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A Double-Edged Sword? Double Concentrations Create Both Pressure and Opportunity for Harvard Students
Harvard women’s hockey traveled south to New Jersey this weekend, facing off against No. 10 Princeton in a best-of-three series for the quarterfinal round of the ECAC Tournament.
It was the Tigers who took game one of the series, scoring just two minutes in and holding onto the lead to put the Crimson under pressure going into game two. While Princeton tried to control possession of the puck in the second game, Harvard found its stride in the second period, scoring three goals in six minutes to tie up the series and force a do-or-die third game.
Despite the Crimson (15-14-3, 8-11-3 ECAC) entering the weekend with momentum after beating St. Lawrence in a tight overtime game in the first round of the tournament, the Tigers (22-8-0, 16-6-4) came out hard and fast. Just a few minutes into the game, Princeton picked off a breakout puck from freshman defenseman Bella Finnegan, going down two-on-zero on Harvard’s sophomore goaltender Ainsley Tuffy to take an early 1-0 lead.
Forced to find its form quickly after giving up the goal, the Crimson locked down its defensive zone, fending off an aggressive Tigers offense through two penalty kills. Despite being outshot 22-7 in the first period, Harvard continued to battle, entering the second period with speed and getting pucks on net. Freshman forward Carla McSweeney fired a shot from the hashmarks, and junior forward Gwyn Lapp narrowly missed a chip shot from the dot.
As both teams settled into the second period, play looked competitive across the ice as neither team could break through and find the back of the net. A tripping penalty on sophomore forward Ella Lucia closed out the period, forcing the visiting team to enter the third period on a kill.
The Crimson stifled its opponents’ offense with blocked shots and clean breakouts during the disadvantage.
Even as Harvard found chances on the power play and pulled Tuffy with three minutes left in the game, putting seven shots on net in two minutes, the team couldn’t find a way to even up the score, losing the tight series opener 1-0.
With the Crimson’s season on the line, the team entered the second game determined to take down Princeton in the Tigers’ own home rink. However, it was Princeton that again looked to start the game on the front foot, dominating puck possession and putting early pressure on Harvard’s defense.
Nevertheless, the Crimson stayed calm and didn’t crack, especially as Tuffy held down the fort. Defensively, Harvard cleared out pucks and bodies from the front of the net with speed and physicality.
With the scoreboard still blank heading into the second period, sophomore forward Annie Dinges nearly found the back of the net, battling through traffic to get a hard shot off from the slot.
While unsuccessful, the Crimson took the lead just a few moments later.
On the next rush up ice, freshman forward Elle Sproule broke the puck out to McSweeney, who dished the puck to her classmate Morgan McGathey. McGathey ripped a beautiful backhand, bar down shot.
Despite freshman defenseman Alex Paulsen taking a penalty for hooking, Harvard’s offensive momentum didn’t let up, coming right off the kill to score in transition again.
Sproule again fed the puck to McSweeney, who cut through the defensive line to light the lamp.
Rapidly up 2-0, the Crimson continued to push, shutting down the Tigers’ breakout with a fast forecheck. Harvard’s offensive pressure eventually paid off. The Crimson found the back of the net yet again as Dinges won a faceoff in Princeton’s zone, got the puck to junior forward Angelica Megdanis, who ripped a quick snap shot goal.
Although the Tigers managed to close the gap by one, sneaking past the defensive line to get the puck past Tuffy on a breakaway, the Crimson held onto its lead.
Even when Princeton pulled its goaltender with four minutes left to go, Harvard held on, warding off fifteen shots from the Tigers to tie up the series.
The two teams will face off in the deciding game of the series tomorrow at 3:00 p.m. EST. Whichever team wins will advance to the ECAC semifinals in Lake Placid, N.Y.
If Harvard wins, it will mark the first time since 2019 that the team has advanced to the semifinal round of the conference playoffs.
— Staff writer Sofia Zhang can be reached at [email protected].
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