With junior center Melissa Johnson out for the weekend with a torn miniscus and slightly-torn anterior cruciate ligament, freshmen Kate Ides and Sarah Johnson stepped up in her stead to help the Crimson to the win.

In a game where both teams opened up large leads, it ultimately came down to an overtime period to determine the winner.

Entering the deciding frame at 60-60, Smear got the Bulldogs a quick lead with a three-pointer from the right wing at 4:31. But Crimson sophomore point guard Jenn Monti took over the game from there, stepping into the lane for a jumper at 4:14. She followed that up 20 seconds later with a trey from the left wing to give Harvard a 65-62 lead.

After a Yale foul and subsequent Monti free throw, Ides put in a rebound basket with 3:00 to go, and Kelley added another putback a minute later.

It would be the last time the Crimson scored, but the Harvard defense stopped the Bulldog attack when it needed to. Down 70-68 with 0:26.8 remaining, a jump ball gave Yale possession. But the stingy Crimson defense, playing on adrenaline and nerves, forced Yale sophomore forward Meg Simpson to take a rushed baseline jumper at the shot clock buzzer, only to have it rim out. Ides grabbed the rebound and was quickly fouled.

After missing the free throw, Yale got the rebound and drove down the floor, trying for a final shot. Yale senior guard Kelly Denit got off a successful shot right after the final buzzer sounded, disallowing the field goal.

The game opened with Harvard senior guard Courtney Egelhoff on fire. With 17:40 to go, she spotted up for a three-pointer at the top of the key. She followed that up with four more treys by 11:53 to go in the half, giving the Crimson a 21-14 lead. Her 5-of-5 performance gave her 15 points by the half, although she would not score again in the game.

"Courtney and [captain] Laela [Sturdy] both played like seniors," Delaney-Smith said.