Harvard Brushes Off Colgate, 17-8

In 2024, Colgate Toothpaste ran an advertising campaign, dubbed “My Smile Is My Superpower.” This seems fitting, as Colgate University’s superpower is clearly not lacrosse.

Harvard (2-0) kept a cap on the Raiders (1-3) under the lights at Jordan Field on Tuesday, prevailing over Colgate, 17-8.

The Crimson avenged last season's shocking loss to Colgate, when the Raiders stunned Harvard in Cambridge with a 19-15 win, for its first win against the Crimson in program history.

The Raiders did not find nearly as much success on Tuesday night.

Black Sabbath’s “Paranoid,” Harvard’s goal song, sounded seventeen times before the final horn, and blared eleven times before halftime.

Senior attackman Teddy Malone tallied a career-high six goals, following a four-goal performance last Saturday against Providence.

“We’re just playing unselfishly,” said Malone after the game. “We have a ton of contributors on offense, every single day, every single game, every single practice. So it's just nice to share the wealth and get as many guys involved as we can. I think that's when we play our best.”

The Crimson certainly spread the wealth: twelve Harvard players notched either a goal or an assist on the night.

“You earn playing time,” said Head Coach Gerry Byrne. “You don't go into a game and say, ‘hey, we're going to play all these people.’ And they played a really aggressive rotating zone, and for certain guys in our team, that's not exactly a great fit to their skill set. So we were able to rotate some other people in, and it was great to see that their hard work and practice converted into playing time.”

The game got off to a frustrating start for Harvard. Colgate won the opening faceoff, and senior midfielder Hunter Drouin ripped the first shot of the game to put the Raiders up 1-0, just 34 seconds into the contest.

The Crimson’s first possession ended in a shot clock violation. Sophomore goalkeeper Graham Stevens made an incredible save up close on the counterattack, only for Harvard to fail to clear the ball against an aggressive Raiders ride attempting to set the tone.

With the momentum clearly brushing Colgate’s way, Coach Byrne called a timeout.

“I called an early timeout, just because the game was at this frantic pace,” the coach said. “Back in the 1950s movies, they’d slap somebody and get them back in, or grab them by the collar. So, I basically did the verbal version of that, just to be like, deep breath. This is going to be a high-paced game. Let's go back to what we practiced on Sunday and Monday, and I really challenged them to compete harder on the ground balls. They were out working us.”

Doctors recommend you brush your teeth for a total of four minutes a day. That’s about how long Colgate was in this one.

Harvard exited the timeout playing with hustle, forcing a stop through physical defense, followed by outrunning the Raiders on the clear. On the ensuing possession, Malone got past his defender and ripped a shot up close to tie up the game.

The Crimson played the rest of the game smarter and harder than its opponent. After a miscommunication by Colgate's offense unit sent the ball to the ground, freshman long pole Quinn Kelly beat his defender to scoop up the ground ball and initiate a successful clear.

Senior midfielder Logan Ip, named to the Tewaaraton Award Preseason Watch List, scored on the following play, giving Harvard a lead it did not relinquish.

Though much improved after Coach Byrne’s timeout, the Crimson began the game 0-4 on faceoffs. Harvard struggled last season in the center circle, winning just 37% of its faceoffs. Today, the teams ultimately finished tied 14-14 on faceoffs, providing a silver lining to junior FOGO Owen Umansky’s rough start to the night.

The Crimson got another stop before running a perfectly executed clear, giving junior captain Jack Speidell the ball with a rare three-on-one opportunity, which he capitalized on with a pass to sophomore attackman Nathan Cobery for an easy pump-fake and dump into the net.

Malone and Speidell added on goals to give the Crimson a 5-1 advantage at the end of the quarter.

Colgate scored on the first possession of the second before Harvard opened up the floodgates. A sidearm goal from Cobery, an underhand shot from Ip, a fast break goal from sophomore attackman Jared Maznik, a goal from Speidell, and two more from Malone gave the Crimson a dominant 11-3 lead at halftime.

Colgate opened the third with yet another goal on the first possession of the quarter, though Harvard continued to maintain control of the game.

Like a tube of toothpaste that just barely has anything left inside, the Raiders gave one last squeeze in the fourth quarter, spitting out three goals. Harvard matched those three, ending the game with a final score of 17-8.

By the final whistle, the Crimson had crushed a team that had given No. 10 Penn State and No. 15 Virginia trouble. Paired with its comfortable win over Providence, Harvard is looking like a formidable opponent ahead of its matchup with the No. 1 Syracuse Orange on Saturday.

“Just trying to keep the momentum going,” said Malone on the team’s preparation for the weekend. “Just getting our bodies right, getting some rest, just diving right into the scout and knowing their personnel and getting ready to go on Saturday.”

Last season, Harvard travelled to the JMA Wireless Dome to upset the then-No. 6 Orange at its own house, 15-14. Syracuse got the last laugh, however, as the Crimson blew a six-goal lead in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, falling to the Orange in overtime, 13-12.

On home turf on Saturday, Harvard will host the highest-ranked team in the country and strive to avenge its loss in the national tournament.

— Staff Writer Maxwell P. Friedman can be reached at [email protected].