Stickwomen Surprise, Tip Red in OT, 3-2

The Harvard field hockey team braved the elements Saturday on Soldiers Field and beat Cornell with a hard-fought 3-2 victory in overtime.

Trying to counter its three-game losing streak, Harvard beefed up its offense, changing the front line formation from a three-person to a four-person set. The switch served Harvard well, as the Crimson outshot the Big Red and kept the ball in Cornell's end.

The defense also had a hand in the win, blocking free hits and sending the ball upfield with consistency and power. Although Harvard dominated most of the game, it still struggled to get the ball in the net, a problem that has plagued it for the last few games.

Harvard's Lisa Cutone scored twice and Kara Hurley once in the 13th meeting between the teams. Cutone earned her place in the "Player Spotlight" part of the program with strong offensive and defensive play.

Cutone, a junior, is Harvard's second-leading scorer behind Char Joslin, with three goals and five assists. Hurley brought relief to the players and fans with her goal, scored with 3:06 left in the first 10-minute OT. She found her opportunity off of Harvard's short corner.

According to Co-Captain Katie McAnaney, Harvard's short corners were a key factor in what she called "one of our better games." None of the goals were scored directly off of a corner, but they wore down Cornell's defense, and more than once gave Harvard the offensive edge.

Cutone's first goal came after a corner. With 17:14 left in the first half, Cutone blocked the defensive hit out and took the ball in for a score.

With the victory, the Crimson improved to 4-4. Harvard gained confidence with a fierce comeback from a two-goal defecit against a competetive Ivy team.

Harvard's next home game is today at 3 p.m. against Holy Cross.