Encore Performance

Imagine you are the Harvard women's ice hockey team.

You have two heart-and-soul co-captains in seniors Johanna Neilson and Julie Sasner.

Women's Ice Hockey

1986-'87 Overall: 19-4

1986-'87 Ivy League: 10-0 (Ivy Champs)

Captains: Johanna Neilson, Julie Sasner

You have a stand-out goalie in junior Jennifer White.

And you have a defensive player as mobile and as spectacular as sophomore Char Joslin.

You are coming off a season of unprecedented success, which included your first-ever Ivy League championship and a berth in the ECAC tournament.

So what do you do for an encore?

First, you have to watch out for all your opposition.

Like every other sport, other teams will always relish the chance to take pot-shots at the champions.

"The league's going to be stronger," said Sasner. "They say it's always hard to repeat in the Ivies."

"It's going to be very hard," said Harvard Coach John Dooley. "Dartmouth is very strong. Princeton had the best recruiting year of any Ivy team."

Second, you mustn't be complacent with your success the previous year.

In terms of conditioning and personnel, Harvard is making a few changes. The Crimson has seen more than a month of ice time and is spending a great deal of practice time on just skating.

"We do a lot of work," Dooley said. "They don't shy away from it."

And to give the icewomen better bench strength, Harvard has four new faces this season--goaltender Gillian D'Souza, center Martina Albright, defender Sue Cullinane, and wing Amy Diehl.

Third, you have to get veteran performances from your veteran players.

Jennifer White is coming off a tremendous campaign between the pipes. Her numbers would catch the eye of any NHL scout--1.79 goalsagainst average and a 92.7 save percentage.

And White is hoping to continue her winning ways.

"My play is valuable because we're so strong up front," White said. "I think I'll do all right."

As for Char Joslin, she will try to buck the proverbial sophomore jinx as more and more will be expected from the three-sport superstar.

But as a three-sport person, she is having to fight through three "jinxes"--which could turn out to be an advantage.

"I probably lived through that in field hockey," said Joslin. "It's all in the mind...I'm planning not to have it happen to me [in ice hockey]."

Fourth, you have to take advantage of penalties--and the opposition's occasional weak power play--when they occur.

The special teams will attempt to take full advantage of Joslin's talents, as she will be partnered with Brita Lind as forwards on shorthanded situations and with Sasner on the point on the power play.

Joslin has already created a shorthanded goal for Lind and scored a power-play goal herself this year.

"I love special teams, especially on man-down--it's the greatest of challenges," Joslin said. "It lets me be really offensive when I'm really supposed to be defensive."

"In past years it hasn't been strong, but this year it will be an advantage," said Neilson, who will center the power play unit. "We've had two or three years to grow together."

"Once we get it down, it's going to be hot," Kalinski said.

Fifth, you shoudn't try to go for it all at once.

"If we can get better and better," Joslin said, "it'll keep building."

"When tournament time comes we're going to be much stronger," said Harvard Coach John Dooley.

Finally, you have to reach for something higher.

As champions of the Ivy League, each member of last year's team received a ring inscribed with "10-0" and "Ivy League Champions." But the women of Bright aren't satisfied yet.

"If this is the year to win the ECACs and the Beanpot, this is it," Neilson says. "Providence showed that we have the potential to do it...we need an ECAC ring."

And you can be sure that the icewomen will be looking for that ring--the brass ring inscribed with "Ivy, ECAC and Beanpot Champions."