"It was pretty emotional and really unexpected when Crystal got hurt," Kuusisto said. "But going through the same thing earlier in the year really helped and I just had to get my head ready and pick up where I left off in the regular season."

Kuusisto was not the only player that rose to the occasion for Harvard.

Minutes after the Crimson killed the overtime penalty, it appeared as if the second-line tandem of sophomore forwards Angie Francisco and Kiirsten

Suurkask--the team's leading scorers last year before the arrival of this year's top line and standout freshman defenseman Angela Ruggiero--had the game in the bag about five minutes into the extra period when the classmates raced down the wings with only one Wildcat defender back.

Fighting off the desperate UNH defenseman, Francisco nudged the puck expertly to Suurkask in the slot and the 1997-98 Ivy League Rookie of the Year backhanded the puck beyond Roberts' outstretched glove, only to watch in vain as her best shot of the season clanged off the post. The groan from the Harvard fans was audible as the sophomore standouts struggled to control the rebound.

"Our line was putting together some good plays and unfortunately we couldn't pull it out," Francisco said. "We had a two-on-one and Kiirsten backhanded the puck but it spitted out and my hands were tied up. I was disappointed that I couldn't get my stick on it, but I don't care about that now."

But Francisco was dominant in the third period, when she scored twice within a span of 2:04 to give Harvard what appeared to be a commanding 5-3 lead. She completed the hat trick with 6:49 left in regulation with a trademark put-back of a rebound in the crease. She mastered that craft while playing on Harvard's explosive power-play unit--except that this time the Crimson was not on the man advantage.