Defense Leads Scoring Charge

The No. 1 Harvard women’s hockey team proved worthy of its top ranking Friday afternoon, earning a victory over Ivy rival Brown. Led by an offensive onslaught from its defense, the Crimson (18-1-0, 15-0-0 ECAC) dominated the Bears (3-15-4, 2-10-3 ECAC), 4-1, at Meehan Auditorium.

Sophomore Kathryn Farni and junior Kati Vaughn, both defensemen, picked up their first goals of the season. Meanwhile, sophomore goaltender Christina Kessler—who has been making headlines with her defensive play—notched her first career assist on Farni’s score.

The game was marred by penalties, with each team racking up seven on the afternoon. And despite the final score, head coach Katey Stone was still disappointed with her team’s performance.

“I felt like we were complacent today,” Stone said. “We certainly didn’t play Harvard hockey.”

The Crimson came out fighting in the first period, notching its first goal during 4-on-4 play 13 minutes into the game. After Kessler made a save, she sent the puck to Farni, who took care of the rest. After bringing the puck up the length of the ice, she swatted it past Brown goalie Nicole Stock.

Four minutes later, freshman forward Liza Ryabkina added the eventual game-winning tally. The reigning ECAC Rookie of the Week was assisted on the play by classmate Leanna Coskren and sophomore Anna McDonald.

The Bears opened the second period with some scoring opportunities, and Harvard failed to capitalize on a power play five minutes into the frame.

But Crimson sophomore Randi Griffin changed that with 11:32 to play in the second. After freshman Kate Buesser’s shot was deflected off Stock’s pads, Griffin took control of the rebound and powered it into the back of the net.

The rest of the period brought a battle of the defenses, as both teams launched a barrage of unsuccessful shots. The Harvard defense made Kessler’s job a bit easier, taking away several breakaway opportunities.

The Crimson was forced to showcase its defensive skills again early in the third frame, as junior Sarah Vaillancourt was called for roughing just 11 seconds into the period—once again the Harvard penalty kill shut down Brown.

The Bears did not find as much luck playing shorthanded. Four minutes into the final period, Vaughn lifted a shot over a diving Stock to add an insurance goal for the Crimson. Vaillancourt and senior tri-captain Caitlin Cahow assisted on the play.

Brown refused to give up late in the third period, keeping steady pressure on the Harvard defense. The Crimson was able to survive a 5-on-3 disadvantage unscathed, thanks to excellent defensive play from Cahow, Vaillancourt, and junior Jenny Brine.

“Overall, they did a good job [on the penalty kill],” Stone said. “They did a nice job killing the 5-on-3.”

Harvard did not allow the Bears a single power play goal in seven chances.

But Stone was quick to point out that the team’s penalty kill unit shouldn’t have had as much time on the ice as it did on Friday.

“We’re taking too many penalties, in my opinion,” Stone said. “We just need to be a little bit more disciplined in that area of our game, and just have everybody be on their toes. I think we were sitting back on our heels a little bit today.”

That mental fatigue showed in the final minutes of the game.

Kessler was only a minute and 20 seconds away from her ninth shutout of the year when Brown captain Rylee Olewinski got a shot past her to bring the score to 4-1.

Kessler and her defense managed to hold the Bears to just the lone goal, despite an onslaught of shots in the closing seconds.

“It was a tough game on us because I feel that we were playing down to their level a little bit,” Ryabkina said. “But we pulled it out and won.”

—Staff writer Kate Leist can be reached at kleist@fas.harvard.edu.