The men’s soccer team is unable to catch a break as of late.

After a string of close one-goal losses, the Bulldogs (4-6-1, 0-2 Ivy) will look to bounce back as they face struggling Cornell (1-9, 0-2) at 7 p.m. Saturday in Ithaca, N.Y.

As both teams are without a point in the Ivy League so far, something has got to give.

Yale sits in at the bottom of conference standings, along with Cornell, but after two games, defender Frank Piasta ’09 said his team thinks the Ivy League title is still up for grabs due to the parity of the league.

According to Piasta, this parity also means that despite the Big Red’s struggles so far this season, the Elis are still expecting a tough match in Ithaca.

“The Ivy League as a whole is very competitive,” he said. “They’re going to be up for it. … We need to get after them right away and not underestimate them, and we’re not going to.”

Yale’s experienced defense has been stingy so far this season. The squad has conceded as many goals, 10, as it has scored, despite its losing record. The Big Red, on the other hand, has struggled to keep the ball out of its own net, conceding 26 goals so far — 20 more than they have scored.

Last year, a late goal from Eric Meyer ’11 salvaged a 1-1 tie at home for the Bulldogs.

Despite Cornell’s struggles so far this season, Piasta said his team acknowledged they are taking the Big Red seriously in preparation for what he called a huge game.