1996

Awards

Rookie of the Year Most Improved Team Most Improved Player Coach of the Year

1997

Rookie of the Year: J.R. Prestifilippo

When your goaltender walks away from his first season with both Rookie of the Year honors and the team MVP, the next three years begin to look that much more promising.

Freshman goaltender J.R. Prestifilippo definitely made his mark on Harvard hockey this past season. His 10-18-3 record, 3.18 goals against average and .895 save percentage does not even begin to tell the entire story. The struggling Crimson offense, which could only muster 2.35 goals a game, continually placed added pressure on the freshman goaltender.

"He's been consistent," Harvard coach Ronn Tomassoni said. "He's given us the opportunity to win every game, regardless of how we've played."

Add to the equation the sudden departure midway through the season of Harvard's backup netminder, sophomore Peter Zakowich, which left Prestifilippo alone with sole responsibility for the Harvard net, starting in all but one of Harvard's 32 contests.

"Presto" made his mark on the record books on March 7 on the first night of the ECAC Tournament against Cornell. His 33 saves that night moved the freshman into first place on Harvard's single-season saves list. Presto's final total of 844 surpassed the old mark of 789 set by Grant Blair '84 during the 1985-86 season.

"He has been simply outstanding," Tomassoni said. "He's only a freshman, but he has not played like a freshman."

With three more seasons to go, Presto will hopefully bring the magic back to Harvard hockey.

Most Improved Team: Men's Soccer

Memories of last year's 6-8-3 campaign still rankled soccer fans when Harvard opened its 1996 season against Cornell. Less than 20 minutes into the game, those ghosts re-emerged from the crypt, as the defending Ivy co-champion rocked the Crimson for three goals to win, 3-1.

Harvard, however, used the right combination of skill and magic to exorcise the demons and achieve soccer nirvana. The eight returning seniors provided mass quantities of both experience and goals, and a talented group of freshmen were eager to contribute. Meanwhile, senior Peter Albers (1.06 GAA) and sophomore Jordan Dupuis (0.78 GAA) stifled opponents in front of the net.