Cornell beat Presbyterian 89-55 and Longwood 84-78 to win the consolation trophy after losing road games to Wisconsin and Arizona State in the opening rounds. Miller was named Ivy League Player of the Week after averaging 12.3 points and 8.0 rebounds in those four games.
HOCKEY HONORS Field hockey players Hannah Balleza ’14 and Carolyn Horner ’14 were both named second-team regional All-Americans as well as first-team All-Ivy League. Balleza led the team in scoring with 35 points, second in school history only to Cari Hills ’98, who scored 36 points in 1995. Goalkeeper Horner ranked fifth nationally with a save percentage of .796 and led the league in shutouts with five.
Fall Teams
Final Records
| Field Hockey | 8-9; 3-4 Ivy (T-4th) |
| Football | 4-6; 2-5 Ivy (T-6th) |
| Sprint Football | 4-3; 3-3 CSFL (4th) |
| Men’s Soccer | 15-2; 6-1 Ivy (1st) |
| Women’s Soccer | 1-14-1; 0-6-1 Ivy (8th) |
| Volleyball | 9-16; 5-9 Ivy (6th) |