Harvard Women’s Lacrosse Stuns No. 14 Penn on Home Turf

On a cold and rainy afternoon at Jordan Field, the Harvard women’s lacrosse team fought for a thrilling upset against the No. 14 Penn Quakers. The Crimson, spurred by an electric behind-the-back goal from captain Annabel Child, earned a statement 10-8 win on its home turf. The victory marks Harvard’s third win over a ranked opponent, and its first triumph over the Quakers since 2022.

Following Harvard’s (7-4, 2-2 Ivy) tough loss to No. 17 Brown just last weekend, the bounce-back win against Penn (6-4, 2-1 Ivy) was a crucial step for the Crimson, which looks to keep its Ivy League Tournament hopes alive. Harvard’s performance reaffirmed the Crimson as a serious contender in the highly competitive Ivy League conference.

Senior goaltender Lizzie Francioli reflected on the team’s preparation after the loss against Brown.

“A big focus this week in practice was making sure that we were prepared for anything and could play cohesively under pressure,” Francioli said. “We repped out a lot of different scenarios to simulate the different offensive plays that Penn might throw our way, which left us feeling extremely prepared going into today.”

The Harvard team did look composed under Penn’s pressure, as junior Charlotte Hodgson tallied the first goal of the game within the first minute of play, putting the Crimson ahead on the scoreboard early.

Penn’s Catherine Berkery, the niece of Harvard’s Women’s Lacrosse legend Liz Berkery Drury ‘93, responded quickly for the visiting team. The Quakers struck three more times in the first quarter, but a pair of goals from Grace Mullahy and another point from her sister Caroline Mullahy kept the score locked in a 4-4 tie.

The Crimson’s aggressive ride was very effective in slowing down Penn’s offensive momentum, as the team was unable to capitalize on a fast break opportunity. Harvard’s defensive unit also did a stellar job of restricting the Quakers’ top scorers, including senior Anna Brandt, who leads her team with an impressive 33 goals this season.

“We also have an amazing scout attack team,” Francioli explained. “I want to make sure to give so much credit to them, because they pushed us all week and helped us adapt our defensive strategy.”

The Crimson’s gritty defense was able to hold Brandt and Berkery to only two and three goals, respectively, effectively shutting down two of Penn’s most dominant offensive players.

Harvard’s offense, on the other hand, had a very successful first quarter and was able to outshoot the Quakers 8-6.

Hodgson pulled down the draw control to start the second quarter of play, driving the ball upfield and into offensive territory. Captain Charley Meier notched her first of the afternoon, off a feed from freshman Tori Blaser, giving the team a 5-6 lead.

A foul on Penn’s Natasha Gorrarian inside the circle then put the ball back into the hands of the Crimson. Meier, a Wilmette, Ill., native, quickly struck again for the home team, tallying her 14th goal of the season.

After both Francioli and Penn’s goalkeeper Orly Sedransk came up with big saves for their respective teams, Penn was able to regain possession and earn a free-position shot on Harvard’s 8-meter. Although Harvard’s defense collapsed quickly on Regan O’Brien, she was able to score.

As the clock buzzed to signal the end of the half, the scoreboard read 6-5 in favor of the Crimson.

While the conditions on the field grew slicker in the rain, the level of play only intensified on Jordan Field in the second half of the game.

Berkery opened up the scoring, firing two quick goals and giving Penn a 7-6 lead.

Brandt won the following draw and flung the ball back toward Francioli in the net, who made the save, but a Penn attacker was able to scoop up the ground ball. Harvard’s Blaser was called with shooting space, which put O’Brien on the 8-meter line for a free-position shot.

Francioli made yet another save and cleared the ball back to her offense. Caroline Mullahy dished the ball to her co-captain, Meier, who found the back of the net for the third time and evened the score at 7-7.

“We really have to be prepared for anything with this Boston weather we’ve been having,” Francioli said when asked about the dreary weather’s effect on the game. “We also had a really rainy practice on Thursday, so that helped prepare us for the conditions as well.”

The Crimson certainly appeared well acquainted with the wild New England weather, as it did not seem concerned about the worsening conditions as it deftly evened the score.

The Quakers scored their last goal of the game early in the fourth quarter, as Brandt capitalized on a free-position shot. After winning the resulting draw control, Brandt turned the ball over to the Crimson, as Blaser had a stellar defensive check.

Harvard’s Ellie Chen, another freshman, snatched up the ground ball. As Chen completed the clear back to Blaser, the Crimson had another turnover and Penn regained possession.

In the face of defender Anna Andrews on the goal line, the Quakers were unable to move the ball around the 12-meter efficiently. By slowing down Penn’s rush, Andrews, the senior allowed her defensive team to set up properly.

“I also just give a ton of credit to my defense today, they are the ones who put all the pressure on the shooters to make my job easier,” Francioli said. “I thought our overall defensive communication was amazing today, and we really played as a unit, which helped us be able to send momentum to the offense.”

Harvard’s defense thwarted Penn’s comeback efforts, stifling the attackers inside the 8-meter shooting range and forcing shooters to take awkward, off-angle shots.

As the Quakers sent another shot far to the left of the goalpost, the Crimson drove the ball back up the field. Caroline Mullahy, the new Ivy League record holder for the most career assists, sent a feed to Hannah Shiels, who flung it home. The contest was now locked 8-8 as the clock dwindled closer to zero.

With the game knotted up at a tie and the rain still coming down, Child scooped up the following draw control and charged upfield. She pushed the ball to Callie Batchelder and then cut to the goal. Batchelder sent a crisp feed back to Child, who grabbed the ball and sent it over her back and into the net. The Crimson fans and the Harvard bench both erupted into cheers, celebrating the defender’s highlight-reel go-ahead goal.

The Penn team tried to respond to Child’s success, but was called for a dangerous shot. Harvard, now riding high on momentum, used its possession to tally another point.

Hodgson sniped the last goal of the game, and her 22nd of the season, securing the 10-8 upset win.

It even looked like the Crimson might sneak another point past Penn’s defenders, as Grace Mullahy executed a couple of tricky fakes before sending a last shot toward Sedransk in the last second of the game.

Sedransk saved the shot, but it did not matter. The Harvard team rushed the field, celebrating an enormous win at home.

The Crimson is now 2-2 in Ivy League play, tied with Cornell for fifth place in the conference. Next weekend, the two teams will face off in Ithaca, in what is sure to be a tough battle. Both Harvard and the Big Red are striving for a chance to compete in the Ivy League Tournament, but only the top four teams in the conference will have an opportunity to vie for the trophy.

Cornell (8-4, 2-2 Ivy) dropped a tight 12-11 contest against No. 7 Princeton today. Harvard had a tough loss against Princeton about a month ago, but beat Dartmouth 14-8. Notably, the Big Red lost 12-10 to Dartmouth last week. Therefore, the upcoming game will undoubtedly be a good one.

“It was a huge team win, but we’re not done yet.” exclaimed Francioli. “We are now setting our sights on our remaining three Ivy games so that we can chase our goal of an Ivy League Championship.”

Tune in to ESPN+ at noon on Saturday, Apr. 12th, to watch the Harvard Crimson take on the Cornell Big Red on Schoellkopf Field.

– Staff Writer Isabel C. Smail can be reached at isabel.smail@thecrimson.com