Harvard tested B.U. goalie Mary Linehan 14 times, while the Terriers took just 11 (and only one in the second half).

Penalties

The Crimson also had six penalty corners, all unsuccessful. "Our penalty corners definitely need some work," Mainelli said of the invaluable scoring opportunities.

The main difficulty for Harvard, however, was simply the Terriers' play, especially from Eliseo, Linehan, and forward Terry Geldart, B.U., which came into the game with a 1-3-1 record (including a win over Northeastern, who beat the Crimson 1-0 on Tuesday), was extremely aggressive.

"They were very physical," complained Mainelli, who was probably most handicapped by the rough play.

"They're tough street kids," Mabrey remarked.

That toughness was exactly what Harvard lacked when it counted. "Our degree of mental toughness has not yet been acquired," O'Neill said.

And the result of that--zeroes in the scoring column and blemishes on the season record--is clearly worrisome to the stickwomen.

"It's partly bad luck," said Mainelli. "But we can't get down on ourselves--we have to look ahead fighting."

Harvard dropped below 500 with yesterday's loss, making their slate 2-3 against exclusively non-league opponents.

When the Crimson faces the highly touted University of Connecticut Wednesday, it'll be facing two challenges: to win, and simply to score.

And when you haven't scored in over three and a half hours of game time, that second challenge seems all the more important.