W. Hockey Splits Weekend

As John Updike noted, every great story has an anticlimax. On Saturday, the Harvard women's ice hockey team penned a stellar chapter in its annals by defeating third-ranked Cornell, 5-2. The next day, however, the Crimson (8-8, 4-8 ECAC) stumbled badly against St. Lawrence, losing 10-3. Both games were played at Lynah Rink.

"We proved we can beat the best," said freshman Tara Dunn, who submitted a goal and an assist on Saturday. "We just have to keep it up."

Dunn set the tone against Cornell for an intense first period by scoring just four minutes into the game. Freshman Kiirsten Suurkask skated out of the corner and took a shot. After a scramble in front of the net, Dunn sent the puck into the top-hand corner.

After Cornell tied it up, Suurkask and junior Jen Gerometta each scored to give the Crimson a 3-1 lead. Cornell added another goal, but Harvard refused to relinquish the lead. Sophomore Crystal Springer stopped shot after shot, and by the period's end she had compiled 24 saves to Cornell's four.

"Crystal kept us in the game," Suurkask said. "We took advantage of their goalie."

The game, which had opened with clarion calls of offense, segued to a defensive tune beginning in the next period. The two teams took a combined 20 shots in the scoreless second stanza.

"We played both ways," Dunn said. "The first period was, back-and-forth, more of an open game. But defense was the key. We had to stop them from scoring."

Harvard's gritty defensive stand allowed the Crimson to crest to victory in the third period. Sophomore Courtney Smith gave Harvard insurance by scoring at 10:47 into the third. Desperate, Cornell pulled its goalie, but Suurkask responded with an empty-netter with 35 seconds remaining.

"It was a hard-fought game, but we hung in there the longest," said sophomore Kim McManama.

Springer finished the game with an incredible 52 saves. In the third period, she proved particularly dominant, stopping 19 shots to her counterpart's one.

"It was a really good game," Dunn said. "We've played better games, but we overpowered Cornell. It's about time we start beating tougher teams."

McManama said he thought that Cornell did not play its best game against Harvard. However, she praised her teammates for capitalizing on this.

"Cornell didn't have a great game, and we took advantage. That says a lot about us," McManama said.

The Crimson, though, could not convert its offensive opportunities the next day against St. Lawrence. Midway through the second period, for example, the team had several chances, but hit a post each time.

"We just fell apart," Suurkask said. "St. Lawrence didn't dominate, but we had a lot of defensive lapses and they capitalized on most of their opportunities."

McManama cited the first period, when St. Lawrence grabbed a 4-1 lead, as brutal.

"We were awful," McManama said. "It seemed we could've pulled out, but we dug a deeper hole for ourselves. We didn't pull together."

"Against Cornell, we played like a team..." Suurkask said. "But on Sunday, we didn't put a team effort in."

Dunn agreed that Sunday was closer to a Harvard loss than a St. Lawrence win.

"We made them look good," Dunn said. "It was a rough game. We didn't play like we were capable of [playing]. It seemed like nothing would go our way."

"It was an issue of not coming ready to play," McManama said. "It was evident in warm-ups. But we can learn a lot from it."

Dunn added an upbeat postscript to the St. Lawrence debacle.

"You always have one of these games every year," Dunn said. "It's good to get this one over with."