Lack of Consistent Offense Leads to Two Losses for Field Hockey

This past weekend marked a roller coaster performance for the Harvard women’s field hockey team. Despite strong play in its games against Cornell (8-4, 3-1 Ivy) on Saturday and New Hampshire (6-8, 2-2 American East) on Sunday, the Crimson (7-5, 2-2 Ivy) dropped both games, and slipped into a tie for fourth in the Ivy League standings.

Bouncing back a bit from its 1-0 loss to Cornell on the road and a slow first half against the Wildcats, the Crimson rallied back to play significantly more aggressively and more cohesively in the second half of the game on Sunday. The lone goal of the weekend came from junior forward Marissa Balleza off a turnover caused by senior Elizabeth Jacobson with only two minutes left on the clock, but it wasn’t enough to secure a comeback.

“It’s been a tough weekend for the whole entire team with the traveling,” Harvard coach Tjerk van Herwaarden said. “It’s about making the best of it, and I think yesterday the first half we played really well, and today we had moments where we played really well, so hopefully this sets up well for a good final weeks of the season.”

NEW HAMPSHIRE 3, HARVARD 1

After Balleza’s goal in the 68th minute, Harvard dominated the circle in a desperate scuffle to find the net. With only seconds left, co-captain midfield Caroline Code sliced the ball towards the net, but was ultimately thwarted by UNH goalie Kelsey Rudert.

The final minutes of play, however, were indicative of the energy that the Crimson maintained throughout the tight second half. Harvard ultimately came out with 10 shots on goal compared to the Wildcats’ seven, three from Balleza and two from Jacobson.

“It was obviously a disappointment losing, but I think we came back, and we came out hard,” Balleza said. “I don’t think the score really reflected how we played, because we played a lot better than we have been playing.”

The game started with a slow first half for Harvard, giving UNH four penalty corners. The Wildcats also scored all three of their goals in the first half

“Once we realized we were down three goals and they were three goals scored on corners, we could still be in it if we wanted to,” Balleza said. “Obviously it’d be a battle, but I think we were up for it.”

A strong midfield carried the team, creating opportunities for Harvard. A long pass from sophomore midfield Ellie Cookson allowed freshman forward Kathleen Young to drive the ball up the field early in the second half. With the ball in the possession of Crimson offense, Balleza and junior forward Sarah Finnemore fired two back to back shots on goal, but just could not convert.

“I think we had great intent, a great attitude,” van Herwaarden said. “We worked really hard and it’s unfortunate that in the moment that it needs to happen we were just coming up a little short.”

CORNELL 1, HARVARD 0

Aggressive offensive attacks marked the game against Cornell in Ithaca on Saturday, with a total of 88 fouls called—49 on Harvard and 39 on the Big Red. Despite solid defense from the Crimson, including five saves from senior keeper Issy Davies and a defensive save from Code, Cornell ultimately overpowered Harvard.

“It was a bit of a frustrating game,” Balleza said. “Especially the second half, because we came out really strong in the first half.”

The Big Red found the back of the net in the 47th minute. After a save from Davies, Cornell sophomore Krysten Mayers capitalized off a penalty corner and fired the ball to the far post. Mayers ended the game with four shots, all of which were on goal.

“The first half we really dominated, [with] good energy and good aggression on the ball,” van Herwaarden said. “In the second half, Cornell got a better grip on the game, they got a little stronger, they let in a goal and unfortunately we weren’t able to get one back.”

In the last 20 seconds of the game, the Crimson was awarded a penalty corner and had one last chance for an equalizer. Jacobson tried for the back of the net, but her shot was deflected by Cornell defender Sam McIlwrick.

“The outcomes are not fantastic, but I think the energy and the level of play that we showed definitely gave us a positive outlook for the next couple of weeks,” van Herwaarden said.