Field Hockey Can't Break Through

For the second time in as many games last night, the Harvard field hockey team held a 1-0 lead against one of the top 10 teams in the nation but failed to preserve it.

Unlike Saturday’s loss to No. 3 Wake Forest, Harvard (6-3, 3-0 Ivy) held its advantage well into the second half in yesterday’s 2-1 defeat to No. 10 Northeastern (10-2).

The No. 20 Crimson dominated possession and earned far more scoring opportunities than the Huskies, who rarely sustained any offensive pressure. Those circumstances made the defeat all the more difficult to stomach for Harvard..

“We didn’t capitalize on a lot of the shots that we had,” said senior forward Philomena Gambale, who scored Harvard’s lone goal. “It was a tough one.”

After taking the lead with 25 minutes left, the Crimson promptly surrendered a penalty corner to Northeastern, which resulted in a disallowed goal, followed by another penalty corner shortly thereafter.

Husky top scorer Liane Dixon made Harvard pay by deflecting a low drive into the high center of the net to tie the game, 1-1, with just under 20 minutes remaining.

“We played a lot of defense after we scored [the first] goal, and we can’t allow that to happen,” said Harvard Coach Sue Caples.

Dixon also netted the game-winner with nine minutes left, a score that the Crimson defense would rather soon forget. Dixon capitalized on a gift-wrapped turnover at the top of the circle for a free look at Crimson keeper Katie Zacarian, who Dixon drew out of net for an easy finish.

After falling behind, Harvard finally rebounded to the level of play it had sustained before taking the first lead. The Crimson dominated the last nine minutes and earned two more penalty corners before time expired.

On Harvard’s best chance to tie the game, sophomore Shelley Maasdorp connected with junior Mina Pell off a corner with just under four minutes left, but Pell couldn’t win the one-on-one battle at the corner of the net with Northeastern keeper Emily Roy.

In the dramatic conclusion to the game, Harvard called timeout with just over 30 seconds left and drew a corner as time expired. The final shot taken by Maasdorp went wide, and the Crimson was left with another nonconference opportunity gone wrong.

The Crimson outshot the Huskies 15-5, but struggled to finish.

Harvard’s best player at finishing, junior Kate McDavitt with 10 goals, was missing all evening. McDavitt, who was injured for the duration of her sophomore season, sat out her first game of the season last night and hopes to be healed in time for Saturday’s crucial Ivy meeting with Cornell.

McDavitt missed one of the Crimson’s fastest games of the season. Harvard ran well and connected on long passes with greater success than it had all year.

One of those long feeds led to the Crimson goal as Maasdorp, positioned at the midfield line, connected with Gambale at the circle for a one-on-one battle with Roy.

That breakaway was the only scoring chance where Harvard managed to capitalize. Gambale also had a one-on-one chance just minutes before the goal, and Pell hit a post after deflecting a Maasdorp shot just under 10 minutes into the game.

Long passes proved to be a mixed blessing for the Crimson, as Harvard often was fooled into traps by the Huskies’ zone. Other missed opportunities for Harvard came on free hits in the offensive end, where the Crimson either hesitated or forced balls.

“We just need to learn to take better care of the ball and finish,” Caples said.

Having lost another chance for a strong nonconference win, Harvard will turn back to Ivy play where it has achieved more successful results. Saturday’s game at noon against Cornell will feature the last two unbeaten Ivy teams besides eight-time defending league champion Princeton.

—Staff writer David R. De Remer can be reached at remer@fas.harvard.edu.