Etzel Has Career Day as Crimson Draws Columbia, 0-0

­Come Saturday night’s close on Rocco B. Commisso Stadium in New York, N.Y., two things could be said:

Have a career game, Danielle Etzel. Have a career, Marie Becker, Caroline Chagares, Candy Janachowski, and Dani Stollar.

Led by junior goalkeeper Etzel’s stellar career performance between the pipes, the Harvard women’s soccer team (8-8-1, 2-4-1 Ivy League) closed out its season with a 0-0 double-overtime draw against Ivy League runner-up Columbia (9-5-2, 5-1-1).

Etzel was the wall that the Lions couldn’t get past.

Making a career-high 16 saves in 110 minutes, the Madison, Conn. native followed up her 13-stop performance last weekend with one of the finest shutout performances by a goalkeeper in the country this year. Etzel’s 16 saves were fifth-most by any netminder this season and tops in the Ivy League.

“She’s been purely awesome, she’s such a rock in goal,” Becker said. “Personally, as a center-back, I’m really sad I don’t get to play in front of her [any more], because right now she’s giving us a sense of security—that’s what you want from your goalkeeper.”

The entire Crimson defense had to batten down the hatches, too—Harvard resolutely withstood a barrage of 39 shots during the game, including 17 efforts in the first half. Etzel saved five shots on goal in overtime alone. With Columbia’s attacking unit firing on all cylinders, the Crimson also withstood nine total corner kicks.

“Our team was low on numbers…we had three subs and not all of them were healthy,” Becker said. “It was a grind and we knew it was going to be a grind, and I’m so, so, so proud of how the team did what the coaches asked: fight until the end and give it all you have.”

If there’s one game that’s a testament to the graduating class’s grit, it must be this one. The defensive struggle against one of the Ivy’s best programs closed out careers for Harvard’s class of 2018, a group of defensive stalwarts who have combined for 29 shutouts and 37 wins since the start of the 2014 season.

After Becker, Janachowski, and Stollar saw varying amounts of playing time as freshmen, Chagares joined their ranks as a sophomore during the 2015-16 season, and the four players have become a staple of the Crimson’s resilient midfield-backline ever since.

“All of them have really contributed immensely to the success of the program,” head coach Chris Hamblin said. “Marie and Candy have turned into high-level players…Dani came in [and won] Rookie of the Year…Caroline was injured for many parts of her career but [she was] a leader and a captain on and off the field.”

Put this alongside stellar goalkeeping performances like Etzel’s on Saturday, and one can understand how Saturday night’s game was a microcosm of the resolute defense that Harvard has played for years under the direction of the class of 2018.

“We’ve really been blessed to have those four on our program,” Hamblin said.

Off the field, too, the four seniors helped build a warm team culture that lifted the team’s spirits in both good and bad times. The Crimson didn’t win a championship in 2017, but the seniors will leave the squad in good position for the coming years, regardless.

“I’ve never seen a team so welcoming, so open,” Becker said. “There’s just support and love for each other…one of the greatest achievements of our class was just establishing a team culture of really being a family.”

On the offensive side of the pitch on Saturday, freshman forward Murphy Agnew, junior midfielder Leah Mohammadi, and Stollar took two shots apiece, totaling six for the game for the visitors. Those three players finished with the most points for Harvard in 2017-18.

Blossoming midway through the season, Agnew, who amassed four goals and five assists, led the team in season points. Her accomplishment marked the first time a rookie has been the program’s top points-getter since Midge Purce ’17 led the team in 2013-14. Mohammadi also chipped in a team-high 60 shots on the season, and her four goals and four assists were good for a new career-high in points.

The incoming class also stepped up in a few spots this year—freshman defender/midfielder Linda Liedel recorded two goals on the year, one against then-No.17 Princeton, and fellow rookie defender Maria DiMartinis contributed three assists, playing in all but one of the Crimson’s games this season.

Saturday’s outcome extended a streak of good results for Harvard against Columbia, as it now holds a 9-0-1 record against the Lions in the last ten games and a 27-3-2 all-time lead. In addition, last year’s title-clinching 2-1 victory also came against Columbia.

This year, the visiting Crimson

successfully played the role of spoiler at the Lions’ expense. In order to tie for the Ivy League title, Columbia had needed to win to keep pace with Princeton, who had beaten Penn earlier in the day, 1-0, but the tie meant the Lions went home two points shy of the throne.

“We weren’t playing for the title, but we played like we were,” Hamblin said. “I was so proud of how the team stepped up against a team that was playing for everything.”

In their quest for a title, Columbia senior defender/forward Natalie Neshat fired off 10 shots on Saturday and junior netminder Sophie Whitehouse posted her sixth Ivy League shutout, but it wasn’t to be. Sensationally, Whitehouse and the Columbia defense only gave up one goal in all of conference play.

Despite these efforts, and despite upsetting Princeton on October 14, Columbia will have to watch as the Tigers dance into the NCAA tournament.

In a season that saw Harvard undergo some tough times on the pitch, including a 1-5 stretch at the start of Ivy play, ending the season with a hard-fought victory over Dartmouth and tie against a team vying for the title certainly have the Crimson looking up. Had Columbia won today’s matchup, they would have tied for the Ancient Eight crown with the Princeton Tigers.

“This was a tough year, for many reasons in regards to some of the challenges we faced, the injuries we had, and some of the losses we took,” Hamblin said. “We’re really proud we could do that [for our seniors]. [Our seniors] are incredible women and we’re going to miss them.”

As for the future of Harvard women’s soccer, the underclassmen already have the outgoing class’s vote of confidence.

“I’m more than positive that they’re going to take the Ivy League apart,” Becker said. “They’ve already shown their potential this year, and all the incredible freshmen growing into their roles and getting adjusted to college soccer, I’m so excited for.”

With an overall record of .500, Saturday’s tie also secured the Crimson its 11th-straight season with a record of .500 or better.