The Westwood, Mass., native wasted no time in making an impact on last year’s team as a freshman, causing a team-high 20 turnovers, which was also good for fifth-best in the Ancient Eight.

Burke has continued to be a dominant force this season, collecting seven ground balls and forcing four turnovers while starting all eight matches for Harvard this season.

The season ahead poses anything but an easy task for the young Harvard team. A schedule that includes six games against top-20 teams in a season consisting of only 15 matches would be daunting for any team as young as the Crimson.

Despite the difficult schedule, the squad has risen to the challenges it has faced thus far, losing narrowly by one goal to No. 5 Syracuse and dropping a 13-9 contest to No. 8 Virginia, after holding a three-goal lead the second half.

With the experience of one-plus season under their belt, Waldstein argues that the underclassmen are better prepared than ever for the challenges ahead.

“It’s great for a young team to play those top-20 teams and to know [last year] as freshmen that they can actually play with these [teams],” Waldstein said. “It’s really good for our confidence level going forward. A lot of the mistakes that we have made have been young mistakes, which only goes to show that there’s only good things to come as we get more experienced.”

What truly makes this young corps of players special, Miller said, is the energy that the team brings to the field every day in practice. There is little doubt that, for this budding Harvard unit, the best is still yet to come.

“They enjoy playing; practice is fun for them,” Miller said. “They’re very good players, and they’re smart, and they pick up on concepts quickly. But, more than that, the sophomore class is tight-knit and have good chemistry. They enjoy the grind, and they want to get better every day.”