Men's Hockey Stuns No. 10 Colgate

HAMILTON, N.Y.--Ask anyone and they'll agree: two points from a Cornell/Colgate weekend is something to write home about.

The Harvard men's hockey team impressed a lot of nonbelievers this past weekend when it shocked No. 10 Colgate (4-2-0, 1-1-0 ECAC) on Saturday 6-5.

What's more significant, however, is that this victory not only saw the Crimson (1-1-0, 1-1-0) rack up six goals in a game--something which it failed to do all last year--but it also came off the heels of a hard fought 5-2 loss to Cornell on Friday night.

"It's good for our confidence and it's definitely something that we needed after last year and especially after [Friday night]," said junior defenseman Ben Storey. "I think that we can do it every game, it's just a matter of whether we work as hard as we did in the third period."

After two bizarre periods which saw Harvard take a quick 3-0 lead in the first nine minutes of the game only to have Colgate storm back for four goals in the second, both teams took the ice for the final 20 minutes deadlocked at four all.

The Crimson seemed to have wrapped up the game after nine minutes when sophomore Brett Chodorow knocked in his first goal of the season off a five-on-three advantage to give Harvard the 5-4 edge.

But Colgate's Dru Burgess made things even more interesting when he answered just six minutes later, tucking away a rebound which had trickled through the pads of Harvard goaltender J.R. Prestifilippo.

But as if a gift from above, Harvard pulled out a miraculous finish under the HARVARD  6 COLGATE  5

wings of sophomore Trevor Allman.

With just over two minutes remaining in regulation, junior Henry Higdon set for a faceoff just to the left of Colgate netminder Shep Harder. At the last minute, Higdon motioned to Allman and unbeknownst to the 2,364 fans on hand at Starr Rink, the play was set in motion.

Higdon won the draw forward, right onto the stick of Allman. Without hesitation and before the Colgate defense could react, Allman rushed in on Harder and ripped home what would prove to be the game-winner.

"The draw was supposed to be won back by Henry to the point, but at the last second he said that he was going to go forward," Allman said. "So I just jumped on it and caught a break with the shot going under the goalie's arm. I'm on cloud nine right now."

The Crimson bench erupted and two minutes later it was official: Harvard had upset the No. 10 team in the nation.

"That's a real character win for us," said Harvard Coach Ronn Tomassoni. "It's a big one for our kids and they showed an awful lot to really battle in that third period."

It was a game defined by colossal momentum switches beginning from the first face off.

Just 50 seconds into the game, junior Craig Adams took control for Harvard when he broke down the right wing and whipped a shot past Colgate's starting goalie Dan Brenzavich.

Five minutes later, Allman latched on another Harvard goal--this one a short handed bid--that would prove the end of Brenzavich who was immediately pulled out of net and replaced by Harder.

This seemingly futile move by Colgate simply translated into Harvard's third goal of the period when freshman Harry Schwefel broke into the scoring column.

"We went up 3-0 and we had a few bounces go our way, and I don't think the kids realized," Tomassoni said. "We tried to tell them after the first period that it really wasn't a 3-0 game and of course [Colgate] came storming back."

Showing exactly how it had defeated No. 2 Michigan and No. 6 New Hampshire, Colgate rebounded in the second period with 22 shots and four goals including two tallies by senior Tim Loftsgard. Allman, who recorded the first hat trick of his career, added an obligatory Harvard goal amidst the Colgate rush, but that tally allowed Harvard to be tied 4-4 heading into that crucial final period.

"Our second period was definitely our worst," Storey said. "At that point Coach told us what we had to do and we came out and we did it. That third period was a battle."

It was a battle which the Crimson consistently lost last season and it was a fight which Colgate surely thought it would win on Saturday.

But when Allman roofed his shot past Harder and as the Crimson waltzed back to Cambridge with an emotional win and two league points, the word was heard throughout.

Harvard had made its first statement to the ECAC.

HARVARD, 6-5 at Hamilton, N.Y.Harvard  3  1  2  --  6Colgate  0  4  1  --  

wings of sophomore Trevor Allman.

With just over two minutes remaining in regulation, junior Henry Higdon set for a faceoff just to the left of Colgate netminder Shep Harder. At the last minute, Higdon motioned to Allman and unbeknownst to the 2,364 fans on hand at Starr Rink, the play was set in motion.

Higdon won the draw forward, right onto the stick of Allman. Without hesitation and before the Colgate defense could react, Allman rushed in on Harder and ripped home what would prove to be the game-winner.

"The draw was supposed to be won back by Henry to the point, but at the last second he said that he was going to go forward," Allman said. "So I just jumped on it and caught a break with the shot going under the goalie's arm. I'm on cloud nine right now."

The Crimson bench erupted and two minutes later it was official: Harvard had upset the No. 10 team in the nation.

"That's a real character win for us," said Harvard Coach Ronn Tomassoni. "It's a big one for our kids and they showed an awful lot to really battle in that third period."

It was a game defined by colossal momentum switches beginning from the first face off.

Just 50 seconds into the game, junior Craig Adams took control for Harvard when he broke down the right wing and whipped a shot past Colgate's starting goalie Dan Brenzavich.

Five minutes later, Allman latched on another Harvard goal--this one a short handed bid--that would prove the end of Brenzavich who was immediately pulled out of net and replaced by Harder.

This seemingly futile move by Colgate simply translated into Harvard's third goal of the period when freshman Harry Schwefel broke into the scoring column.

"We went up 3-0 and we had a few bounces go our way, and I don't think the kids realized," Tomassoni said. "We tried to tell them after the first period that it really wasn't a 3-0 game and of course [Colgate] came storming back."

Showing exactly how it had defeated No. 2 Michigan and No. 6 New Hampshire, Colgate rebounded in the second period with 22 shots and four goals including two tallies by senior Tim Loftsgard. Allman, who recorded the first hat trick of his career, added an obligatory Harvard goal amidst the Colgate rush, but that tally allowed Harvard to be tied 4-4 heading into that crucial final period.

"Our second period was definitely our worst," Storey said. "At that point Coach told us what we had to do and we came out and we did it. That third period was a battle."

It was a battle which the Crimson consistently lost last season and it was a fight which Colgate surely thought it would win on Saturday.

But when Allman roofed his shot past Harder and as the Crimson waltzed back to Cambridge with an emotional win and two league points, the word was heard throughout.

Harvard had made its first statement to the ECAC.

HARVARD, 6-5 at Hamilton, N.Y.Harvard  3  1  2  --  6Colgate  0  4  1  --  

With just over two minutes remaining in regulation, junior Henry Higdon set for a faceoff just to the left of Colgate netminder Shep Harder. At the last minute, Higdon motioned to Allman and unbeknownst to the 2,364 fans on hand at Starr Rink, the play was set in motion.

Higdon won the draw forward, right onto the stick of Allman. Without hesitation and before the Colgate defense could react, Allman rushed in on Harder and ripped home what would prove to be the game-winner.

"The draw was supposed to be won back by Henry to the point, but at the last second he said that he was going to go forward," Allman said. "So I just jumped on it and caught a break with the shot going under the goalie's arm. I'm on cloud nine right now."

The Crimson bench erupted and two minutes later it was official: Harvard had upset the No. 10 team in the nation.

"That's a real character win for us," said Harvard Coach Ronn Tomassoni. "It's a big one for our kids and they showed an awful lot to really battle in that third period."

It was a game defined by colossal momentum switches beginning from the first face off.

Just 50 seconds into the game, junior Craig Adams took control for Harvard when he broke down the right wing and whipped a shot past Colgate's starting goalie Dan Brenzavich.

Five minutes later, Allman latched on another Harvard goal--this one a short handed bid--that would prove the end of Brenzavich who was immediately pulled out of net and replaced by Harder.

This seemingly futile move by Colgate simply translated into Harvard's third goal of the period when freshman Harry Schwefel broke into the scoring column.

"We went up 3-0 and we had a few bounces go our way, and I don't think the kids realized," Tomassoni said. "We tried to tell them after the first period that it really wasn't a 3-0 game and of course [Colgate] came storming back."

Showing exactly how it had defeated No. 2 Michigan and No. 6 New Hampshire, Colgate rebounded in the second period with 22 shots and four goals including two tallies by senior Tim Loftsgard. Allman, who recorded the first hat trick of his career, added an obligatory Harvard goal amidst the Colgate rush, but that tally allowed Harvard to be tied 4-4 heading into that crucial final period.

"Our second period was definitely our worst," Storey said. "At that point Coach told us what we had to do and we came out and we did it. That third period was a battle."

It was a battle which the Crimson consistently lost last season and it was a fight which Colgate surely thought it would win on Saturday.

But when Allman roofed his shot past Harder and as the Crimson waltzed back to Cambridge with an emotional win and two league points, the word was heard throughout.

Harvard had made its first statement to the ECAC.

HARVARD, 6-5 at Hamilton, N.Y.Harvard  3  1  2  --  6Colgate  0  4  1  --