With the ECAC playoffs looming less than a month away, it was clear to the Harvard men's hockey team that last weekend would factor heavily in the hunt for post-season position.

An appalling 6-2 loss to ninth place Cornell in front of a sold out Bright Hockey Center, placed Harvard (7-11-2, 6-7-2 ECAC) in a desperate situation. Harvard had defeated the Big Red (8-10-2, 5-7-1 ECAC) earlier this year 2-1 in Ithaca, N.Y.

Realizing that the quest for home ice hung precariously in the balance, the Crimson pulled out a 4-4 tie with Colgate (16-6-1, 9-3-1 ECAC), remarkably pushing Harvard in to fifth place, edging Ivy rival Yale by only three-thousandths of a winning percentage point.

Harvard 4, Colgate 4

Still reeling from the previous night's disappointment, the prognosis for Harvard's match-up against second-place Colgate, riding a five-game winning streak, was admittedly grim. But the Crimson executed a rare comeback and battled the Red Raiders to a 4-4 tie.

The game began to take an oddly familiar turn as the Crimson entered the third period. Last November, Harvard dropped a 5-4 decision to Colgate after allowing the Red Raiders to overcome a 3-2 deficit with a late three-goal surge.

Colgate snipers Andy McDonald and Darryl Campbell attempted an encore performance by both equalizing the score and taking a 4-3 lead barely three minutes in to the third.

However, senior winger Scott Turco, determined not to allow history to repeat itself, netted the tying goal at 10:24. Junior center Steve Moore set the play up in the left circle and dished the puck to Turco for a wrister past Colgate goaltender Shep Harder--sending the game into overtime.

Back from a wrist injury that sidelined him for three games, Moore had both a physical and psychological effect on the team last night, posting the first goal of the night, as well as the game-tying assist.

"Having Steve Moore back made a tremendous impact on our lineup," Mazzoleni said. "Not only is he our best defensive centerman but he has a calming influence for our guys out on the ice."

With a dismal 1-9-0 record when opponents score first, Moore's game-opening goal at 8:47 gave the Crimson a much-needed offensive boost. Moore flew down Harder's right side and slid a backhand across the goal line to put Harvard on the board 1-0.

With both junior winger Chris Bala and Red Raiders' Mike O'Malley whistled for cross-checking at the top of the second, Colgate attempted to use its skating ability to take advantage of the four-on-four.

Within twenty seconds of each other, McDonald crashed the net twice in an attempt to equalize the score. But senior goaltender J.R. Prestifilippo had clearly recovered from the previous night's attack, holding McDonald at bay.

Only minutes later Mark Moore and brother Dominic shared the box for roughing and hooking respectively. The four-on-three proved to be trouble for the Crimson as Colgate's Sean Nolan poked a loose puck over the goal line to tie it up 1-1. Red Raiders' Cory Murphy blasted a shot past Prestifilippo only five minutes later at 10:14 to put Colgate up 2-1.

Harvard refused to let the Red Raiders post an insurance goal and evened the score with a breakaway shot from senior winger Brett Chodorow, scoring his first goal in 14 games since Nov. 12 against Cornell. Chodorow beat a rushing Harder and netted the empty net shot at 11:47.

And at 15:24, Bala returned the lead to the Crimson with an unassisted breakaway goal, stripping the defenseman of the puck and slamming home his own rebound.

Only 41 seconds in to the final period, McDonald proved why he's one of the top centers in the league, effortlessly netting a wrist shot in the top right shelf, once again to tie the score. Campbell's goal at 2:57 came on another four-on-four, putting the Red Raiders up 4-3.

"Andy McDonald is a dangerous, explosive player," Mazzoleni said. "The

Colgate offensive uses him to his maximum capacity and I think we did a good job of shutting him down for the most part."

Turco once again capped the night with the equalizer at 10:24, sending the game in to overtime. A scare for the Crimson came only 18 seconds later when the Red Raiders crashed the net and scored what could have been the game-winner, had one of their men not been planted in Harvard's crease.

Despite a few offensive rushes from both teams, the extra minutes could not resolve the outcome, handing Colgate its first tie of the season, allowing the Crimson to snap its losing streak.

"I think we proved something to ourselves tonight," Mazzoleni said. "Things aren't going to change over night, but it gives us something to build on."

Cornell 6, Harvard 2

Squaring off against one of its biggest ECAC rivals, Harvard was poised to snap its three-game losing streak in conference last Friday at Bright Hockey Center. But a rejuvenated Big Red team, looking to surmount its own five-game slump, emerged as the victor, handing the Crimson a demoralizing 6-2 loss.

Despite Harvard's recent success in front of Cornell's hostile sellout crowd at Lynah Rink, the Crimson has been unable to notch a win over the Big Red at home since 1994. Hordes of Cornell fans descended on Bright, effectively negating Harvard's home ice advantage.

"We got beat by a stronger, more determined team," Mazzoleni said. "As things start to unravel, we unravel. We don't withstand adversity well."

After a solid first period performance, the Crimson appeared to be in the driver's seat to overtake the Big Red's 2-1 lead. But 1:27 in to the second stanza, the momentum of the game permanently swung in Cornell's favor.

A two-on-one rush on senior goaltender J.R. Prestifilippo allowed

Big Red's Matt McRae to score the eventual game-winner by poking a pass from Denis Ladouceur through Prestifilippo's pads.

"We were very well prepared to play with regard to the way Cornell plays," Mazzoleni said. "But tonight we just didn't execute it."

Barely three minutes in to the first, Big Red's captain Doug Stienstra gave Cornell a 1-0 lead with a shot in the top right shelf. Stienstra netted the rebound from Ladouceur while Prestifilippo was flopping around in front of the net.

Less than two minutes later, the Crimson battled back to even the score 1-1 at 3:57 with a classic backhand shot from Bala.

In one of the stronger power play units the Crimson has demonstrated this year, junior winger Harry Schwefel worked the puck down low and sent a pass up to freshman center Dominic Moore perched in the left circle. Moore slid a pass across to Bala who backhanded a shot past Big Red goaltender Ian Burt.

The tide turned at 16:51 as Cornell's Larry Pierce put the Big Red ahead again by one. Despite senior winger Scott Turco's sliding attempt to block the shot, Pierce lifted the puck over Prestifilippo's right shoulder, putting Colgate ahead 2-1.

Harvard demonstrated no offense in the second period, posting only four shots on net the entire period--effectively handing Cornell the victory. With 19 shots on goal in the second period alone, the Big Red nearly doubled Harvard's total attempts.

With the Crimson desperately and unsuccessfully trying to clear the puck out of the defensive zone, Cornell proceeded to light the lamp four times in 10 minutes, beginning with McRae's game-winning tally. Stienstra had a hand in each of the next three goals, scoring one and assisting on two.

Stienstra sending a dribbler off of Prestifilippo's stick in front of the crease at 4:50, putting the Big Red up 4-1. Cornell center Ryan Moynihan increased the Big Red's lead to five with a breakaway shot on another power play at 9:42.

Unable to stave off Cornell's offensive surge any longer, Mazzoleni swapped Prestifilippo with junior goaltender Oliver Jonas for the remainder of the game.

"I pulled Prestifilippo to try to change the flow of the game," Mazzoleni said. "The team wasn't doing anything in front of him and he didn't deserve that."

McRae tallied Cornell's sixth and final goal of the game at 11:56, the most goals scored on the Crimson in a single period this season. Despite this stigma, Jonas turned in a solid individual effort that warded off any further Big Red offense.

An uneventful third period followed, with both teams notching seven shots on goal. A single bright spot emerged when Turco netted the Crimson's second goal of the night at 9:02.

Taking a breakaway pass from senior winger Brett Chodorow, Turco hit the back of the net with a backhand over Burt's right shoulder, making the score 6-2.

The surprisingly dismal loss placed an additional hurdle in front of the

Crimson in the hunt for home-ice advantage in the ECAC playoffs.

"We're done with Cornell for the year unless we face them in the playoffs," Allman said. "We're going to focus on Colgate and try to even that score because we're still striving for home ice."