As Crimson Falls, Princeton Clinches

Three for three? No such luck.

Winners of their last two Ivy League games, the Harvard women’s field hockey team traveled to Princeton on Saturday to try and make it three in a row.

Instead, they found a determined Tigers (8-6, 6-0 Ivy) squad which, unwilling to let the Crimson spoil its undefeated Ivy campaign, sent Harvard (2-13, 2-3 Ivy) home from the Class of 1952 Stadium with a 3-1 loss.

The Crimson got off to an encouraging start. Less than 10 minutes into the game, Harvard received a goal from senior midfielder Aline Brown off a corner from junior Devon Shapiro. The corner found Brown waiting on the right post, where she was able to chip in the first goal of the afternoon, her second of the year.

Had the outing continued like that, the Crimson may have handed Princeton its first Ivy League loss of the year. But the Tigers had different plans.

Only two minutes later, Princeton was awarded a free hit just past the midfield line.

Paige Schmidt found Leah Hoagland near the net, where she connected for the equalizer.

The Tigers never looked back. Princeton went on to score two unanswered goals in the second half, assuring it the victory.

The Tigers’ win, coupled with a Brown loss to Cornell later on Saturday, clinched the team’s second consecutive Ivy Leave title.

“They are historically a very strong team,” Shapiro said. “They go out hard and they execute.”

After being out-shot in the first half 10-7, the Crimson could muster just five shots to Princeton’s eight in the second frame.

“I think we had a great first half, maybe played a little defensively in the second half,” Brown said. “You can’t rest on one goal. You have to keep going.”

Despite the final score, Harvard was not lacking in effort.

“We were right there with them,” Shapiro said. “We needed to capitalize a little more, execute with a little more precision.”

“It was a great match up,” Brown added. “I think it could have gone either way.”

The loss dropped Harvard back below the .500 mark in Ivy play with just two games remaining—against the bottom teams in the Ivies, Colombia and Dartmouth, who have combined for a dismal record of 2-8.

To beat them, Harvard must continue to grow.

In recent weeks, the Crimson has started to more effectively move the ball from the midfield up to the forwards.

If all goes well for Harvard, the team will continue its progress and close out the season with wins in both contests.

“Our mid has stepped up and helped us transfer to our forward lines,” Shapiro said. “We are making progress. We have two weeks left and we are all looking forward to what can happen in those match-ups.”

Before closing out the Ivy season, the Crimson will resume play with a non-conference tilt against Boston University on Wednesday.