MacDonald Is Hobey Finalist

Harvard forward Lane MacDonald hopes to make it two in a row for Harvard.

Yesterday MacDonald was named one of 10 finalists for the 1987 Hobey Baker Award, which annually goes to the outstanding college hockey player.

The junior, who recorded a hat trick in last night's ECAC quarterfinal victory over Brown and has scored 33 goals this year, hopes to follow in the ice marks of Scott Fusco who won the award last year.

MacDonald is the fourth Harvard player in the last five years to become a finalist and if he wins will be the third to clinch the award. Mark Fusco, Scott's brother, snatched the Hobey in 1983.

A Mequon, Wisc. native, MacDonald is the son of former NHL all star Lowell MacDonald Sr. and the brother of Lowell Jr., a forward on the Colgate hockey team.

No Other Way

"I've been working very hard to get to the top of my game," said MacDonald, who leads the Crimson in scoring with 51 points. "I was ecstatic [about becoming a finalist]. I got the call [Thursday]. I wasn't supposed to tell anyone, but I had to call my parents."

"Lane deserves it," Harvard Coach Bill Cleary said.

Boston-area colleges copped five of the 10 finalists. In addition to MacDonald, Boston College's Craig Janney and Brian Leetch, Boston University's John Cullen and Babson College's Tem Sasso were chosen as finalists. Leetch is the first freshman picked as a finalist.

No Surprise

The other finalists are: Gary Emmons (Northern Michigan), Wayne Gagne (Western Michigan), Tony Granato (Wisconsin), Tony Hrkac (North Dakota) and Joe Nieuwendyk (Cornell).