The Passionate Warriors

TROY, N.Y.--I was worried.

Worried that the passion was gone, the love for the game lost.

Alright, perhaps it was a bit premature.

The past few Harvard men's hockey games have been as free from emotion as your average championship chess match.

Sure, defeat usually does that to a team, but not a pumped fist could be found in the last few games.

Where was the emotion? Where was that 10,000 men spirit?

Needless to say, you could see the emotion spill out upon the Houston Field House ice last night, as the Crimson held on for perhaps the biggest victory of the year, a 5-3 defeat of RPI.

Is it the road that helps? "Well, it's nice to get away from Harvard," junior defenseman Peter McLaughlin said. "You can concentrate on the task at hand and not worry about handing in problem sets."

Did someone say Steve Martins wasn't playing with the usual gusto this year? Ah, bite your tongue.

Just watch him flip a pretty shot into the top corner of the Engineer goalie and skate away in wild celebration--swinging arms, pumping fists, and glaring at his fallen enemy.

"It's important for our team to be psyched about every goal we score," Martins said. "It really helps morale."

Want another Martins goal? You got one.

The Crimson power play finally let loose, and at last the bounces went Harvard's way. When Martins fired the puck home, the whole unit skated away with arms raised.

"I made a little extra effort [for emotion], at times, but it definitely helps out and puts the other team down," Martins said.

Harvard wasn't even done.

Bryan Lonsinger threaded the needle again from the point, and guess what? Pumping fists! Even the bench roared, for the drought had ended--finally.

"[On the power play], we just tried to put the puck on net," Tomassoni said. "Once you get that first one, it just seems to give everybody a boost...it's infectious."

Even Tripp Tracy showed an incredible amount of emotion last night, constantly congratulating teammates, the junior reveled in a rink he never thought he would ever play in again.

And what about the emotion of the defense?

Once again, the bruising blueliners kept speedy forwards in check, and just gave that little bit extra.

"We were fired up to play," junior defenseman Peter McLaughlin said. "This game was for third place; coach hammered that into our heads all week and we responded well."

If there ever was a house of emotion, it was Houston Field House.

But after three consecutive power play goals, the 4,200 plus emitted only a deafening silence.

Maybe the building hasn't been kind to the Crimson of late, but perhaps coach Ronn Tomassoni--an RPI grad himself--put it best. "We've beaten them at the right times, and tonight was one of those times."