DURHAM, N.H.--For the first 30 minutes, the Harvard women's basketball team appeared to be in control of its Dec. 29th game at New Hampshire.

Despite turnover problems in the first half, the Crimson was able to build a 46-39 lead with 9:45 to go in its final warm-up for the Ivy League season.

But in the end, Harvard was done over by its inability to overcome the UNH press and stop Wildcat guard Heidi Plencner. The Crimson (6-5) was outscored 20-4 over the final 5:26, and ended up losing by a score of 70-58 to the Wildcats (5-5).

"We have all the symptoms of a young team," Harvard Coach Kathy Delaney-Smith said. "We do things I don't think as coach I can predict. I think [UNH] has kids that have played more together as a unit, and it showed at crunch time."

The Crimson will have to grow up fast as it faces a tough test today with its first Ivy contest against Dartmouth in a game that will be broadcast on DirecTV.

It took the Wildcats less than three minutes to dissolve the 7-point Crimson lead. Plencner, who had 19 points on the day, drained three-pointers on three consecutive possessions in the midst of an 11-4 UNH run that tied the score at 50-50.

Harvard appeared unfazed in the moments after UNH tied the score. Junior center Melissa Johnson found sophomore forward Katie Gates underneath for an easy layup, which gave the Crimson the lead again.

After UNH missed its next shot, Harvard captain Laela Sturdy hit a bank shot in the paint and was fouled, putting the Crimson up 54-50 with a chance to stretch the lead to five.