Field Hockey: Lions Make For Easy Prey

The Harvard field hockey team ended its season in convincing fashion with an 8-0 victory over Columbia at Jordan Field on Saturday in which 10 different players contributed to the scoring.

The victory clinched second place in the Ivies for Harvard (12-5, 6-1 Ivy) while Columbia (3-14, 0-7) finished in the cellar.

Junior Elizabeth Andrews led all scorers with two goals and an asssist for the Crimson, while junior Kate McDavitt scored two goals to raise her team-leading total to 14.

Freshman Jane Sackovich, sophomore Kate Gannon and junior Jen Ahn each netted their first goals of the season, while Sackovich found the net twice.

The Crimson dominated the entire game. Harvard possessed the ball well, as the team took chances with different plays and by transferring the ball.

The Crimson outshot Columbia 26-2 and had a clear 14-3 advantage on penalty corners. Four of these penalty corners converted into scores for Harvard.

“We were a little bit sloppy,” said coach Sue Caples. “We did have a balanced attack and very good execution.”

The win was sweet for captain Katie Scott and senior Philomena Gamble as they ended their final regular season game with a blowout victory.

“This was a great way to end the season,” Scott said. “We haven’t reached our full potential yet. Today we established a greater intensity and a higher level of play.”

The seniorshope the team will reach that full potential, but that won’t happen unless the team is selected for the NCAA tournament tonight.

“This is a nice way to end the regular season as a senior,” Gamble said. “Now all we can do at this point is wait to see if we can get into the NCAA tournament.”

The team goal throughout the season has been to play in the NCAA tournament. Harvard had originally hoped to make the tournament automatically by winning the Ivy title, but a loss to eight-time defending champion Princeton ended those hopes. However, the Crimson proved strong and won its last three games.

“After Princeton, we decided we had to win the last three games of the season,” Scott said. “We’ve done that, and now we’re a bubble team for the tournament.”

Harvard’s fate will be decided at 8 p.m. tonight when the field hockey NCAA selection show will be broadcast over the Internet.

“It will definitely be disappointing if we don’t get in,” Caples said.