Over the course of the spring, Millet grew stronger and stronger. She played with the team in its spring game in Italy.

Once summer rolled around, the goalie was in roughly the same position she’d been the year before: excited to get in the goal for Harvard and looking forward to four years of eligibility.

Unfortunately for Millet, the déjà vu did not stop there.

Just as before, she found herself facing a potentially season-ending injury: this time, a torn meniscus, suffered during the summer.

Once again, she needed surgery. With the season fast approaching, it looked like Millet might find herself on the sidelines again.

“I was a little scared,” junior defender Lindsey Kowal said. “We didn’t know whether she’d be able to play.”

But a week before the Crimson’s first game, Millet was cleared to play. With just five practices before the season opener, she prepared herself for the challenges of Division I soccer while working on communicating with her defense.

Millet’s first game back on the field wasn’t all that she hoped it would be.

Though she had made eight saves, the two goals she surrendered were enough to bring Harvard to a 2-2 draw with Long Island University.

Yet for an athlete who had already overcome two surgeries, a couple of goals were but a minor hiccup.

Millet and the defense worked together to improve their on-field communication, something that hurt them in the first game.

“We’ll make sure we’re on the same page, make sure the defense is pushing up,” Kowal said.

Two days after allowing the Blackbirds 10 shots, Millet and the Crimson defense were nearly perfect, allowing only three shots all game.

“We’re way more in synch than in that first span,” the goalie added. “I think that will continue.”

And when the Wildcats did manage to get shots off, Millet proved impenetrable.