W. Hockey Takes On B.C. in Beanpot Opener

The Harvard women's hockey team knows that the Beanpot Championship Trophy will be hoisted over its home ice in Bright Hockey Center one week from tonight. The Crimson players only hope that they are the ones doing the lifting.

Harvard (9-9, 5-9 ECAC) will host the 1998 women's Beanpot Tournament which kicks off tonight at 5:00 p.m. when Boston University faces Northeastern in game one. Harvard will battle Boston College in the second game of the evening at 7:30.

Unlike their male counterparts, who play the Beanpot at the Fleet Center, the women rotate venues annually between the four schools' arenas. The added incentive of defending one's home ice adds another motivating factor to the already intense, cross-town competition for local bragging rights.

"[Playing at home] is a huge motivator," said co-captain Kyle Walsh. "We've played better at home, and our fan support has been great this year. I would love to see tons of fans cheering us on."

Harvard's opening-round contest versus B.C. will be a rematch of the teams' earlier meeting this season on Nov. 23 which the Crimson won 3-1 at Bright. Three of Harvard's four leading scorers netted goals in that game, while co-captain Jen Bowdoin recorded 27 saves.

However, much has changed for the Crimson since its victory over the Eagles. After starting the season 6-2, Harvard dropped its next five games over a one-month stretch to dip below the .500 mark.

Harvard has been plagued by inconsistency throughout the season, and the Crimson has split its last three weekends coming into the Beanpot. While its victories include the program's first-ever defeat of Providence and impressive wins over Colby and third-ranked Cornell, Harvard has been blown out by New Hampshire and lowly St. Lawrence.

"We've been able to take stock of our team after each one of our losses," Walsh said. "This weekend [against Colby and UNH] showed us how well we can play, but it also showed us what we need to work on."

Despite the Crimson's up-and-down performances of late, the Harvard players are confident that there will be a reprise of their earlier match with B.C. when the puck drops tonight.

"We've had trouble preparing our-selves for back-to-back games," said Bowdoin, "but I'm expecting us to come out fired up and ready to play [tonight]. This is the Beanpot."

Another difference between tonight's contest and the Crimson's previous confrontation with the Eagles will be in goal, where sophomore Crystal Springer will get the start. Springer has been splitting time with Bowdoin throughout the season as the latter continues to recover from offseason hip surgery.

Bowdoin and Springer have both performed admirably for the Crimson, as have its top scorers. Freshmen Angie Francisco and Kiirsten Suurkask lead Harvard in points and goals, respectively, while junior Claudia Asano--working double duty on offense and defense--is third on the team in points and fresh off of her first-career hat trick against Colby on Saturday.

If Harvard gets by B.C. it will likely face Northeastern in the Beanpot finals next Tuesday night. The Huskies are currently at the top of the ECAC standings, and they handed the Crimson two defeats during its five-game skid.

"Northeastern is always a tough team to beat," Bowdoin said. "They may be the favorite standing-wise, but anything can happen."

The last time Harvard won the coveted Beanpot was three years ago when the championship was last played at Harvard. Bowdoin, the Crimson's lone senior, is the only remaining member of that team.

Harvard admits that its tendency to overlook certain opponents has been the source of much of the team's disappointing play at times. And while the Crimson does not want to overlook the Eagles, the players are not shy about expressing their ultimate goal.

"We want to get to the finals and beat Northeastern," Walsh said, "but B.C. comes first. We can't afford to start looking past B.C., but everybody wants a crack at Northeastern."

Harvard's quest for the coveted Beanpot Trophy begins tonight, and if the home ice provides the advantage it did for Bowdoin and crew three years ago, the Crimson will get its shot at the Huskies, and Bowdoin will have a chance to experience some deja vu.