The Engineers jumped ahead for the first time in the second quarter. John Rogers was able to carve out position so close to the goal that all it took for him to score was an easy lob over Burmeister’s head.
But Burmeister was not going to let Rogers score again, and made an impressive save when Rogers came back to the net two minutes later.
Meanwhile, the Crimson offense finally woke up and scored three goals of its own, while MIT managed just one to give Harvard a 5-4 lead at the half.
But just like the last game—where it had led the Engineers 3-2—the Crimson was unable to hold on to the victory.
“We did the best we could,” Gerrity said. “It’s just sad we ended the season that way.”
Harvard 11, Fordham 5
After the MIT loss, the Crimson came back strong against seventh-seeded Fordham in an 11-5 victory later that afternoon.
The seven Harvard seniors started the game, but after the Rams scored two unanswered goals to start the first, Crimson coach Scott Russell reinserted most of the Harvard regulars, with senior Reid Bolton remaining in goal.
It didn’t take the Crimson long to get back in the game. Offsay scored less than a minute after entering, and senior Andrew Gartland also tallied a goal before the quarter was over to tie the score at two apiece. The Crimson never trailed again.
In a dominating second-quarter performance, Harvard netted four goals while shutting out Fordham. Garcia scored the first goal, putting his shot into the right corner of the net with 4:20 left in the half.
He also showed off his defensive talent, guarding a Fordham player so tightly that the player had no choice but to throw the ball into the hands of Harvard junior John Lynch.
Lynch added a goal later in the quarter, as did sophomore Eugen Taso.
The Crimson scored another four goals in the fourth quarter, while Bolton held the Rams to just two. Lynch, freshmen Borna Dabiri and Alasandro Lazzarini and senior David Stahl scored for Harvard.
Harvard 8, Brown 7
After the ups and downs of Saturday, the Crimson returned to the pool to face fourth-seeded Brown and toppled the Bears 8-7.
Gerrity cited Burmeister’s performance as a major reason for the victory.
The Crimson led Brown 4-1 in the second quarter and never relinquished the lead. Harvard lost to the Bears in their previous two meetings this season by scores of 13-2 and 15-6.
“We don’t like Brown, and Brown definitely doesn’t like us,” Garrigues said. “The win definitely ended the season on a high note.”
With the win, Harvard took fifth place in the tournament. Its two wins on the weekend also doubled its season total to four.