Grimm, one of the co-captains, is a quieter leader of the team, as well as a talented midfielder. Described by his coach as “the glue of the midfield,” the New Jersey native has proven to be a valued stalwart, starting 26 of 27 games over his last two seasons.

Just as important as Grimm’s guidance on the pitch, fellow midfielder Mitchell serves an important role to his teammates off the field. In addition to tallying seven points on the year, Mitchell is known as a mentor on the team, constantly looking out for the younger players.

Rousmaniere, also in the midfield, is as a smart passer and goal creator, and tied for the team lead in assists. The “set-piece guy,” according to Clark, Rousmaniere was often the one to feed Akpan for a goal.

But the team will remember the seniors for far more than their skill and success.

“For all their talent and all the wins that they’ve put up over four years, they were very team oriented and very caring,” Clark reflects. “They brought along the young guys, put a sense of community into the team, and created a great culture and a happy culture.”

The loss of these five players next year will deal a crushing blow to Harvard, but the team feels that it will be able to remain strong.

“The standards and expectations [the seniors] have left will just have to be filled by the new guys,” Clark says. “We have a lot of eager boys who believe they could be playing already this year. They’ll get their chance to prove it.”

Rogers, who will be taking on a great deal of the goal-scoring responsibility next year, agrees.

“Guys are really going to have to step up,” the freshman says.

The graduating class has created a vast amount of respect for the team, and set the bar higher than it has been in decades. And while the seniors know that they depart with a tremendous legacy, they too have confidence that their successors will uphold the program’s growing pedigree.

“Getting to the Tournament—while that’s an accomplishment—I don’t think that’s good enough any more,” Grimm says. “From here on out there are going to be high expectations for the team, and they will be expected to compete for an Ivy League championship every year.”