W. Hockey Sweeps Clarkson To Advance to ECAC Semis

The No. 5 Harvard women’s hockey team hopes that a record-breaking weekend for senior tri-captain Nicole Corriero will not prove to be a focus-breaking series in its postseason title hunt.

Corriero, who tied the collegiate single-season goals record with two on Friday night and broke the mark with her 52nd of the year on Saturday, moved ahead of two players to the top of the record books and surpassed Angela Ruggiero ’02-’04 for fourth place on the Crimson’s all-time scoring list.

Despite her team’s easy dispatch of an overmatched Clarkson squad in a sweep of the ECAC quarterfinals, Harvard coach Katey Stone worried that her team wavered from the style of play that had earned it the top seed in the conference tournament and led to a nation-leading 17-game unbeaten streak.

“Coach doesn’t look at the scoreboard when she evaluates the game,” Corriero said. “She just looks at how we played on the ice. This is a good learning experience—everybody realizes the mistakes that we made.”

The playoffs will continue for the Crimson for at least one more weekend, though, as it advances to the semifinal round of ECAC tournament to square off against fourth-seeded Yale at Union on Saturday.

HARVARD 3, CLARKSON 1

Although Saturday’s opening period lacked the fireworks of Friday’s four-goal binge, it witnessed a historic moment for women’s college hockey.

After an Ashley Banfield offering from the point was turned away by Clarkson netminder Kira McDonald and a swipe from Laura Brady similarly rebuffed, the rebound kicked out to Corriero. With the defense bearing down on her, Corriero lifted a backhand into the left side of the goal for her unprecedented 52nd tally.

As the lines gathered at center ice for the ensuing faceoff, the public address system announced Corriero’s record and the crowd rose in applause and appreciation. Corriero, for her part, simply lifted her stick in a modest gesture of acknowledgement.

“I was just in the right place at the right time,” Corriero said. “It was the product of everybody on the line working hard on the forecheck. It was just a great line effort.”

The Crimson power play was the afternoon’s second-most interesting subplot. Limited to a single extra-skater opportunity by the stingy Clarkson defense, the top unit of the nation’s third-ranked power play reached new heights in efficiency, connecting on its lone shot attempt.

In a textbook display of puck movement, sophomore Caitlin Cahow moved the puck to Jennifer Raimondi in the slot on the left, who picked out Banfield at the far post for the goal.

With that goal and four assists—including helpers on longtime teammate Corriero’s 51st and 52nd—over the two games, Banfield moved into the national lead for scoring defensemen.

“I get so excited when I score,” Banfield said. “It’s been pretty effective this year. It helps when you get passes that are absolutely perfect on your stick. It’s tough to miss the net when you get passes like that.”

Some of Harvard’s other leading scorers, however, were missing from the stat sheet.

Julie Chu was held pointless in consecutive games for the first time this season. Freshman Sarah Vaillancourt was held out of the action on Saturday following an altercation with an official the night before that earned her a misconduct penalty.

The defense, far from peak performance, was more compact than the night before, but junior goaltender Ali Boe lost the shutout bid on an unassisted power-play goal by Christine Bailkowski early in the final period.

“We’re trying to clean some things up,” Stone said. “Boe does a good job. I felt, bad but by the same token it’s not about the shutout, it’s about the win.”

Sophomore Katie Johnston provided the game-winner with a poke amid a melee in the crease that gave the Crimson a 2-0 edge early in the middle period.

HARVARD 5, CLARKSON 0

When Corriero deflected a Banfield slapshot into the back of the net early in the third period, the feeling in the air at Bright was one of relief more than exhilaration.

“From here on out,” Corriero said. “It’s not about goals. It’s just about playing Harvard hockey.”

The weight and tension of Corriero’s record-hunt was lifted, and Harvard could presumably continue its dominating February form.

The crispness and efficiency that characterized the Crimson’s recent play were conspicuously absent from the later periods of its series-opening shutout of the Golden Knights.

“You have to get the record over with,” Stone said. “You want to just get it finished so there’s a sense of release and you can focus in on what’s most important—team play.”

Corriero’s record-tying goal was her second of the contest. With the record within reach on Friday night, it took Corriero only 28 seconds to get on the board. Vaillancourt gained possession behind the net and fed Corriero, poised at the left post. She managed to jam the puck past McDonald to put Harvard in the lead for good.

Corriero’s early strike was the harbinger of an explosive first period for the Crimson. Kat Sweet notched a pair of goals sandwiched around a power-play score from Vaillancourt, each one courtesy of Johnston, giving Harvard a 4-0 advantage before the game was 20 minutes old.

“We didn’t come out real hard against them last time we played them,” Stone said. “So we tried to make a concerted effort today. And some things bounced for us right away.”

On the first of Sweet’s goals, she took a pass from Johnston and zig-zagged in front of the net before beating McDonald with a backhander to push the lead to 2-0. Eight minutes later, Johnston took on three defenders before flicking the puck on net. The rebound kicked out to a charging Sweet for the easy follow-up.

The big early lead masked the Crimson’s struggles later on.

In particular, Harvard had difficulty clearing rebounds from the defensive zone. On more than occasion, the puck sat motionless in the crease for several seconds until Boe was able to cover it.

“We made it a little hairy for her at times,” Stone said. “Pucks too close to the net, too much of a scramble, lack of accountability. They know they need to play better.”

And the offense’s efforts were frequently disjointed and full of solo plays.

“It’s a matter of working through it and not changing your style of play,” Corriero said. “We just needed to execute what’s best for the team and not for an individual player.”

Corriero herself launched 13 shots on the evening, nearly as many as the entire Clarkson team, which took 16—all stopped by Boe. The clean sheet was Boe’s sixth of season—three of which came against the Golden Knights—and 13th in her career.

Her counterpart McDonald made 49 saves in a losing effort, including a variety of sprawling stabs that prevented a blowout.

—Staff writer Jonathan Lehman can be reached at jlehman@fas.harvard.edu.