Sheeleigh Proving To Be An Excellent Student-Athlete

After its loss against Dartmouth on Oct. 30, the Harvard women’s soccer team’s dreams of a third consecutive Ivy League title were effectively dashed. With nothing left on the line, it would have only been easy for the Crimson to see last Saturday’s matchup against Columbia—its conference finale—as an inconsequential game.

But that proved not to be the case, as co-captain Katherine Sheeleigh led her team to a conference victory for the last time in her career with a goal—her Ivy-League leading ninth goal of the season—in the second half of play.

With emotions running high for the players and fans, the seniors on the team took the field on Senior Day at Ohiri Field for what was their final home game in Harvard jerseys. The Lions, on the other hand, were eager to upstage the Crimson and rob Harvard’s seniors of a final home victory.

After accidentally gifting the Crimson with an own goal early in the first half, Columbia was determined to claw its way back. But by taking things into her own hands, the Harvard co-captain placed the game out of the Lions’ reach to lead her team to a 2-0 win.

In the 80th minute of play, junior forward Melanie Baskind threaded a pass from the midfield to the top of the box where the awaiting Sheeleigh slid down to blast a shot into the left portion of the net away from the Lion keeper. With Sheeleigh’s final career goal at Ohiri Field, the win was sealed for the Crimson.

“[The goal] felt really special,” Sheeleigh said. “It was the last game that we are going to play at Ohiri as a senior class, so it was just a really nice way to go out, especially with our parents and friends there…. Beating Columbia meant a lot to me and to the team, so I think that just to be a part of that was really awesome.”

In addition to her athletic aptitude, another skill of Sheeleigh’s that has caught the eye of countless individuals—including Harvard coach Ray Leone—was her ability to control her emotions and direct them towards her play.

“I think it was an emotional game for all the seniors,” Leone said. “I knew that a lot of memories were going through their heads while they were playing in the game, but I was really proud that Katherine was able to keep those emotions in check and play well.”

With her goal against Columbia, Sheeleigh secured her position at fifth on the Crimson’s all-time scoring list, a record that will only serve as a cherry on top of what has already become an illustrious career.

With two consecutive Ancient Eight titles, three All-Ivy First Team awards, and an Ivy League Rookie of the Year award already to her name, the Adams House resident ended last season as one of the most decorated players in the program’s history. And the performance of the Harvard co-captain this season has proven to be no different.

“For four years, Katherine has just been amazing,” Leone said. “She is such an incredible and competitive person. She has been determined since the first day that she got here, and she has never shied away from the highest level of competition. She gave everything that she had for the last four years.”

As the Ivy League’s goals and points season leader, Sheeleigh has been a tremendous asset to the Crimson. As a result, over the course of her athletic career, Sheeleigh has not only garnered the respect of numerous individuals in the Harvard and the Ancient Eight communities, she has also caught the eye of the NCAA. Earlier this year, Sheeleigh was nominated as a finalist for the 2010 Lowe’s Senior Class Award—a national award that honors one deserving Division-I senior student-athlete in each sport for their achievements during competition as well as in their collegiate community.

But despite all of these accolades, emotions, and memories from the past, Sheeleigh is only looking towards her final game in crimson at Fairfield on Thursday.

“I’m really excited for the next game where I can just have fun and just have a game where the pressure is off, and we can just play a game as a group of friends,” Sheeleigh said. “But at the same time, it is sad knowing that it will be the last time I will be putting on a Crimson jersey. But I’m glad that I can really look back and say that I’ve had the most amazing four years, and I realize that that is what matters the most.”