They expected something different, but they weren't disappointed.

They expected a showdown, and nearly got a shutout.

They lived up to expectations, but Cornell--the team many lacrosse observers thought capable of taking the Ivy League championship--fell short of its advanced billing.

Members of the Harvard women's lacrosse team travelled to Ithaca, N.Y., Saturday to face the Big Red in a battle of undefeated Ivy squads. The Crimson jumped out in front, 9-0, by the end of the first half and coasted to a 15-4 triumph.

"We really played well," Harvard Captain Kelly McBride said. "The defense has gotten a lot better. We thought it would be a battle, but they weren't as good as we expected them to be."

In the process, the Crimson improved its record to 4-0 in the Ivies. A pair of league games (home contests against Yale Saturday and Dartmouth next Wednesday) remain.

One might be tempted to say that not only the bulk of the schedule, but the most burdensome games on it are behind the Crimson. In addition to the two Ivy games, Harvard gets a warm-up tomorrow, when it travels to Nickerson Field to face Boston University.

The Terriers, far from a lacrosse powerhouse, might have had one advantage at the beginning of the season: their artificial turf. But the Crimson, a speedy team, has proved itself capable of winning on any surface.

Cornell's Schoelkoff Stadium has Astroturf. So does Parsons Field, the spot where Harvard demolished Northeastern, 24-9, a week ago.

B.U. fell to Northeastern earlier in the season.

"My dad says you shouldn't compare scores," McBride said. "But Northeastern was pretty bad. Very bad. And B.U. lost to them."

Harvard also happens to be very good. The Crimson got six goals from McBride Saturday and four from Kate Felsen to fly past the Big Red.

The defense, of which McBride spoke glowingly, allowed only three shots on goal in the first half--all of them turned aside deftly by sophomore goalie Kelly Dermody.

Freshman goaltender Loreen Costa, who got the win in the Crimson's big triumph over Brown last Wednesday, saw clean-up duty in the second half of the Cornell contest. Dermody and Costa apparently are of equal talent, and Coach Carole Kleinfelder has had little reservations about using both netminders.

"The competition [between the two goalies] is good," McBride said. "It keeps them on their toes."

The goalie tandem has been blessed this season with a fine defense, led by Lisi Bailliere and Katie McAnaney. They've also had some help from the attack, who have been able to put big numbers on the scoreboard.

The foremost Crimson scorer is McBride, who led the Ivies last year with 24 goals. McBride often faces special defenses, geared to stop her potent shot.

"Sometimes [other teams] play special defenses," McBride said. "Cornell played a weird defense. They brought one girl back and set up a zone. I'd rather play against that kind of defense than have one girl guarding me all the time."

"Teams know that if they key on me, though," McBride added, "they'll have Char [Joslin] and Kate to worry about."

B.U. is already trembling.