NEW HAVEN, Conn.--Laela Sturdy did not have the 21st birthday she was hoping for.

Sturdy, a junior forward on the Harvard women's basketball team and the Crimson's leading scorer, came of legal drinking age on Sunday, but she was on crutches for the occasion.

With 14:57 remaining in the second half of Harvard's 59-44 loss at Yale on Saturday afternoon, Sturdy tripped over the foot of a stumbling Yale player and fell to the floor. She immediately grabbed her bent right leg and pulled it off the floor, burying her grimaced face in her knee.

In obvious pain, Sturdy was helped off the court while holding her right foot off the floor. Harvard athletic trainer Theresa Kennedy examined Sturdy on the sideline as play resumed, but Sturdy's ankle was already so swollen that it was impossible to make an accurate diagnosis.

Sturdy did not return to the game, and as her team made its way to Providence to battle Brown the following day, Sturdy was on her way back to Cambridge and to the hospital.

Although Kennedy said she originally feared that Sturdy may have fractured her fibula, X-rays indicated that there were no broken bones. Sturdy has a severe ankle sprain with at least partially torn ligaments and possibly fully severed ligaments--her ankle is still too swollen for X-rays to indicate the full extent of the ligament damage.

Although she will not require surgery, Sturdy is expected to be out six weeks. The women's basketball regular season ends four weeks from yesterday.

"I'm definitely disappointed," Sturdy said. "It's really hard to be sidelined because I love playing so much. I'm just hoping to recover quickly and get back out there."

The day after the loss to Yale, the Crimson could not gift-wrap a victory for their injured star on her birthday and fell to Brown, 82-65.

"Laela is a huge loss," senior center Rose Janowski said following the Brown game. "There wasn't as much confidence on the floor, there wasn't as much flow, and I think missing Laela was a part of that. She is a motivating force for other people. We missed her a lot."

Sturdy is no stranger to injury. Last season, in Harvard's regular-season finale at Dartmouth, Sturdy suffered a sprained medial collateral ligament in her right knee and was unable to play in Harvard's historic 71-67 upset of No. 1-seed Stanford in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.

Before she went down on Saturday, Sturdy was quietly putting together an all-ivy-caliber campaign. The Cooper City, Fla. native was averaging 12.7 points and 5.6 rebounds per game for the season and she had increased those totals to 14.3 points and nine rebounds per contest in Ivy play.

Sturdy's injury could present problems for Harvard, whose two weekend losses already create an obstacle in its quest for a fourth consecutive Ivy League title. Freshman forward Sharon Nunamaker, who had played a total of three minutes this year prior to last weekend, is now thrust into the Crimson's four-player frontcourt rotation that includes Janowski, co-captain Sarah Russell and freshman forward Lindsay Ryba.

Harvard Coach Kathy Delaney-Smith is fully aware of the impact Sturdy's injury will have on her team, but she remains confident in her players' abilities.

"Laela was doing a great job not only as a scorer but also as a rebounder and defender," Delaney-Smith said. "She's a veteran. To lose a player like Laela, who has an enormous amount of confidence, has a huge effect besides the points. She adds something else to this team. It's going to make things tougher, but we're still in the race; we're still in the hunt."

Sturdy shares her coach's conviction that her teammates can win without her.

"I still have tremendous confidence in our team," Sturdy said. "We definitely have the personnel to keep our campaign going for the title. Without a doubt I still think we're going to win."

Sturdy will be on crutches until the swelling and pain in her ankle subside, but she hopes for a speedy recovery so that she can return to the hardwood before the end of the season. But even while she is sidelined, do not expect her to take a less active role in inspiring her teammates.

One of the most lasting images of Harvard's victory over Stanford last year is Sturdy, bad knee and all, bouncing up and down on the sidelines with fists pumping and clapping and screaming in support of the Crimson.

"I definitely will keep an active role in trying to be a motivator for my team," Sturdy said. "On any great team, there are many important positions that are not always on the court."