The Harvard women's lacrosse team surprised everyone in 1992, advancing to the NCI finals before falling in overtime.
More so than any other squad clad in Crimson, this Harvard team produced a balanced effort from which any one of several players could step up and steal the game. Women's lacrosse demonstrated the depth and balance that marks a national-caliber squad.
Four different players were individual game-high scorers, and six players were in double figures for points. Junior Liz Berkery led the way on the offense, but she sure wasn't the only one contributing.
Remember sophomore Sarah Downing against Maryland in the regular season. Freshman Sarah Winters against Princeton in the NCI semi-finals. Senior Becky Geffen against Vermont. And senior Buffy Hansen all season long.
Harvard did start the 1992 campaign ranked third in the nation, but that was based more on past performance and respect for Coach Carole Kleinfelder than on the team itself.
"I think we were ranked so high on reputation, not reality," Kleinfelder says. "We were very young, especially on defense."
Still, the foundation was there, based on the leadership of Co-Captains Sarah Leary in goal and Ceci Clark on defense.
"The four seniors were the core of the team, along with [junior] Liz Berkery," Kleinfelder says. The experienced coach spares no metaphors describing the field personalities of her four senior stars: "Buffy Hansen was the tiger--the extra spark on offense--while Leary was the CEO. Becky Gaffney was the general, and Ceci was the glue."
With only four seniors and one junior in the starting lineup, Harvard relied heavily on the sophomores and freshmen.
"The sophomores really pulled through and contributed, especially Francie Walton and Sarah Downing, as did the freshmen," Clark says. "By the end of the season, everyone was contributing."
At the beginning, however, things were a little less clear.
"We went down to William and Mary for some scrimmages before the season began, and I was a little concerned how everyone would perform," Kleinfelder says.
Harvard ended those concerns by crushing Temple and Pennsylvania to start off the season and then demolishing then-top-ranked Princeton, 13-2, at Harvard's Ohiri Field.
This string of victories launched Harvard to the top of the national polls--a position it would hold for the rest of the regular season.
Harvard tore through the rest of the first half of the season, defeating its first six opponents by combined score of 78-28, including victories over New Hampshire and cross-town rival Boston College.
Throughout the rampage, Downing quietly emerged as an offensive force. She led the Crimson in the scoring against UNH and Yale. Perhaps her finest performance came against second-ranked Maryland.
As the Terrapins keyed on Berkery, the speedy Exeter-grad torched Maryland goalie Mandy Stevenson for four unassisted goals, including the game-winner with 4:06 remaining.
Harvard was sitting on top of the lacrosse world. Those that the gods would humble, they first make proud (or at least number one in the nation).
After peaking against Yale and Maryland, the Crimson received its first message from those above on a bouncy artificial turf field in Baltimore, Md. Harvard jumped out to a 4-0 lead against Loyola, but then handed the Lady Greyhounds the game. Loyola stormed back to take the victory, 11-10, in overtime.
Most agree, however, that the loss was a blessing in disguise. Freshman Megan Colligan says it made the team "focus". Leary says that after Loyola "the team grew up together."
Kleinfelder agrees that Loyola was the turning point.
"The younger players began to realize what it would take to be national champions. It taught them how much they'd need to go all the way," Kleinfelder says.
"This senior class, along with Liz, was the supporting cast of the 1990 NCAA title team. The supporting cast [i.e. the sophomores and freshman] of 1992 developed after the Loyola loss," she continues.
Harvard ended the season with five straight victories, including three in the Ivies. An 11-5 defeat of Dartmouth extended an Ivy league winning streak "It was great to carry on a tradition ofHarvard women's lacrosse," Leary says. "It's aboutmaintaining standards [of performance]. This isthe first time in recent years that the ivy racehas come down to the final game of the season, andit was good to come through with a victory." A final victory against Vermont in a gamerescheduled from earlier in the season set thestage for the NCAA tournament. Harvard entered as the top seed, earning a byein the first round of the tournament. During the semifinal game against Princeton,the sun struggled to break free of the clouds, butfinally succeeded, just as the Crimson had tostruggle to defeat the pesky Tigers. Harvard wasscoreless for the first 12 minutes of the firsthalf, but then ripped off four straight goals enroute to a 10-5 victory. This game again showed how any player on theteam could break loose, as Winters, who talliedonly six goals in the regular season, scorched heTigers with four tallies. Winters, a shy freshman from Wyndomoor, Penn,was downright defensive when asked about theoutburst. "All of the goals were assisted. It was a realteam effort," Winters says. In the end, press and fans at the championshiphad difficulty keeping track of whichSarah--Downing or Winters--was which. Sunday's championship game against Marylandfeatured one of the biggest rivalries in women'slacrosse. Over the last 12 seasons, Harvard facedthe Terrapins 14 times and the series was tied atseven games each. Harvard won five of the last sixmeeting between the schools, including an 8-7victory in the 1990 championship game. The Crimsonis known for its experience in post-season play,having made the tournament for the last fourseasons. Only one team has as much recentexperience: Maryland. This year, the perennial second-place Terrapinswere not to be denied. Harvard held a 9-6 lead inthe second half, only to blow the lead and lose,11-10, in overtime. "In the tournament, anything can happen, andthe ball just didn't bounce our way," Gaffneysays. Despite the loss, members of the team lookedback fondly about the season. "The team was a cohesive unit. We all got alongwell, and we couldn't have gotten this far if wehadn't," Gaffney says. "We all had fun, eventhrough the highs and lows." "Coming from where we did, not too many peoplein the lacrosse world thought we'd be in thechampionship," Leary says. "We were satisfiedgetting to the championship, but not with theoutcome." Only at Harvard, in a program that has been tothe NCAA tournament for the last four years, issecond place considered second best. Kleinfelder and company have set a standardthat is almost impossible to meet: undefeated Ivycampaigns and national success. This team was among the best the Crimson hasever had, faltering only in the final game.Harvard exerted a unified effort based on thebelief that everyone can and must produce, andanyone can be a star at any given moment. Such an effort is college athletics at is best,where team success is the goal, but personaldevelopment as a player and as a person is alwaysthe most important thing. NCAA finalists. Ivy League champs. This teamshould hold its head high. Kleinfelder says it best in a clear and simpleway: "They should be very proud of what they'veaccomplished."
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