Harvard Women’s Soccer Excels in Opening Weeks of Play

The Harvard women’s soccer team (2-0-1, 0-0 Ivy) kicked off its season with a hot start this fall, finding its groove in important early match-ups against Marshall, UMass Amherst, and Northeastern. The latter came in a decisive 4-0 victory on Monday. In that game against the Huskies, the team showcased the depth of its roster, with all four of its goals being netted by different Crimson players.

Although the Crimson was ranked 19th in Top Drawer Soccer’s Preseason Power Rankings, due to strict Ivy League regulations the team was prevented from training and competing as early as similarly top-ranked teams. Despite the delayed start, in its home-opening game on Jordan Field, Harvard set the tone for the year with a 1-0 win over the Marshall Thundering Herd. Captain Josephine Hasbo notched the sole goal of the game thanks to a beautiful assist from freshman Sarah Lloyd.

“Starting later than other D1 programs is difficult because we have less time to focus on details before the first couple of games,” said sophomore midfielder Anya Van Den Einde. “Marshall was a good game to start the season with,” she said. “It definitely was not our best game, but we showed a lot of grit defensively and were able to get the win.”

Harvard looked to continue its success in its next contest, away against UMass Amherst. The Minutewomen posed a challenge for the Crimson, as UMass is a competitive team that also plays on a grass field. Comparatively, Jordan Field, the home to both of Harvard’s soccer teams, is a turf field. For the Crimson, a team that relies on its skill at a fast pace, the change in surfaces forced Chris Hamlin, the Branca Family Head Coach for Harvard Women’s Soccer, to make some mid-game alterations.

“We knew it was going to be difficult because it was on a grass field which slows the game down a lot,” Van Den Einde said. “We had a slow start to the game but really turned it around in the second half when we switched formations. It created more space for midfielders to get on the ball.”

Harvard made a valiant rally in the second half of play, firing 13 shots in the final half in comparison to UMass’s five. Unfortunately for the Crimson, the team was unable to capitalize on any of its 10 corner kicks in the last 45 minutes of gametime. Harvard’s biggest struggle was ensuring that its shots reached the net: out of 17 total shots made by Harvard, Minutewomen goalie Bella Mendoza was only forced to save two. The final score of the game was an anticlimactic 0-0.

After the disappointing contest against UMass, Harvard stormed Northeastern’s Parsons Field in Boston hungry to earn a win on September 2. The Crimson’s appetite for victory was evident in the team’s abundant scoring opportunities, as it totaled a whopping 24 shots — 14 of which were on goal — compared to the Huskies’ seven shots, only four of which made it to the net. Although the Northeastern goaltenders — sophomore Eliza Teplow, and later graduate student Sophia Teresia Augustin — posted an impressive 10 combined saves through both halves of play, their stellar performances were not enough to shut down the offensive onslaught of the Crimson.

Freshman forward Laura Muniz scored her first collegiate goal and the first goal of the game in the final minute before the halftime break. Sophomores Anna Rayhill, Jasmine Leshnick, and Van Den Einde all then added to the scoreboard in the second half, continuing the Crimson’s offensive dominance and sealing the win for Harvard.

“Everything was really starting to click,” Van Den Einde said of the second half. “From the start we were creating dangerous chances and luckily we were able to score some amazing goals.”

While the offensive end of the field was able to drive home the victory at Northeastern, the effective teamwork between the defensive backs has helped keep the Crimson’s opponents scoreless through three contests so far this season. Spurred by senior defender Jade Rose — who most recently showed her skills playing for the Canadian women’s soccer team in the Paris Olympic Games — the defensive unit has started to find its groove. Entering this season, the Crimson was forced to adjust to a few key losses from the talented 2024 class, including goaltender Anna Karpenko ’24, midfielder Hannah Bebar ’24, and defender Smith Hunter ’24, amongst others. Karpenko and Bebar are both continuing their collegiate soccer careers by pursuing fifth years and currently play for Georgetown and Duke, respectively.

Filling Karpenko’s place is junior netminder Rhiannon Stewart, who started in just one contest and appeared in only two games last season behind the talented Karpenko. Stewart, the London native and former U18-U19 England National Team player, has proved her worth during the first three games of this season, recording three straight shutouts. For her success so far, Stewart earned the title of Harvard Student Athlete of the Week, presented by The Harvard COOP.

The Crimson will travel across the Charles River to continue its away-game streak on Thursday, September 5, to take on Boston University. The Terriers are currently 0-3-2 this season, and Harvard hopes to extend its winning momentum before taking on No. 20 Pepperdine (3-2-1) at home on Sunday. The Waves will be tough competition for the Crimson, especially after upsetting No. 3 UCLA 1-0 on September 1.

Tune in to ESPN+ at 7:00 pm EST later today to watch the Crimson play against the Boston University Terriers.

—Staff writer Isabel Smail can be reached at isabel.smail@thecrimson.com.

—Staff writer Katharine Forst can be reached at katharine.forst@thecrimson.com.