Crimson coach Scott Anderson said this group of rookies “could be the best class ever.”

While the outstanding play of the freshmen was a major factor in Harvard’s ability to go from a 5-10 record in 2002-2003 to a 7-5 record this year, there were obviously other key pieces to the puzzle.

In goal, tri-captain Jake McKenna posted a .561 save percentage and an 8.28 goals-allowed average en route to Honorable Mention All-Ivy Honors. In front of him, tri-captain Spencer Stenmark—the only other Crimson player to pick up Honorable Mention All-Ivy Honors—and Malone combined with sophomore Tom Mikula to start 37 of a possible 39 games. Mikula made the switch from defensive midfielder before the start of the season.

“Tom had an unbelievable season,” Anderson said. “He wasn’t even a defenseman [a few] months ago. We’re amazed by him every day in practice.”

At midfield, Harvard was led by its top line of tri-captain Jeff Gotschall, sophomore Jake Samuelson and Mahler for much of the season, though they weren’t the only players to see action.

“Last year, we basically ran three middies,” Kane said. “It was great to have three solid midfield lines [this season]. It speaks for our recruiting and development.”

At attack, Greg Cohen, McBride and Kane started the majority of the games, while Steve Cohen and senior Anders Johnson also saw extended action. All five attackmen registered double-digit goal totals.

—Staff writer Jonathan P. Hay can be reached at hay@fas.harvard.edu.