February's Team

They say October belongs to Reggie Jackson. What they forget to say is that February belongs to the Harvard women's ice hockey team.

But that doesn't bother Crimson Coach John Dooley. And that's why he didn't spend too many sleepless nights in early January when his troops dropped three straight games and held a disappointing 4-6 record. After all, February wasn't too far off.

"People look at our record midway through the year and don't take us too seriously," Dooley said earlier this year. "But then we start to put some wins together and catch some people by surprise."

And in Dooley's two years at the helm, the icewomen have caught quite a few people by surprise-especially in February.

Last year, the Crimson reeled off eight straight victories in February-after a mediocre 6-5 start-before it dropped the Ivy championship game to Princeton in March.

Because of its amazing winning streak, Harvard tallied three firsts; its first winning record (15-6), its first Beanpot championship and its first league finish out of the Ivy basement.

"Last year was a new experience for everyone," Dooley said. "The girls experienced winning for the first time and they really liked it.

"We knew the girls knew how to win and that it would just be a matter of time," the coach added, referring to this year's early problems. "We were missing the little things in the middle of the year and it took some time to iron them out," Assistant Coach Bill MacDonald agreed.

In fact, it look until about-you guessed it-February. And then squad began a winning rampage that continues today. With its two victories this week, the Crimson has managed seven February wins (including five shutouts by goalie Cheryl Tate) and has dropped only two games. En route to its current 11-7 mark, Harvard snatched its second straight Beanpot championship and has wiggled its way into a tight race for what could be the squad's first postseason tournament bid ever.

The icewomen will try to extend their February magic a bit-and at the same time secure that EAIAW playoff bid-in their find regular season match Saturday against Princeton. The perennially tough Tigers, who have all but clinched a playoff spot along with UNH, Providence and Northeaster, downed the Crimson, 6-2, in a non-February match earlier this season.

A strong showing Saturday could guarantee the Crimson one of the tourney's last two spots. Both Harvard players and coaches remain confident that February is the perfect time to stop the red-hot Tigers.

"It's all part of Coach's plan," Crimson Co-Captain Alex Lightfoot said, explaining her team's February success. "He knows that we can't peak too early." It takes time to get the lines playing well together.

"And beside that," Lightfoot continued, "there's a lot less pressure on us in February. Even though there's a lot of time, reading period and exams are a lot of pressure. The whole team seems to be able to concentrate a lot more during February."

And that couldn't please the coaching staff more. "The girls seem to really concentrate on winning in February," MacDonald said. "And as they concentrate, they start to win. Each win means confidence and more confidence means another win."