In the second half, the only difference was that Harvard scored quicker. It was only 5:15 into the second stanza when Stauffer, sophomore Keren Gudeman and sophomore Lindsay Minkys found themselves in a 3-2 break. The Crusader defense left Stauffer open, and she promptly scored.
About 20 minutes later, Wheaton decided enough was enough and lined up seven substitutions at the scorer's table to go in. The problem was the players had to wait for a corner kick or a goal kick to undertake such a massive migration.
Or a goal itself.
Co-captain Susie DeLellis put the nail in the coffin at the 74:15 point, off a feed from Stauffer, and the rest of the game was given to hone the bench.
The subs, though not as dominating as the starters, maintained control of the game, a fact that Wheaton found heartening.
"We made wholesale substitutions and didn't fall oft," he said. "It's hard when you're sitting on the bench [for the whole game]."
In the end, it was a familiar scenario for Harvard--it destroyed an inferior team. From a cynical perspective, the Crimson's schedule so far has been the equivalent of taking four Gen Eds, and there's a pre-med track on the horizon.
On Friday Harvard takes on Columbia, an up-and-coming squad that tied Harvard last year and prevented the Crimson from winning the Ivy League title. Two games after that, Harvard battles with Monmouth, currently the second-highest scoring team in Division I (Harvard is fourth).
"The real tests are ahead of us," Wheaton admits.
Who knows? Maybe Harvard will treat all of these teams like Holy Cross. It's a small world, after all. Scoring Har--Miller 3 (Stauffer, Tenser) 31:12. Har--Miller 4 39:24. Har--Stauffer 3 (Gudeman, Minkus) 50:15. Har--DeLellis 1 (Stauffer) 74:15. Saves: HC--Bacharach 22; Har--Burney 0.