ITHACA, N.Y.--When the Harvard men's hockey team least expected it--and needed it most--the fourth-line shone. And so did the freshmen.

Under icy lights and in front of 4100 howling spectators at Lynah Rink, the Crimson got a goal and an assist from fourth-line forward Craig Taucher and a goal apiece from freshmen John Murphy--Taucher's linemate--and Tod Hartje to beat Cornell, 6-3, here yesterday.

It was Harvard's eighth win against no losses this year and gave the Crimson perfect marks in the ECAC (8-0) and the Ivy League (6-0). The Crimson, six points in front of second-place Yale (5-1) in the ECAC, is off to its best start since the 1936-'37 season, when Harvard began its season with a 13-0 slate.

Meanwhile, Cornell--a perpetual ECAC and Ivy League contender and last year's ECAC Champion--dropped to 2-4 overall (1-4 ECAC).

Harvard jumped to a 3-0 lead yesterday, only to see the Big Red tie it up at 3-3 after the end of two periods. But unlike Cornell's last game--a 6-3 victory over the University of Toronto in which the Big Red fell behind 3-0 early then stormed back to victory--Cornell could not keep the momentum to pull off a come-from-behind win.

Murphy scored with 14 minutes left in the game off Taucher's pass to break the 3-3 tie and third-line center Hartje added a goal soon after to dent the Red's spirits and put the game solidly in the Crimson's grasp.

"Once we got the lead we contained them well," Harvard Coach Bill Cleary said. "That's the best we've played in the third period."

"The team that got the go-ahead goal in the third period was going to get a big lift," Cornell Coach Lou Reycroft said. "The team that didn't wasn't going to get down, but you really have to get jacked-up to come back."

Lane MacDonald slapped in his team-leading 13th goal of the year with just over a minute left in the game to finish the scoring.

Yesterday's game was the Crimson's biggest challenge to date, and except for some sloppy, slow play in the second period the team met it in fine fashion.

MacDonald had his second two-goal outing in as many days and Dickie McEvoy recorded 20 saves in his seventh straight start.

"When we came into the locker room after the second period, we controlled ourselves," McEvoy said. "We knew we were the better team."

Cornell kept it close for two periods mainly because of the fine play of goalie Darren McInnis, who finished with 42 saves. McInnis stepped into Cornell's starting spot this year after All-America goaltender Doug Dadswell elected to pass up his last two years of college eligibility and turn pro.

"I don't know how he made some of those saves," Cleary said of McInnis. "It's tough enough to win up here but when you face such a hot goaltender, it makes it even harder."

The Crimson drew first blood in yesterday's contest with 11 minutes left in the opening period when defenseman Don Sweeney took the puck at the blue-line and drove toward the Red net. He faked one shot directly in front of McInnis, then shoveled it past the Cornell goalie on the right.