After starting the year 1–4, the women’s soccer team has spent the rest of the season battling to reach .500. In their last game of the season on Saturday, the Bulldogs have a chance to reach that mark when they travel to Providence to face Brown.

The Bulldogs (7–8–1, 2–4 Ivy) look to end their season with two straight league wins, after a dramatic 2–1 defeat over Columbia during Yale’s Senior Night last Saturday. A win for the Elis would give them a .500 record for the 2010 season. They will go up against a Bears (7–5–4, 1–3–2 Ivy) squad that is coming off a 3–2 overtime loss to first-place Penn on Saturday.

If the current Ancient Eight standings are any indication of what the matchup might look like, the game could make for a tight contest. Both Yale and Brown are currently tied for sixth place in the Ivy League.

“It’s always a close matchup,” head coach Rudy Meredith said. “I think there’s only been one time when the game hasn’t been a close game in the 16 years that I’ve been here. They’re very athletic, [and] they’re a very hardworking team. Their coach always has them prepared, so you have to be prepared for what they’re going to come out with tactically as a team.”

Meredith added that one of his goals for the team on Saturday is to keep the Bears scoreless in the matchup and so that Yale can earn its first shutout in conference play this season.

“We haven’t had a shutout in Ivy League games, so we’re going to focus on trying to get a shutout and try to finish our chances,” Meredith said. “That’s going to be our two focuses.”

The game will also be the final appearance for the team’s seniors. Megan Ashforth ’11, Becky Brown ’11, Kate Macauley ’11, Lizz Reeves ’11, Natalie Romine ’11 and Ayana Sumiyasu ’11 will all play their final games in their Bulldog uniforms.

In last season’s matchup between the two teams, Yale came out with the win. Becky Brown scored the game-winning goal to lift the Elis 1–0 over the Bears.

The contest is scheduled to begin at 4 p.m. at Stevenson Field in Providence.