The opening period saw five penalties, and all three goals were scored on the power play. Harvard struck first on the man advantage when a sharp slapshot from Ruggiero at center point sailed past Roberts.

But UNH took control of the puck in the after the first 10 minutes and claimed the lead with two power-play goals of its own. Senior defenseman Nicki Luongo found the back of the net on a slapshot at 9:57 of the first and Heitzman lit the lamp four minutes later.

Harvard 5, Brown 3

The usual suspects led the way in the semifinals against Brown as Harvard cruised to a 5-3 victory that looked routine until Springer's broken

collarbone gave the Crimson a scare with 3:04 left in a game that was already over.

The most productive duo turned out to be Botterill and Mleczko. The tandem gave Harvard the lead for good at 17:02 of the second on its most convincing goal of the game.

Brown won a faceoff, but Botterill stole the puck in the offensive zone and fed Mleczko in the slot. That set up an uncontested breakaway for the Crimson duo, and Mleczko drew Brown junior goaltender Ali Brewer to her side before dishing to Botterill at the right doorstep for her third goal of the night.

"Jen is a clutch player, and she really used her speed well on the large ice surface tonight," Mleczko said. "Our line was making tape-to-tape passes, and Botterill was able to beat Brewer to the net on plays she can usually stop."