In front of the microphone at the interview table, you would be hard-pressed to find a more modest superstar than Harvard winger Sarah Vaillancourt.

She speaks with the respect and deference of an ordinary freshman despite her international acclaim and statistical exploits, crediting her teammates and coach for her growing success.

Part of this, perhaps, derives from her unfamiliarity with the language.

A native of French-speaking Quebec, Vaillancourt only began conversing in English two years ago, as she prepared for a collegiate career in the United States.

There is something more, though, in her speech—an ingrained appreciation that she is but one member, albeit an exceptionally gifted one, of a unified Crimson squad with group aspirations.

“I just do it for the team, I don’t do it for myself, and I’m just really happy and proud of my team,” Vaillancourt said. “I don’t do it for my stats or anything like that—I just do it for my team.”

On the ice, however, there is nothing modest about Vaillancourt’s game.

She skates from end to end with blinding speed.

She leaps, twirls, and stutter-steps past defenders.

She levels opposing checkers with measured ferocity.

She fires slapshots that, when they don’t find the back of the net, bounce off of the boards with stunning resonance.

“Sarah’s learning to be a complete player,” Harvard coach Katey Stone said. “What I mean by that is she has a lot of tools—it’s just a matter of sharpening them up.”

On the biggest stage in women’s college hockey last weekend at the NCAA Frozen Four in New Hampshire, Vaillancourt played with maturity and gusto beyond her years, scoring four goals in two games to bring Harvard within reach of a national championship.

Although the Crimson ultimately fell to Minnesota in the finals, Vaillancourt, skating on the Olympic-sized sheet at the Whittemore Center, was a star.

“She’s on a team where even though she’s a freshman, and we don’t ask a lot of our freshmen, she asks a lot of herself,” Stone said. “The greatest thing for me in the last two weeks is to see how well she’s handled the playoffs, mentally and emotionally.”