As the clock ticked away, so did the opportunities for the Brown Bears in Saturday's 7-6 loss to Ivy League rival Penn. After taking second-ranked Princeton University into overtime last week, Penn took advantage of thier greatest threat. Possession.
Winning 11-of-16 face-offs, Penn had the advantage when they needed it most. Despite a weaker outcome at the face-off X, the Bears dominated on groundballs with 27 compared to Penn's 20. But that wouldn't be enough to get ahead in the muddy, rainy and windy conditions on Stevenson Field.
Prior to the game's start, technical difficulties urged one fan to begin the singing of the National Anthem and within the first verse, the entire crowd and the players on each team came together in honoring our country. That unity would only last a few seconds before the battle began.
Penn opened up the game with a goal by sophomore Morgan Griff before Brown answered with two goals, one by sophomore Andrew Feinberg who then dished out an assist to senior Brady Williams for a pretty shot giving Brown the 2-1 lead. The next two goals would be Penn's before embarking on a scoreless second quarter. Griff posted the final goal of the quarter in the final second of play to make it 3-2. 
With Penn holding the ball much of the second quarter, they fired 9 shots, six on cage to Brown goalie Jordan Burke, who ended with 15 saves. Brown was able to get a hold of the ball for some of the second quarter, taking just six shots and posting no goals. Amidst the worsening weather, neither team could capitalize on their possessions going into the half at a low score of 3-2. 
The third quarter saw both teams rally for the lead. Senior Alex Weber, who posted his second of the day, fired one past Burke just 1:07 into the second half. The two-point lead lasted only 17 seconds before Brown's Kyle Hollingsworth got on the board with a goal. The Quakers led 5-3 going into the final quarter that showed a promising start for the Bears.
After another mark by Hollingsworth, Williams caught a pass from Collins Carey to tie things up at 5-5. Unfortunately for the Bears, the next face-off would go to Penn as they seemed to regain control of the game. Penn rallied past the Bears with back-to-back goals by Weber and Drew Collins to make it 7-5 with just six minutes to play.
The Bears never gave up and after Penn held the ball for almost four minutes, the Bears broke up the play to regain possession and were fired up after a goal from Reade Seligmann. After a timeout, the Bears had 20 seconds to tie things up but as the clock ran out, the Quakers rushed the field to celebrate the victory.
With the win, the Quakers end with a 2-4 record in the Ivy League.
The Bears ended their eight-game winning streak and fall to 9-2 overall, 2-1 in the Ivy League. The Bears continue on their jouney for post-season play and the Ivy League title despite the loss when they travel to Harvard Wednesday for a 7 p.m. start. After an Ivy League break this weekend, the Bears face top teams Cornell and Princeton to finish out the year.
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