Crimson Snaps Ten-Game Losing Streak

It’s pretty difficult to find salvation in a town like Hoboken, N.J.

But on Saturday night, that is exactly where a long and grueling journey came to an end for the Harvard field hockey team.

The Crimson (6-11, 2-5 Ivy) capped off its season the right way by defeating Ivy foe Columbia (8-9, 1-6 Ivy) by a 2-1 score at the Stevens Institute of Technology.

For Harvard, the win was a first in several respects.

By defeating the Lions, the Crimson snapped a ten-game losing streak, winning for the first time since a Sept. 21 victory against then-No. 15 UConn. It was also the first collegiate win for sophomore goalie Siobhan Conolly, who stood tough in the net but did not have to make any saves thanks to an inaccurate Columbia offense.

Perhaps most importantly, however, it was the final win for Harvard’s senior class.

Ivy League champions just one year ago, putting this season in perspective is a difficult task for a group so accustomed to success.

“All year we have been able to play well, and we played some strong games, but it was nice to finally have a score reflect how hard we have been working,” senior forward Beverly Ting said. “It was satisfying to be rewarded for that.”

Harvard drew first blood in the contest. After controlling play in the offensive circle, the ball came to senior midfielder Jane Sackovich, who sent a well-placed shot past Lions goalie Gena Miller for a 1-0 lead 13:46 into the contest. Miller would finish the game with three saves.

“Jane had the ball near the top of the circle and the defense dropped off her for a second,” junior Audrey Ziomek said. “She hit a well-executed chip shot at about the goalie’s shoulder level, basically impossible to save.”

But the lead would be short-lived. Columbia responded on a Kim Branich blast off a penalty corner, which Ashley McMasters then tipped and redirected past a defenseless Connolly at 24:46.

Despite allowing the goal, however, the Crimson defended penalty corners very well as the Lions held a 5-4 advantage in the game.

“An important part of defending a penalty corner is to stay calm and focused,” junior back Jen DeAngelis said. “We practice defensive corners and the key is to execute your positions. If you are where you are supposed to be, then the defense will be successful.”

Yet the Crimson would carry the day. Harvard struck with 30 seconds remaining in the first half as junior midfielder Aline Brown rocketed a shot towards the Columbia net off of a penalty corner. Junior forward Gretchen Fuller redirected the shot past Miller to complete the scoring drive and give the Crimson a 2-1 lead.

“It was a broken play off of a penalty corner,” Ting said. “We got the ball back in the circle and just started shooting frantically. Gretchen was able to bury a rebound off of Aline’s shot. It was a great example of offensive persistence.” But in order to make a tenuous one-goal lead stand up, the team needed to play excellent defense throughout the second half. Numerous individual efforts highlighted the effective defense which stood in front of Conolly.

“What’s important about our defense is that we communicate very well with each other,” DeAngelis said. “We practice covering the passing lines and our two middle players, Devon Shapiro and Francine Polet, did a great job of keeping everything organized for us.”

Harvard finishes the 2005 campaign with a disappointing sub-.500 overall record and sub-.500 league mark. The team will hold an awards banquet in December to cap off the year, honor this year’s seniors, and reveal the captains who will lead the 2006 edition of Harvard field hockey.

Princeton won the Ancient Eight with a perfect 7-0 mark.