The Harvard women's hockey team fashioned a masterpiece Saturday at Bright Center, defeating the University of Vermont, 5-0 in its final game of the year.
A work of art not only for the squad as a whole, but also for the individuals who contributed to the job--and there were many.
Senior goalie Tracy Kimmel posted a shutout to close out her career with the Crimson, each of the four other seniors had a hand in the scoring, freshman Julie Sasner tied Harvard's single-season goal-scoring mark and freshman backup goalie Tracee Whitley came in at the end to make some spectacular saves.
Put all those elements together and you've got yourself one excellent hockey game, a fitting conclusion to a season in which the icewomen exceeded all expectations.
"We lost a hell of a lot of hockey players last year," Crimson Coach John Dooley said. "We lost our whole defense, including our goalie, and the two highest scorers in Harvard hockey history."
But they found a whole new crop of freshmen blueliners, a super goalie in Kimmel, and a potent offense to power the squad through a 12-9-1 record and a chase for the Ivy League crown.
It all clicked Saturday as the Cantabs demonstrated their art to more than 150 fans, the largest crowd of the year.
Less than four minutes into the game, forward Johanna Neilson lined a shot that sailed into the net past Vermont goalie Diane Bothfeld, giving Harvard the lead it never relinquished.
Four minutes later, Sasner unleashed a slapshot from the point that rebounded off Bothfeld's pads and landed at the feet of Tri-Captain Dinny Starr. The senior sent the rebound back into the net to bring the score to 2-0.
The second period was devoid of scoring until the end, but featured sharp passing and aggressive up-and-down-the-ice action.
The Catamounts came on strong at first, but some sharp defense--especially on the part of Amy Hartung--repulsed them. The momentum swung back in Harvard's First Period--1, H. Johanna Neilson (Jane Kalinski) 4:47, 2. H. Dinny Starr (Julie Sasner, Christine Burns) 8:20 Second Period--3. H. Sasner (Pam DiRubio) 16 39 Third Period--4. H. Liz Ward (Kelly Landry, Sasner) 1:19, 5. H. Katrinka Leschey (Genie Simmons, Karen Carney) 3 11 Saves--V. Diane Bothfeld 7.15 9-31, H. Tracy Kimmel 7-2-4--13. Tracee Whitley x-x - 4--4 A-150
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