NEW HAVEN, Conn. – There weren’t many scoring chances Tuesday night at Reese Stadium, but UConn capitalized on one to avoid an upset bid from a pesky Yale squad.

Cyle Larin headed in a long pass from Adria Beso at 63:41 to account for the only goal of the game on a chilly night at Reese.

“I thought the majority of the game was a stale mate,” said Yale head coach Brian Tompkins.

The Huskies, who are ranked 19^th in one national poll and are receiving votes in another, showed why they are one of the top defensive teams in the nation. UConn (7-2-5) limited the Bulldogs to only one shot on goal.

Yale, which had posted shutouts in its last two games, matched the Huskies for the first 63 minutes. UConn had just two shots in the first half and finished with only eight in the game.

“Tactically we were able to contain them,” Tompkins said. “I was really pleased with our tactical discipline.”

Coming off a hard-fought scoreless tie with Cornell last Saturday, and with an important Ivy League game looming this weekend at Penn this weekend, Tompkins was careful to manage his players’ minutes. Twenty-one different players saw action.

Tompkins also split the goalkeeping duties. Blake Brown started and played the first half before being relieved by freshman Ryan Simpson.

UConn, which is now unbeaten in its last nine games, had the two best scoring chances in the first half. Defender Henry Flugstad-Clarke thwarted the first one when he slid near the goal line to clear away a cross that deflected off Brown.

A few minutes later, Larin got his head on a cross but it banged off the cross bar.

Yale’s one shot was a good one, but Peter Jacobson missed wide from eight yards out.

The Bulldogs play at Penn on Saturday at 7:30 p.m. The two teams are tied, along with Princeton, for first place in the Ivy League with 2-0-1 league records.

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