Crimson Looks to Keep Rolling in Beanpot Final

There’s no high like winning the ’Pot, and tonight the Crimson hopes to reclaim that sense of euphoria.

After having smashed Boston University, 8-0, in the Beanpot’s first round, the Harvard women’s hockey team (13-7-3, 12-4-2 ECAC) is gearing up for mid-season glory in Beantown’s prestigious final tonight against No. 7 Boston College (19-7-3, 12-5-1 Hockey East).

Faceoff is at 8 p.m. at Northeastern’s Matthews Arena.

But will Harvard be able to leave the ghost of Beanpot past behind?

In their last meeting in the tournament, the Eagles devastated Harvard, knocking the Crimson out in the first round, 4-3, in triple-overtime.

“I think that the game two years ago is definitely going to be in the back of our minds,” tri-captain Sarah Vaillancourt said.

“[But] we’re going to go after it,” she added. "We want that Beanpot, we won it last year and we want to protect it. It’s ours.”

Back then, Harvard was simply no match for BC’s then-freshman goaltender Molly Schaus, who made an NCAA-record 73 saves in the marathon game.

“She’s a great goaltender,” Vaillancourt said. “But I think that if we take a lot of shots, [and] then take the rebounds, then we’re definitely going to beat her. She’s not unbeatable—we’ve got to give her credit, but I’m not really worried about the goaltending that much.”

Harvard goalie Brittany Martin still bagged a then-career-high 48 saves in the game, but her efforts paled in comparison to Schaus’ achievements.

Schaus has since been selected for the national team, and is one of two goalies to represent the US, along with Wisconsin’s Jessie Vetter.

“We’ve got to respect her,” Vaillancourt said. “We can’t think that by shooting 20 times at the net, we’re going to win the game. We have to go above at least 30 shots to win.”

But goalie distinction isn’t the only trick up the Eagles’ sleeve. BC will be banking on high performance from its dynamic duo of Allie Thunstrom and Kelli Stack, who have a combined 73 points for the season.

Stack is the reigning Hockey East Player of the Week, earning the honor by recording six points—three of which were shorthanded—in the Eagles’ last three games. BC advanced to the Beanpot championship game with a 3-1 victory over Northeastern last Tuesday.

These are not the same Eagles that Harvard pummeled, 7-0, in the teams’ only meeting last year.

“They’re in a much better position, they’ve won a lot more games, and they have a lot more confidence,” Vaillancourt said.

But the Crimson is looking forward to the challenge.

“At this point in the year, you want to play your best hockey, so you want to play against some of the best teams,” Harvard coach Katey Stone said.

The Crimson might be taking on the role of the underdog, but the team should not be underestimated.

The squad has climbed its way out of a rough start to the season, and is now enjoying a seven-game win streak.

Much of this success is due to a recent explosion in Harvard’s offensive play. The Crimson’s dynamite, Vaillancourt and tri-captain Jenny Brine, will be expected to maintain their recent momentum.

The duo recorded matching hat tricks in the tournament opener last Tuesday.

And Harvard’s got the skill in net to go head-to-head with Schaus. Junior goalie Christina Kessler is coming off of one of her best weeks of the season, and was named ECAC Goaltender of the Week after shutting out BU and Brown.

If the Crimson is successful, BC would be the highest-ranked team that Harvard has beaten this season.

A victory would certainly help the team earn a spot in the NCAA tournament.

“We’re excited by the opportunity—[BC is] a good team,” Stone said. “They’ve got good goaltending, they’ve got a lot of skill in their team.”

Plus, the Crimson has a not-so-secret weapon.

Back in 2007, Eagles forward Anna McDonald scored the game-winning goal that sent Harvard home heartbroken.

Now, in 2009, McDonald wears crimson and white, and she and Harvard are hungry to defend their Beanpot title.

“Every game means a lot to us, but certainly we want to have that Beanpot in Cambridge at the end of Tuesday night,” Stone said. “So we’ll be ready to go, focused, as I’m sure they will be too, and it’s going to be a great hockey game.”