After an impressive road win against Yale over the weekend, the surging Harvard women's soccer team tied No. 13 Hartford 1-1 yesterday afternoon at Ohiri Field, extending its current unbeaten streak to three games.

The Crimson (4-1-1, 2-0 Ivy) had all the motivation it needed with the memory of two losses to the Hawks (5-1-2) last year still fresh, including a 3-0 second round playoff defeat at Hartford.

Add to that a hunger for a solid showing against a strong opponent and the Crimson was anxious to play.

"We were curious to see if we could do it," senior midfielder Ashley Berman said. "We hadn't played a challenging team all year and hadn't really been tested."

Harvard wasted little time in getting off to a fast start. Combining excellent ball control and a quick-strike offensive strategy, the team was able to create many scoring opportunities in the first half. Freshman forward and Ivy League Rookie of the Week Joey Yenne was stopped on three separate occasions by senior Hartford goalie Ingrid Strenhoff.

Junior midfielder Meredith Stewart was within inches of giving the Crimson a 1-0 lead with five minutes remaining in the half, when an apparent hand ball by a Hawk defender deflected it out of the box. The violation, which would have resulted in a penalty kick, was not called by the referee.

The Hawks almost capitalized on their luck. With the first half winding down, a throw-in by a Hawk midfielder was just barely cleared as it slowly rolled past the goalie and across the mouth of the goal.

Regrouping at halftime, the Crimson immediately went on the attack to open the half. Yenne gained possession of the ball deep in Hawk territory and quickly spotted freshman forward Beth Totman.

With Sternhoff charging the open lane to cut the angle off, Totman decided to go over the goalkeeper instead of around her. Sternhoff partially deflected the ball, but it still found its way into the net after flying over her, giving the Crimson a 1-0 edge.