Field Hockey's Upset Bid Comes Up Short Against Princeton

“We competed for 70 minutes, and at the end, the fact that it was just not enough was painful,” Harvard women’s field hockey coach Tjerk van Herwaarden said.

Carrying his young son on his shoulders, Van Herwaarden held his head high. His embattled Crimson (7-6, 2-3 Ivy) came within minutes of upsetting No. 20 Princeton (8-5, 5-0) at Jordan Field, falling 2-1 in the end.

“I’m really proud of the team—we played our hearts out, and it just wasn’t quite there today,” co-captain and midfielder Caroline Code said.

With its Ivy League position on the line, Harvard rebounded from two losses last weekend with an inspired start to Saturday afternoon’s game. After taking the lead late in the first half, the Crimson defense held on until late into the second half before conceding the equalizer and game-winner in succession.

Just over seven minutes into the game, freshman forward Kathleen Young had the first opportunity of the game. A pass from outside the circle squirted onto her stick, and Young had the presence of mind to fake a shot and round Princeton’s senior goalkeeper Anya Gersoff. With the open net in front of her, however, Young was unable to wrap her stick around the ball, allowing the Tigers defense to recover.

With 12 minutes remaining in the first half, however, the Crimson’s pressure paid dividends. After Young won Harvard’s third penalty corner of the half, senior forward Elizabeth Jacobson took the ensuing pass and put a nifty backhand on goal. The rebound fell right to Young, who scored her fourth goal of the season by ramming the ball past Gersoff.

“Kathleen is doing fantastic,” Van Herwaarden said. “She’s having the right impact, and it’s clear that she’s part of the United States U-19 national team for a good reason. I cannot wait to keep her developing.”

After the goal, Princeton looked determined to retake control of the game. Led by freshman forward Sophia Tornetta and sophomore Ryan McCarthy, the Tigers began to dominate possession and dictate the pace of the game. They were able to win a few penalty corners in the last seven minutes of the first half, forcing Crimson senior goalkeeper Issy Davies to make a few saves.

First, Davies sticked away a rifling shot from junior Tigers defender Hailey Reeves after a penalty. Then, with just three minutes remaining in the half, McCarthy picked a Crimson defender’s pocket deep in Harvard territory, slaloming into the penalty area before getting off a shot headed for the bottom corner. The experienced Davies stuck out a pad to deflect the effort, preserving Harvard’s lead.

“[Izzy]’s been amazing,” Code said. “She’s pulled up the team as a senior and a goalie. She’s the backbone of the defense. She’s held up her end of the deal really well.”

Princeton came out of the halftime locker room a different team, creating chances inside Harvard’s area and winning a number of penalty corners. After a string of Davies saves, the Tigers finally broke through with 12:20 remaining in the game. Senior striker Maddie Copeland converted a penalty corner from the left side of the area to the bottom right corner, evading the defense and then placing the ball past Davies.

The game deadlocked from their, with neither side able to take full control of the final 10 minutes. With six minutes left in the game, Young made a run through the Princeton defense, weaving in between defenders and using her speed to get in behind the last defender. With the crowd ready to celebrate and only the goalie in front of her, the ball just slipped from her stick, allowing Gersoff to stick it away and clear the danger.

Young’s run was the closest the Crimson would get to a potential score for the rest of the game, and eventually Princeton’s high volume of penalty corners bore fruit, with Copeland converting her second of the game and giving the Tigers the winning goal.

“This whole entire season, we’ve been rebounding well,” Van Herwaarden said. “Last week was a tough weekend, and we knew Princeton was going to be a tough opponent, and we came out and gave it everything we got, which is the one thing you can ask for.”