On Saturday night, Harvard men's hockey did the unthinkable, and over came a record of 0-9-1 in Lynah Rink against Cornell (11-11-3, 8-7-3 ECAC), defeating the Big Red, 5-3.

It would have been a stunning weekend for the Crimson (11-12-2, 6-10-2 ECAC) had they done the same against Colgate (13-10-4, 8-7-2 ECAC). But despite an all-time record of 13-4-2 in Starr Rink, Harvard fell 6-2 to the Red Raiders.

Still, all the fish and fans could not keep Harvard from gaining a pair of points, key to the playoff race.

Harvard 5, Cornell 3

Putting the previous night's disappointment behind them, Harvard came out with a vengeance against the Big Red.

Looking to notch a win at Lynah Rink for the first time since 1995, the Crimson started strong, a rare occurrence for Harvard this season.

"Yeah, it was a great hockey game, period. I thought both teams played really well, and it was a close checking game," Coach Ronn Tomassoni. "I thought it opened up a lot of times, and anyone in the stands certainly got their money's worth tonight."

Cornell also started an offensive and physical attack early, taking control of the puck. Harvard went on a power play 38 seconds into the first, as the Big Red's Doug Stienstra took a penalty for high sticking.

The intensity was back for the Crimson as it dominated the power play, but Harvard was unable to score. Sophomore forward Chris Bala took a shot from the slot, but was not able to send it past Cornell goaltender Matt Underhill.

Both sides had difficulty passing in the neutral zone, and both Cornell and Harvard resorted to a strategy of dump-and-chase, in an effort to gain the upper hand in the offensive zone.

Senior defenseman Ben Storey took a penalty for slashing at 5:32 into the first, giving Cornell a deadly advantage. Stienstra banged home a loose puck near the crease, putting Cornell up 1-0 at 6:57.

Back at even strength, Harvard overcame Cornell's momentum to even out the score. Junior Trevor Allman took a pass from freshman defenseman Peter Capouch to score halfway through the first.

Junior forward Brett Chodorow--back on the third line with Allman and junior Scott Turco--foreshadowed the game-winner with a classic shot off the top corner, catching Underhill off guard.

Harvard continued to press the Cornell defense in the beginning of the second period, using power plays to its advantage.

Storey brought the puck up from the Crimson zone, looking to capitalize on the first power play of the period. He dished off to junior line-mate Matt Scorsune, who sent a slap shot from the point flying past Underhill, putting Harvard up 2-1 at 2:44 into the second.