Freshman goalie Lauren Mann came into the year not even knowing if she would start.

“Coming in I had been told I had a good chance of starting, [but I] wasn’t sure our first two games,” Mann said. “So I didn’t think I would be starting in those and I was surprised when I saw my name in the starting lineup. But it was really cool.”

Suffice to say, expectations were low—a solid presence on the backline would have been sufficient for the Crimson.

But Mann gave the team so much more.

The Ivy League Rookie of the Year became the bright spot of the season.

Posting a goals-against average of 1.92, Mann was a wall in net, making crucial save after crucial save, game in, game out.

From the start, she was a presence, and everyone on the team could sense it.

“She had to step up right away,” co-captain Laura Odorczyk said. “It’s a credit to her, she was a huge player for our team, someone making game-saving stops every game, keeping us in the game, keeping the scores low, giving us a chance to come back in every game.”

But the star was humble in success, understand how she depends on the entire team to do well.

“Coaches helped me out a lot and my defense was really good,” Mann said. “Sophomore Nikki Rhodes, our captain centerback, she helped me out a lot with that as well.”

And if these players can stay together and build around Mann, Harvard’s future looks bright.

—Staff writer Walter E. Howell can be reached at wehowell@fas.harvard.edu.