Last season Harvard finished fourth in the Ivy League, but won the postseason Ivy Tournament. This season, however, the Ancient Eight tournament has been eliminated and teams will have to distinguish themselves during the regular season to capture the Ivy crown.

"This is the best parity I've ever seen in the Ivy League," Dooley said. "Every team has a sharpshooter."

Dartmouth will probably be the team to beat. It features Gretchen Ulion and Laurie Jacobs as well as several other members of last year's championship squad.

Although Princeton lost some key players, it adds freshman Team USA member Kathy Issel to its roster. Brown has also obtained the services of several talented freshmen.

Cornell boasts a strong veteran team led by Kim Ratushny, who plays for the Canadian National Team, and slick Beth Moxie. Yale will probably struggle against its formidable Ivy counterparts.

"We'll be vert competitive in the Ivies," Whyte said, "but any of five teams could be on top.

"Sandra and Joey bring everyone else to another level, Ginny is the best I've seen her and Bev has been a great leader for the young defense," Dooley said.

With the addition of several skilled freshmen and an extra year of seasoning for the returnees, the Crimson should improve upon last year's record of 13-10-1 (6-4 Ivy).

"Players are working really hard this year--the team's attitude is more intense," Stickles said. "We want to win the Ivy league and we even feel winning the Beanpot is a reasonable goal."

Harvard gets underway at home on December 1, when the Crimson faces off against Yale.