These players were thrust straight into the fire this season, and performed admirably, helping the Crimson overcome preseason expectations to finish in a tie with Penn for second place in the Ivy League.
The Ivy will be a changed league next year. Dartmouth won't be the same. Penn will still have star Diana Caramanico, but will lose the heart of its team, Mandy West. Young Yale, Brown and Columbia teams could all shake up the mix a little.
All of this bodes well for Harvard, which got its growing pains out of the way this year while finishing in a tie for second place.
But most importantly, the Crimson will still have the bitter taste in its mouth from finishing a dissatisfying second this year, motivation enough to rebound even stronger in the next.