Field Hockey Beats Yale To Stay Perfect in Ivies

One week after dispatching Cornell 6-0 in a high noon contest in Ithaca, N.Y., the No. 17 Harvard field hockey team was dueling again on Saturday.

And this Ivy League showdown in New Haven, Conn.—give or take a few goals—turned out to be simply more of the same.

Harvard (9-3, 4-0 Ivy) defeated Yale (6-6, 2-1) 3-0 to remain perfect in Ivy play. The shutout victory is the Crimson’s fourth in its past six games, a stretch that dates back to its 1-0 win over Brown on Sept. 27.

Tri-captain goalkeeper Katie Zacarian led the defensive effort with six saves, including five in the second half to stave off a belated Bulldog rally.

Zacarian, already Harvard’s all-time career leader in shutouts, brought her record to an impressive 23.

“Katie has obviously been playing very well, and a big focus of our defense has been to limit shots and especially to limit the quality, high-percentage shots,” tri-captain back Jen Ahn said. “We gave up too many [penalty] corners today, but luckily Katie came up big.”

Zacarian herself quickly credits her stellar supporting cast.

“Everyone’s happy with the shutout—especially the goalie—but I really couldn’t have done it alone,” Zacarian said. “[Junior midfielder] Kate Gannon was key on corners, especially late in the second half as she boxed out really well. That was crucial, and huge for Kate.”

Zacarian also cited Gannon for stepping up in the second half when Ahn left the game after taking a stick to the head. Ahn is not expected to miss any games.

“It’s hard to replace the sweeper position, and especially hard to replace Jen,” Zacarian said.

Offensively, Harvard set the tone early, with two goals in the first three minutes of the game.

Senior forward Mina Pell netted the first on a penalty corner at 2:08, redirecting a hard shot by senior midfielder Liz Andrews.

A mere 50 seconds later, tri-captain midfielder Kate McDavitt one-timed her sixth goal of the year on an assist from Pell. The goal, McDavitt’s third in her past two games, puts her one behind Andrews for the team lead, reflecting a general resurgence from the tri-captain, who missed time early in the season due to injury.

“I had mono over the summer and was unable to train, so I think the fact that I have scored a few goals lately should be attributed to finally being healthy again, getting my endurance and stick skills back as well as my confidence with the ball,” McDavitt said.

The Crimson outshot Yale 26-11 and managed a 13-5 edge in penalty corners. Sophomore forward Beth Sackovich notched the game’s third and final goal at 40:31 to seal the win for the Crimson.

“Our fundamental skills have greatly improved over the season and it’s made a huge difference in finishing plays,” McDavitt said. “We are now able to get that final touch on the ball to put it in the net.”

Harvard now begins a challenging four-game home stand.

The Crimson will face No. 12 Boston College Wednesday before matching up with conference foe No. 11 Princeton on Saturday in one of its toughest stretches of the year.

“We look forward to the challenge and executing at our highest level, which we’ve yet to truly do for 70 minutes,” Zacarian said. “We’re looking forward to [making] a statement.”