Crimson Grabs Easy Win

Even when facing an easy opponent, a win can bring much needed momentum to a team that is struggling.

That is exactly what yesterday’s 11-4 victory did for the Harvard men’s lacrosse team, as the Crimson defeated Holy Cross Tuesday in Worcester, Mass.

Playing their first three games of the season on the road, Harvard (2-1) has now won more games away from Jordan Field than it did all of last spring.

And this victory was just what the squad needed after a disappointing 12-7 loss to Massachusetts last Saturday.

“It was a good win,” senior captain Jake Samuelson said. “We’re happy we had a game after Saturday to bounce back and get our minds pulling forward.”

Harvard got off to a slow start. Falling behind 1-0 on a goal from Holy Cross freshman Oliver Schenkel with 8:31 left in the quarter, junior Greg Cohen tied the game at one with 3:28 left.

It was not until the second quarter that things took off for the Crimson. The team scored four goals on a balanced offensive attack to go into halftime with a 5-1 lead.

Senior Tom Boylan scored the first with 9:53 left in the second, and Cohen and junior Evan Calvert added scores of their own, with senior Sean Kane rounding out the scoring just 1:17 before the break.

Both Cohen and Calvert had three goals and an assist in the game.

“Those are two of the people that have to score,” Harvard coach Scott Anderson said. “I don’t ever remember games when [Greg] didn’t score, even when he was a freshman. Evan is a very good shooter—it’s important for us as a team to allow him to get open. We did that today.”

After halftime, Samuelson added a goal.

The Crusaders (0-5) attempted a comeback with a score of their own to make it 6-2, but that was as close as they would get.

The Crimson retaliated with five straight goals beginning in the third and continuing into the fourth.

Senior Billy Klotz scored two more for Holy Cross in the fourth, but Harvard closed out the game.

“I think it was a game that we probably should win,” Anderson said. “[Today] was more about our team, playing better lacrosse.”

Junior John Henry Flood won 14 of 19 faceoffs on the day.

Although not much goaltending was necessary, sophomore Evan O’Donnell and freshman Joe Pike each took a half in goal, with senior Craig Thomas seeing minutes at the end of the game to help with a five-save total.

“There are not many programs that do this, and I’m really impressed with the way they’ve handled it,” Anderson said. “They’re prepared to do whatever I ask them to do, and they seem to be really capable.”

The Crimson matches up against Fairfield this Saturday in its first game at Jordan Field.

Because the Stags have troubled Harvard in the past, the team will need to get out to an early lead and control the pace of the game.

“I think everyone’s excited to come home and actually play a game on our field and to get some of our friends to come out and have a crowd,” Samuelson said. “Fairfield plays us tough every year. We have three full days [to prepare], so we should be ready.”

—Staff writer Madeleine I. Shapiro can be reached at mshapiro@fas.harvard.edu.