Defense Could Drive Whiz Kids to Fame and Fortune

Bill this year's Harvard field hockey season as the "Return of the Whiz Kids." It's hoped that the sequel is better than the first production.

Last year, the Crimson relied on a troupe of talented but raw freshmen and sophomores and finished with a 3-8-4 overall record (2-2-2 Ivy League).

But the stickwomen, who opened up last season with an 0-4-1 mark, never quite found the road to mediocrity--let alone glory.

The untested youngsters--led by a pair of captains, Anne Kelly and Alicia Clifton, who had seen little playing time their first three seasons--turned in some gutsy performances, including a 2-0 loss to eventual NCAA champion Connecticut.

Still, the Crimson recorded only one impressive win, a 1-0 victory over then-12th-ranked Springfield, on its way to earning a second place Ivy finish and a sliver of respect from tougher, nonleague, opponents.

Credit what sucess the stickwomen--who have never won an Ivy title--enjoyed last year to a spirited defense, led by goalie Denise Katsias (144 saves). Katsias, a sophomore this year, will be back to anchor a defense that should still be sound despite the loss of Kelly, the team's sweeper.

Katsias showed steady improvement over the course of last season: she surrendered seven goals in her first two games, but only six over her last seven contests.

Katsias is joined in the backfield by fellow sophomore Sharon Kosakowski, a defender who got her first start against Springfield. Kosakowski's capricious play late in the season caused Coach Nita Lamborghini to bench her, and she saw only part-time duty in Harvard's last six games.

Juniors Jane Grim and Leelee Groome played solidly, if sometimes brutally, in the backfield and will be back.

The gap left by Kelly at the sweeper position may be filled by either of this year's co-captains, Gia Barresi or Jenny Pyle. Barresi played the position well during the Crimson's final game of last season, a 1-1 tie with Yale, when Kelly was whistled for a five-minute penalty.

But Barresi may be needed on offense. Last year, while playing on the wing, she finished with a team-leading two goals, one-fifth of the team's total offensive output.

Pyle, on the other hand, began last year as a starting defender but was benched by Lamborghini three weeks into the season. She never played another minute.

But departing captain Clifton sees Pyle as the likely choice to succeed Kelly as the squad's sweeper. Whether Lamborghini--who's entering her second year as Harvard's coach--agrees, remains to be seen.

Groome is another choice for sweeper, a possibility Lamborghini mentioned at the end of last season.

Meanwhile, the Crimson's offense needs improvement. Immediately.

Last year, the team scored a total of 10 goals, with Barresi and forwards Kate Felsen and Cindi Ersek contributing two goals apiece. If the Crimson doesn't find a five-goal-a-year recruit, it will have to rely on the present trio to put points on the board.

Easy if the game were lacrosse--Felsen and Ersek are scoring machines when they don laxwomen's uniforms in the spring--but not so in field hockey, where patience and position count more than speed and agility.

Ersek, a junior this season, appeared likely to bloom after scoring the game-winning goal in an early-season 2-0 victory over Dartmouth. But she shut down for the rest of the season--and her quickness sometimes proved a liability, as she often overran passes.

Barresi may emerge as the most potent member of this year's squad. Although not the fastest player on the field, Barresi has a knack for finding a loose ball and slamming it toward the goal.

Whether Barresi, Ersek, and Felsen can ignite the Crimson offense should determine whether "The Return of the Whiz Kids" will be a stunning sequel or just another rerun.