The Harvard women's ice hockey team survived a rough first two periods before buckling under to Princeton, 3-1, in the last 20 minutes Saturday night at Baker Rink.
Tired after a five hour bus ride, the icewomen (now 1-2) couldn't put it together all evening long, but managed to stave off Princeton for the first 40 minutes thanks to a spectacular 25-save effort by Harvard freshman goalie Jennifer White.
The defeat was the Crimson's second of the year, coming on the heels of a 3-2 loss to Brown last week. But despite the season's inauspicious start, the puck-thwackers could still make a comeback when they meet the Pandas and Tigers in February, according to Coach John Dooley.
"The Ivy League is tough. Nobody is going to go without losses," Dooley said.
In Saturday's loss the icewomen played poorly from the beginning. "We started out stale," White said. "We're a better team than that."
But play never picked up for the Harvard team. "It was simply an awful game," Co-Captain Genie Simmons said.
The Tigers snagged an early first goal at 5:52 of the first period. Princeton's Katherine Savitch took a slapshot from the point which White blocked, but Tiger Yung Lie slipped the puck into the net on the rebound.
The Crimson's only goal came minutes later at 8:02. Sophomore wing Karen Carney worked the puck out of the right corner to center Johanna Neilson, who slapped a backhand past Princeton netminder Sue Gouchoe.
The easy goal encouraged the lackluster icewomen: "We hadn't even challenged them and we scored," Simmons said.
Neither team tallied in the second period, but the Tigers continually threatened to snap the deadlock. The Princetonians took 11 shots on White, while the Harvard women placed only five shots in the Princeton crease.
"They pressured our net more than we pressured theirs," said Simmons, "but she [White] played awesome."
However, early in the third period the icewomen--playing one man down--allowed the Tigers to score again.
The Princeton skaters--a veteran team with a predilection for contact--had forced a physical game all evening long. "We're a young team, Physically, they were much stronger," Dooley said.
The Crimson played Princeton's game, Simmons said, and payed for it with 12 penalty minutes--four in the last period.
Three and one half minutes into the stanza, the Tigers' Gina Pietrangelo brought the puck to the point for a power play and slapped it at the Harvard net. White deflected the shot, but Princeton's Cynthia Griffin was there to knock it back in.
The Tigers boosted their lead to a comfortable 3-1 with another goal six minutes later. The Princeton skaters approached Harvard's net with a three-on-one offensive, and Molly Kellog pushed the puck past White on the first shot.
Dooley was satisfied with the icewomen's performance despite the loss. "We played pretty well for two periods," he said. "It's kind of tough to drive down there and play the same day."
The Crimson will have a chance to right itself when it faces Boston College this evening. First Period--1, P, Yung Lie (Katherine Savitch, Eloise Clark) 5:52; 2, H, Johanna Neilson (Karen Carney) 8:02. Second Period--no scoring. Third Period--3, P, Cynthia Griffin (Gina Pietrangelo) 3:42; 4, P, Molly Kellog (Lisa Firestone) 9:01. Saves--H, Jennifer White 8-11-6--25; P, Sue Gouchoe 3-5-6--14. A--Were we there?
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