Yale Hands Harvard First Loss of Season

After starting the season 3-0 for the first time since 2005, the Harvard field hockey team was unable to carry its momentum into the first half of its Ivy League opener against Yale on Saturday. The Bulldogs (3-2, 1-0 Ivy) used their speed and drive to mark up a 4-0 halftime lead and managed to withstand a strong Crimson (3-1, 0-1) comeback to secure the 4-3 victory.

Harvard had only allowed four goals in its first three games of the season, but Yale jumped on top quickly with two goals in the first ten minutes en route to its 4-0 halftime lead.

The Crimson was outshot, 9-2, in the first frame, and it looked as if Harvard’s chances of matching its best season start in the past five years was in serious jeopardy.

“We really got caught off guard by their speed,” said co-captain Elizabeth Goodman-Bacon. “It really took those first 35 minutes to get our act together. We needed to make some organizational changes at halftime and spend some time to reset and talk about what was happening.”

Harvard started to inch closer in the second half, when Goodman-Bacon notched her first goal of the season almost halfway through the second frame. Junior Chloe Keating continued her career season when her sixth goal of the season cut the Crimson’s deficit to 4-2.

But Yale’s defense stood firm, and its first-half surge proved all the offense it needed, as sophomore Carly Dickson’s goal on a penalty corner as time expired left the final score at 4-3.

“I think everyone was a bit nervous and jumpy at the beginning since it was our first Ivy game,” said co-captain Kristin Bannon. “We have to make sure we come to play our next game with a stronger start and more drive. They came out really fast, and we were definitely thrown off.”

“We knew we had to make some adjustments, but we were really determined after the half to close the scoring gap,” she added.

Yale dominated in almost every facet of the game. Although the Crimson outscored the Bulldogs, 3-0, in the second half, those were the only three shots Harvard was able to get off in that frame.

After leading in shots on goal in each of its first three games this season, the Crimson was outshot by Yale, 18-5, in this contest.

The Crimson also managed to allow nine penalty corners by the Bulldogs to Harvard’s four.

Despite the Bulldogs’ first-half performance, freshman goalkeeper Cynthia Tassopoulos stood strong with eight saves for the game, including six in Harvard’s second-half comeback run.

“We were really proud of our second half, but we need to learn how to play a complete game at a good tempo,” Goodman-Bacon said. “Yale came out looking strong, and it definitely took us a while to adjust. We are going to have to get better at that throughout the season.”

“Especially when we are playing these games against competitive teams, everyone knows it’s going to be important to learn how to play seventy minutes as a team,” Goodman-Bacon continued.

Looking ahead to Wednesday’s game at No. 7 Connecticut (7-0), the Crimson wants to make sure that this disappointing loss doesn’t hinder the body of work it has achieved with its strong start to the season.

“I think that our first couple of games were successful because we really weren’t challenged too much,” Bannon said. “The rest of the season we’re going to be playing better teams, and the games will be a lot tougher, so we really need to make some adjustments and get used to playing faster and more complete games.”