Despite getting the ball into the penalty box on numerous occasions, they were unable to put the goalie under heavy pressure, as a number of shots caromed off defenders or were blown wide.

Halfway through the second period, it seemed as if the Big Green was ready to regain the lead.

Thanks to a number of well-placed counter-attacking outlet passes, Dartmouth had several breakaway chances, but strong play from Harvard freshman goaltender Bethany Kanten, who tallied four saves on the day, kept the game knotted up entering the final minutes.

In a back-and-forth game seemingly destined for overtime, a last minute foul by the Big Green just outside of its own penalty box gave the Crimson one more opportunity.

Then with time about to expire, Dartmouth erected a wall too close to the ball, stopping the clock and allowing Johnson time to prepare.

Immediately after taking the shot, she was confident.

“You can tell when you strike something well, that it’s going to come off well,” she said.“That was definitely the case.”

After watching the ball drop to the ground behind the Big Green goalkeeper, the ecstatic Harvard squad mobbed the sophomore.

Then, the players frantically got back into a semblance of a defensive formation to thwart one final Dartmouth push before reconvening atop the screaming midfielder.

“After a game like today’s, it really shows what our team is made of—we are really 27 strong,” Johnson said.

Harvard coach Ray Leone thought it was a fitting final home game for a group of six seniors that will go to the NCAA tournament for the third time in their four years in Cambridge.

“The senior class has had so much success,” he said. “To stick with it here at Harvard and to go for four years together—all those practices, all those games, all that time—we are happy to end it like this on their Senior Day.”