“It’s always fun to play a team that’s capable of beating you,” Farrar said. “They definitely are. We got the better of it today, and I hope that tradition continues. This is a big win. Beating Brown is always a big deal.”

While Farrar was pleased with the victory and the positive direction of his team’s progress, he notes that “the real business end of the season starts in April.”

HARVARD 9, YALE 4

The Crimson got off to a quick start against the Bulldogs and coasted to 9-4 victory in the first of two matches Saturday at Blodgett Pool.

Harvard scored five unanswered goals in the first period, but failed to record a tally in the second as it grabbed a 5-1 halftime lead. The Crimson scored three consecutive goals in the third period and the Bulldogs tallied another as Harvard expanded its lead to six, 8-2.

Yale found the net twice in the final period, while the Crimson added a final score to give Harvard a five-goal win—its third straight.

Despite Yale competing as a club-level sport, the Crimson refused to take the Bulldogs lightly.

“We came out to play both games,” Mehaffey said. “We weren’t taking Yale as a given. We went into Yale more with the idea that we need to work on certain things whereas with Brown we weren’t working to try those things, we were working to execute those things effectively.”

The freshman class provided a spark as it tallied four of the nine goals on the game, including scores from Melissa Mueller, Lauren Synder, Vivian Liao, and Stefanie Wilson.

“We make up a good deal of the team,” Liao said. “We have a lot of talent to contribute.”

Because a large part of the team consisted of freshman, getting the group to come together took time.

“We were coming together and clicking,” Mehaffey said. “The team in general played some of our best team defense this season.”

Perhaps just as valuable as the victory was the experience some players gained in the water during the game.

“[It] was a chance for those who do not always see a lot of playing time to get in and also to get in with some of the starting rotation” Farrar said.

The Codini sisters, Cristina and Teresa, tallied one goal each adding to their already impressive records.

The Crimson will return to Blodgett Pool on March 6th when it will face Connecticut College at 2 p.m. followed by Brown at 8 p.m.