That confidence proved warranted Saturday. With co-captains Jaren LaGreca and Millock–both of whom played the full 90 minutes–leading the way, the Harvard defense proved tough to break Saturday night.

“I thought we were pretty solid,” Millock said. “We’ve been working a lot defensively this preseason just on being organized.”

Stanford was only able to manage five shots on goal against Harvard goalie Austin Harms, while the Crimson, in contrast, got off nine attempts on Cardinal goalkeeper Jason Dodson.

“I thought if we could keep pressure high throughout the second half we could create the opportunities we wanted and give ourselves the chance to win the game,” Junot said. “I never foresaw Stanford getting to the point where they would really put it on us and go ahead in the second half.”

LaGreca’s veteran savvy was exemplified most towards the end of the contest, as Stanford threatened to tie things up with under thirty seconds on the clock. After Harms was caught out of place, leaving half the net exposed, LaGreca stepped in to use his body and deflect a Stanford shot attempt away from the net, preventing disaster.

REES’ PIECES

In 2009, midfielder Jamie Rees, then a sophomore, attempted nine shots.

It was therefore somewhat surprising when Saturday’s box score showed that Rees had taken only one less shot in one game than he had over all of last season.

Rees’ eight shots led the game by a wide margin, and his two shots on goal also tied for a game high.

“Jamie brings a ton of energy,” Millock said. “He’s entered into a much larger role this year than he had last year, and he’s embraced it...I think he did really well.”

—Staff writer Scott A. Sherman can be reached at ssherman13@college.harvard.edu.