The Harvard women's lacrosse team dropped its season opener against UMass yesterday at Amherst, 10-3.

The youth and inexperience of the team combined with an absence due to injury helped propel HARVARD  3 UMASS  10 the Minutewomen past the Crimson (0-1).

The Crimson played an aggressive defensive game but had trouble finishing on offense.

Both halves were filled with many unsettled offensive plays that ended in low-quality shots rather than goals.

"We were setting up good plays and getting it down the field, but we just couldn't seem to finish," said junior tri-captain Becca Brown.

The Crimson was missing its top scorer from the 1998 season, sophomore forward Alli Harper, who found out Saturday that she would have to step out of competition for the next two weeks due to a nagging hip injury.

The team found out about Harper's absence too late to adjust its offensive game plan.

"Alli may be only a sophomore, but she is a leader for our attack," said junior defenseman Jeanne Ficociello.

Freshman made up half of the starting lineup for the Crimson. The talented rookies scored two of Harvard's three goals.

Freshman forward Heather Hussey opened up the scoring for the Crimson in the first half, picking up an unsettled ball and taking it through the arch to send it past the UMass goalie.

Sophomore forward Lauren Corkery scored the second goal for Harvard by redirecting Brown's pass into the net.

Harvard went into halftime down 6-2.

It returned to find the referees tightening up the calls on the physical game. The referees were especially strict calling fouls against Harvard's defense.

Four of UMass's 10 goals were scored off free positions. Freshman defenseman Erin Cutner received two yellow cards for checking, and the cards landed her on the bench for the rest of the game.

Sophomore goalie Keltie Donelan played a strong game in the net, leading the Harvard defense in the aggressive game.

"Keltie played great, she really kept us in the game," Brown said.