Stickwomen Prepare for Yale

How does a player make the transition from benchwarmer to team captain?

Ask Harvard field hockey Co-Captains Anne Kelly and Alicia Clifton.

In the three years and 45 games before this season, the senior leaders of this year's Crimson squad saw a lot of field hockey action. But most of it came while sitting on the bench.

"We called our class the Bench Busters because we never played," Clifton says.

But that class, which also includes midfielder Bambi Taylor and forward Linda Runyon, has exchanged its seats on the bench for the somewhat less comfortable (but certainly more exciting) standing--and running--room of the playing field.

And although this year's Harvard team boasts only a 3-8-3 record (2-2-1 Ivy), it has played competitively with seven of the nation's top-ranked teams.

Harvard is now tied with Yale (7-6-1 overall, 2-2-1 Ivy) for second place in the Ivy League. The two teams meet tomorrow in New Haven, Conn., in a game that will determine second place in the league. Penn has already clinched the title.

"It would be awesome if we could beat Yale," Clifton says.

The Elis hold a slim 4-3-5 advantage over the Crimson in the series. But what is particularly irksome to Clifton and Kelly is that in its last three meetings, Harvard has not beaten Yale. In that span, the Elis have escaped with a win and two ties--including a 0-0 deadlock with the Cantabs in 1983 that prevented Harvard from winning its first Ivy League championship.

"We could have gone to the NCAA ournament if we hadn't tied them," Kelly says.

Although a tournament bid is out of the question for this year's squad, a solid finish against an old rival is within the realm of possibility.

And whether the stickwomen finish with a bang or a whimper depends in large part on Kelly and Clifton.

"Annie's a quiet leader while Alicia's a spirited leader," says Harvard Assistant Coach Sue Caples. "But they both complement each other very well."

The two elder statesmen must rally the young Crimson team which has played both brilliantly--in a 2-0 victory over Dartmouth--and pathetically--in a 3-1 drubbing at fifth-ranked UMass earlier in the season.

But if anyone can turn around Harvard's recent misfortunes against Yale, it is Kelly and Clifton.

"We're both going to score against Yale," says Clifton, who like Kelly has knocked in one goal this year.

Kelly's goal--a blast off a corner pass from Clifton that propelled the Crimson into a 1-1 tie with 16th-ranked Boston College--was her first ever.

Clifton's score--the only Harvard tally against UMass--was her fourth lifetime goal. In her sophomore year, Clifton scored three times, twice against Cornell.

While Kelly and Clifton weren't playing much in past seasons, they were helping the team and former Crimson Coach Edie Mabrey in other ways.

"Edie would always make us peel oranges at halftime," Clifton says.

While they're orange peeling days are over, so--save for one game--are their field hockey careers.

"I never thought I'd play field hockey for four years, much less be captain," Clifton says. "But the reason I kept coming back were the players. They're a great bunch."

As captains, Kelly and Clifton have had a special task--to encourage and lead a team composed primarily of sophomores and freshmen.

But the task certainly has been worth it.

"We're going to be sad leaving them," Kelly says.

Both captains regret that they will not be around next year when the young Crimson team--with a year of tough play behind it--will be one of the favorites to capture the Ivy crown.

"They have every right to be cocky next year," Clifton says. "They're going to be awesome."

While this year's team has been somewhat less than awesome, it certainly has shown sparks of greatness.

And nothing less than a great effort will be needed to beat Yale, which is coming off a 1-0 victory over Holy Cross and a 4-0 rout of Fair-field.

But with Kelly and Clifton leading the charge, the Crimson just might sack its chief Ancient Eight rival--and come home with the silver medal in the Ivy League.

THE NOTEBOOK: For her goal against B.C., Kelly was named Honorable Mention Ivy League Player of the Week...Although tied for second in the Ivy League, Harvard sports the worst overall record among its league rivals. Only Brown--with a 4-8-2 overall mark--approaches the Crimson's .346 winning percentage...Yale goalie Nada Sellers has eight shutouts on the year, four more than Harvard net-minder Denise Katsias.