Late Goals Help Crimson Get Revenge Over Big Green

Less than three minutes into the third period of last night’s contest in Hanover, N.H., the Harvard women’s hockey team (6-4, 6-2 ECAC) went down a goal to Ivy League rival Dartmouth (5-5-1, 4-3-1), as the Big Green broke the two teams a 0-0 stalemate.

But the Crimson would not be denied retribution for a 3-2 Dartmouth upset on Nov. 23, as two Harvard sophomores—forwards Elizabeth Parker and Lyndsey Fry—scored midway through the final frame to help Harvard earn its first Ancient Eight victory of the 2011-2012 season, 2-1.

“It was a pretty even game,” Fry said. “Play was back and forth. If you look at the stats about shots and time in other zones, it’s really even. It just came down to a final gut check for us in the third.”

Down, 1-0, midway through the final period, sophomore defenseman Marissa Gedman placed a shot on frame after receiving a pass from freshman defenseman Sarah Edney in the thirteenth minute.

The attempt was deflected by Big Green goaltender Lindsay Holdcroft, but Parker collected the rebound and netted her third goal of the season to tie it up for the Crimson at 12:52.

Riding on the momentum from the game-tying tally, Fry netted a goal of her own at 13:57 to give the Crimson its first lead of the game, deflecting a shot from junior defenseman Kelsey Romatoski into the back of the net.

“[The] goals were pretty similar,” Gedman said. “We’ve been focusing on rebounds, because we had been so close [in recent games] and hadn’t been burying shots. We buried pucks in the net tonight. They were dirty goals, but a goal is a goal.”

Although the first few frames were scoreless, neither team was without on-goal opportunities in the evenly fought contest. Harvard earned some of its best chances on the net after Camille Dumais was sent to the penalty box—her second trip to the box in the second period of Wednesday’s game—at 16:10 for checking.

The Crimson racked up three shots on goal during the subsequent power play and earned the last shot on goal of the period soon after the penalty expired.

But despite momentum tilting in Harvard’s direction at the start of the third, Dartmouth was the first to capitalize, as Big Green senior forward Kelly Foley converted a pass from teammate Ali Winkle at 2:49 in the third period.

Junior goaltender Laura Bellamy earned 25 saves in the Crimson’ victory, as Harvard claimed a slight 27-25 edge in shots on goal.

“Lou [Bellamy] is an extraordinary kid,” Gedman said. “She’s always working hard on and off the ice. She’s an excellent student and really dedicated to the sport. … She really came ready to play. It’s not a mistake that she played well for us tonight. She deserves all the praise she’s been getting.”

The Crimson also earned a narrow advantage in faceoffs, winning 24 to Dartmouth’s 21.

One week ago, Harvard met the Big Green in its second Ivy League matchup of the year. Despite the Crimson scoring during the first minute of play, the Big Green came out on top in that contest.

“We definitely didn’t feel like we should have lost that last game,” Fry said. “We felt we were the better team and definitely wanted revenge tonight. I think that was our goal going into this game. Dartmouth considers us their biggest competition, so we didn’t want give them the satisfaction [of beating us]. Losing to them at home definitely left a bitter taste in our mouth.”

“We had a bit of a chip on our shoulder because we lost to them a week ago,” Gedman added. “That definitely fueled us going into the game [on Wednesday]. Obviously we were pleased with the win. It wasn’t our best game, but the mark of a good team is being able to win when you don’t play your best.”

The victory against the Big Green snaps the Crimson out of a three-game losing streak, including two dropped contests this weekend to No. 2 Minnesota and Harvard’s previous loss to Dartmouth.

“We really needed that win,” Fry said. “We only have two games left until Christmas. If we can just keep going from here and get those next two wins, we’ll be in a good position.”

—Staff writer Catherine E. Coppinger can be reached at ccoppinger@college.harvard.edu.