At 17:54 in the first half, O’Brien provided some breathing room with a flick of the wrist, scoring to give the Crimson a 3-0 lead. O’Brien’s goal ushered in a 12-minute scoreless stretch characterized by closely contested play and consistently stingy net minding by Mancini.

Finally, with 5:30 remaining in the half, the New Hampshire offense got the best of Mancini, scoring to pull within two goals. But the score did not signal the end of Harvard’s dominance.

Rallying to retake the momentum Harvard returned the favor with a goal of its own just eight seconds later.

Shaughnessy set up Belitsos as she cruised through the heart of the New Hampshire defense and scored with a deft catch-and-shoot move.

But first half supremacy has been standard fare for the Crimson all season long. Harvard’s great weakness throughout the season has been the tendency to let down its guard in the second half.

Unwilling to fall victim to the same trap, the Crimson opened the period with a flurry of offense, as Belitsos sprinted down the field in the opening minute and whipped the ball past the New Hampshire goaltender.

“We played a complete game both with the first half and the second half,” Shaughnessy said. “We wanted to make sure we came out in the second half as strong as we did in the first.”

Later in the half, Belitsos completed her first hat-trick of the season on a feed from O’Brien to match Shaughnessy’s three-goal performance.

But beyond the individual efforts, the depth of the bench provided a spark in Jordan Field’s sweltering heat.

Switching substitutes in and out throughout the course of the game, the Crimson never lost a step, while keeping every player rested and ready to return to action.

“I think it was great to know that we were in and out especially at midfield,” Shaughnessy said. “It’s great to know we have such a great bench. We had new people in all the time and playing together.”

For Harvard its second win of the season and the confidence it brings could not have come at a better time as it strives to gain momentum for its final four Ivy contests.

“This was just absolutely crucial for our own mental confidence, not even considering our standing or record,” Shaughnessy said. “It’s just been a matter of time before it happened. It finally all came together.”

The Crimson will have the opportunity to stretch its winning streak to two as it prepares for a showdown at Ivy rival Princeton on Saturday at 2 p.m.

—Staff writer Sean W. Coughlin can be reached at coughl@fas.harvard.edu.

—Staff writer Timothy J. McGinn can be reached at mcginn@fas.harvard.edu.