League Crown at Stake in Final Weekend

Back in the national rankings for the first time in months, the No. 9 Harvard women’s hockey team looks to capture the ECAC regular-season title this weekend with two clashes at Bright Hockey Center. Tonight will see the Crimson (15-9-3, 14-4-2 ECAC) face off against No. 7 St. Lawrence (21-8-3, 15-4-1), while Saturday’s action will pit Harvard against conference foe Clarkson (16-11-5, 10-7-3).

Coming off just its second loss in its last 11 games—a non-conference overtime nail-biter to No. 5 UNH Tuesday night—Harvard seems to be peaking at just the right time. Behind the strong offensive play of last year’s Patty Kazmaier Award winner, tri-captain Sarah Vaillancourt, and stingy netminding of junior Christina Kessler, the Crimson has won eight straight ECAC contests to rise back near the top of the standings.

With 30 points on the season, Harvard currently sits just one point behind St. Lawrence’s 31 for first in the conference.

“It’s a really big weekend for us,” tri-captain Jenny Brine said. “We’ve really come on the second half of the season with some really big wins, and luckily some of our opponents have struggled, so this weekend is a big opportunity.”

Way back in November, when Harvard traveled to New York to face these same two teams, the Crimson was met with two losses—two losses that signaled to fans and players alike that Harvard would have some ground to make up if it hoped to repeat as ECAC champs.

This time around, the Crimson is out to prove it’s not the same team it was at the beginning of the season.

“We played well coming out of Christmas, but since exams we’ve really gelled as a team,” Harvard coach Katey Stone said. “We’re rested and we’re healthy, and that’s very important.”

Brine agrees that the exam period could be seen as a turning point of sorts for the team’s fortunes this year.

“We worked really hard over exam period, even though it’s difficult with everyone obviously concentrating on our studies, but we all committed to get down to the rink as much as possible,” she said. “Also, the break gave some of our injured players a chance for some much needed rest.”

It was just before the exam period that Harvard started its current eight-game ECAC winning streak. Much of its recent success can be attributed to the stellar play of Vaillancourt, who leads the league with 30 points scored in conference play. Over the last seven games, Vaillancourt has scored 19 points, giving her a hand in 19 of the team’s last 23 goals. A Kazmaier nominee once again this year, the senior will have to continue her hot streak if Harvard hopes to come away victorious this weekend.

Having been atop the ECAC standings all season long, St. Lawrence comes into tonight’s matchup after losing its last game, 2-1, at home against upstart Princeton. Led by senior Carson Duggan, who paces the team with 34 points, the Saints will be looking to avenge last year’s ECAC championship game overtime loss to the Crimson.

Clarkson enters Saturday’s battle in sixth place in the ECAC. The Golden Knights, anchored by sophomore goalie Lauren Dahm, who ranks fourth in the nation in goals-against average, have split their last two weekend sets.

With postseason play looming, the importance of this weekend’s matchups is heightened. While the Crimson has already locked down home-ice advantage for the first round of the ECAC playoffs, a sweep this weekend would let Harvard play at Bright throughout the tournament. However, the team is not concerned with such talk of postseason play just yet.

“We’re just taking it one game at a time, not even looking to the NCAAs yet,” Stone said. “At this point of the season it’s win or go home, so we’re just trying to stay focused.”

Having climbed back from a rocky start, Harvard has the chance tonight to finish the season by reaching the goal it had from the beginning: winning the ECAC regular-season crown.

“We’re in the position we hoped to get to, and we’ve worked hard to get ourselves to this point,” Stone said. “To have the opportunity to take care of business on your own in the last weekend is the opportunity you want.”