Harvard Kicks Off NCAAs at Chestnut Hill

The Harvard women’s soccer team will face the Northeastern Huskies in the single-elimination NCAA Tournament tonight. The match will take place at 7 p.m.

at Boston College’s Newton Field.

On Monday evening, the 26 Crimson women’s soccer players crowded around the television on the second floor of Dillon Fieldhouse, waiting to hear the fate of their season. Across town, 29 Huskies were also anxiously tuned into ESPN to see what team they would draw for the first round of regional play. Neither team was surprised to learn its opponent.

“We were all kind of thinking that it was going to be a Beanpot,” Harvard coach Ray Leone said.

The Crimson (10-3-4, 5-1-1 Ivy) earned the Ivy League’s automatic bid into the tournament after defeating Columbia 2-1 last weekend in a double overtime thriller. The winning goal came when junior Lizzy Nichols scored on a penalty kick with nine seconds remaining in the game. The goal gave Harvard its first Ivy League title since 1999.

Northeastern (13-8-1, 6-5 CAA) had an improbable road to the NCAA Championships. After finishing sixth in the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) regular season standings, the Huskies made a run in the league tournament. Although Northeastern was the lowest seed in its conference tournament, the squad won three straight do-or-die games including a 1-0 double overtime victory over

Hofstra in the title game.

It is the first time that the Huskies have made the NCAA tournament. The Crimson’s appearance is its 11th in history and its first since 2004, when the team earned an at-large bid.

Harvard is favored in the matchup. The Crimson ranks just outside the top-25

nationally and is ranked No. 2 in the Northeast region. Northeastern is ranked No. 8 in the Northeast Region.

Despite being favored, Harvard does not expect to coast to the second round.

“We have to get our legs back,” Leone said. “It was a physical contest on Saturday. We have to make sure that we get our physical strength and everything back so we can perform at a high level for the game on Friday night.”

Earlier in the year, the Crimson faced the Huskies and struggled. Harvard earned a 2-1 win in overtime, but the game was even, with both teams recording 20 shots on the day. The game was also marked by many missed offensive opportunities by the Crimson.

Though the two teams may have already faced each other, both squads have come a long way since that meeting on September 17.

“I think that Northeastern, like us, has been on a roll the last stretch of the season,” co-captain Nikki Rhodes said. “It will be a different game then the last time we played them. It’s going to be very intense.”

The Huskies rolled through their conference tournament as the underdog and are currently on a five-game winning streak. the Crimson is unbeaten in its last eight games, claiming a record of 7-0-1 since September 27.

“When the game starts, there are going to be 22 players, and every single one of those players has grown since the last matchup seven or so weeks ago,” Northeastern coach Ed Matz said.

The Harvard offense has come alive during its unbeaten streak. The team has scored 20 goals in its past eight games. In its first nine games, the squad scored just seven times.

“In the last few games we’ve had such a resilience and tenacity to score,” junior Christina Hagner said. “We can’t take this team lightly. We played them at the beginning of our season, but we’re a different team and they probably are as well.”

Harvard is led offensively by freshman Melanie Baskind who ranks first on the team in points and assists and is tied for the team lead in goals. Katherine

Sheeleigh and Hagner, who are tied for the team lead with six goals apiece, will also be scoring threats.

Veronica Napoli is the main offensive force for the Huskies. The speedy freshman leads the team with 29 points, 12 goals, and five assists this year and was named the CAA Rookie of the Year.

Both the Crimson and Northeastern have been successful in pressure situations this season. In overtime, the Huskies are 4-1-1 and Harvard is 2-0-3.

Friday’s matchup will be on Boston College’s turf field. To get ready, the Crimson practiced in Chestnut Hill on Tuesday.

The winner of the first-round game will face the survivor of the Central

Connecticut State-Boston College matchup. The Boston College Eagles are the regional hosts and are ranked No. 10 nationally.

—Staff writer Jake I. Fisher can be reached at jifisher@fas.harvard.edu.