Harvard Women’s Soccer Misses Ivy League Tournament After Late Columbia Equalizer

Columbia converted a late goal in the final four minutes to force a 2-2 tie with Harvard women’s soccer, ending the Crimson’s hopes of securing its third Ivy League Tournament bid in four years on Saturday.

Harvard (9-4-3, 3-2-2 Ivy League) entered the final Ancient Eight match of the season in a four-way race for the remaining three spots alongside Columbia, Dartmouth, and Princeton. Brown had already clinched a spot, and the Lions took to Jordan Field on a five-game undefeated streak — including four consecutive wins before drawing with the Tigers last Saturday.

Though a win would’ve locked the Crimson’s place in the playoffs, a tie would’ve still been enough if Brown drew or defeated Princeton. Unfortunately for Harvard, the Tigers scored their game-winning goal just minutes after Columbia’s equalizer to beat the Bears 1-0.

Crimson senior defender Amy König scored her first career goal in the seventh minute, converting a rebound from her penalty — the team’s 10th goal this season within the first 15 minutes. Sophomore midfielder Elsa Santos López then scored her first goal of the season, converting off a corner kick 10 minutes into the second half.

Before the game, the Crimson celebrated its seven graduating seniors as part of Senior Day. All seven were freshmen when Harvard won the inaugural Ivy League Tournament in 2023 — and all were in the top-11 of minutes played this season, including all of the top-four.

“I’m incredibly proud of the senior class. They’ve given so much to Harvard soccer over the years, and they’ve built the program up to where we’re back on the map,” head coach Chris Hamblin said. “We’ve had a very strong beginning of the season, and they were a big part of that. This is heartbreaking for the entire group, and especially the seniors, to be so close — especially the way it unfolded and the results happening so late in the other games.”

Despite missing the tournament, Harvard still provided many highlights throughout the regular season. It secured its highest-ranked victory in program history by beating then-No. 6 University of Alabama in a 10-goal thriller, as part of a seven-game win and nine-game undefeated streak.

The Crimson peaked at No. 19 in the national rankings, its first top-25 ranking in the IWSOC Coaches’ Poll since 2023. Harvard recorded a dominant 6-0 shutout against the University of New Hampshire for its largest margin of victory since October of 2022 against Yale.

After beginning Ivy play with statement victories, including scoring four goals against both Princeton and Cornell, Harvard faced a difficult stretch of conference play — including a standout defensive performance by Brown and playing a player down in a 3-3 tie against Penn last week.

The team will look forward to returning freshman forward Brooke Huleatt, who ended the season with 11 goals — the most scored by a Harvard player in a single season since Margaret “Midge” Purce ’17 recorded 12 goals in 2016. The rookie also led the team with seven assists, and three of her classmates also finished in the top-13 for minutes with one goal and one assist.

“The last couple of years we have not performed as well as we wanted to, and we’ve raised the bar this year in a lot of ways,” Hamblin said. “We obviously didn’t turn out where we wanted to be in regards to reaching our goals.”

“When the dust settles — and it’s going to be painful for a long time — we’ll be able to find all the positives that we were able to accomplish,” the coach added. “We’re going to have some growth moments because there are areas where we can be better. But now is not the time for that. The time right now is to celebrate our seniors.”

Captain and forward Ólöf Kristinsdóttir concluded her Ivy career with 10 goals and four assists, while senior midfielder Jasmine Leshnick and captain Anna Rayhill were the only two players to play in all 16 matches across 1265 minutes.

“All of the seniors have earned the opportunity to continue to play if they so wish, and we’re very proud of that,” Hamblin said. “This group has definitely left their mark and their legacy.”

Rayhill — the reigning Ivy Defensive Player of the Week and a member of the 2026 Hermann Trophy Midseason Watch List — began the game by continuing the Crimson’s characteristic dominance down the right wing, though the Lions met several of the early chances with clearances.

After freshman defender Claire Kessenger received a red card against the Quakers, captain Írena Héðinsdóttir Gonzalez joined König in the centerback pairing. Typically a midfielder, the Icelandic native acted as a key distributor of the Crimson’s possession — alongside four additional midfielders who started the match.

On the other wing, Huleatt earned the team’s first corner of the game. After Harvard continued to cycle possession, Huleatt drew a foul on the top corner of the box — setting up the penalty opportunity for König. Though Columbia’s junior goalie Samantha Mahoney pushed the ball off the post, König met the rebounding ball for the 1-0 lead.

Three minutes later, the Lions’ first attack of the half came through a counterattack down the right wing. Senior midfielder Anya Van Den Einde stopped the attack, but drew a yellow card in the process, providing the Lions with a free kick opportunity from Harvard’s logo near the top right corner of the box.

Off the free kick, the ball ricocheted off a defender’s attempted clear — falling to Columbia sophomore midfielder Krystal Medina for the one-touch volley into the top right corner to equalize.

Though the Crimson continued to dominate possession in its offensive territory, the Lions consistently obstructed potential scoring chances through their defensive recoveries and clearances. Columbia, meanwhile, attempted to capitalize on the resulting counterattacks — leading to Santos López drawing Harvard’s second yellow card for her foul.

Leshnick, winning several tackles in midfield, partnered with Rayhill on the right wing and attempted to provide depth to build toward Huleatt and freshman counterpart Molly Vana through the Lions’ backline.

The Crimson’s attacks down the wings resulted in an advantage of five corners to Columbia’s single corner, which came in the final four minutes — though the eventual shot fell wide, as part of a late Lions offensive spark in the final 15 minutes due to several offensive turnovers from Harvard.

Two free kicks for Columbia provided its final chances of the half, with the second attempt forcing freshman goalie Olivia Busby to dive for her first save.

The corner-kick advantage temporarily shifted at the beginning of the second half, as the Lions secured three consecutive corners amid a stretch of possession.

Harvard then responded with three straight corners of its own, with the latter resulting in its second goal of the game. To win the third corner, Kristinsdóttir beat two defenders and fired a shot toward the bottom corner to force a save.

On the ensuing corner, Van Den Einde whipped the ball into the box, with players from both teams meeting the ball and clustering on the goal line. Amid the chaos, the ball fell to Santos López, who slotted the ball into the net for Harvard’s 2-1 lead 55 minutes into the game.

Van Den Einde continued her momentum from the assist to dispel several attacks down Columbia’s right side. The Crimson, meanwhile, found several through balls but struggled to find the space for the final scoring opportunity.

The visitors continued to dominate possession in the midfield, winning tackles in the midfield and recovering Harvard’s clearances. Despite winning some distance free kicks, the Lions often opted to play it quickly and continued to cycle the ball between its wings — attempting to locate an offensive breakthrough while responding to the Crimson’s attempts to capitalize on its limited counterattacks.

Faced with increased offensive pressure, Hamblin made several defensive adjustments in hopes of preserving the advantage. Senior defender Susie Long replaced Huleatt, Héðinsdóttir Gonzalez shifted to the wings, while sophomore defender Phoebe Chadwick — a consistent defensive presence for the home team since its defensive battle with Dartmouth — joined König in the center.

Unfortunately for Harvard, the Lions eventually broke through from a one-touch cross from the right wing into the box. The Crimson’s attempted clears fell to junior midfielder Gabby Chan, who buried the ball in the top right corner in the final four minutes.

Harvard attempted to recover offensively but ultimately struggled to generate additional scoring chances through the limited time remaining.

Dartmouth won its first outright Ivy League regular season title since 2003 and will host this year’s tournament in Hanover, N.H., with an opening match against Brown on Nov. 12. Columbia and Princeton will meet on the other side of the bracket.

Harvard’s hopes of continuing its season will come from the NCAA Division I women’s soccer selection show on Nov. 16, where it will hope to secure one of 33 at-large bids to the National Tournament. Before its draw against Columbia, the Crimson was ranked 42nd in RPI — a factor that may strengthen its case for an opportunity to play on the national stage.

“Anytime you have a chance to reflect, that’s important — think about what we can evolve and improve, and what areas we can take some strides in,” Hamblin said. “There’s a lot to be proud of with this group, and we’ve really enjoyed some great memories together this year.”

“There’s a lot of pain, a lot of hurt, a lot of frustration. But that’s what happens when you care, and you pour your heart and soul into something you care so much about. It hurts a lot when it doesn’t go the way you hoped,” he added. “And as a coach, you just want your players to be able to pour everything into it, and they did that. I’m so proud of them, and I’m disappointed that they’re not going to get to play in the Ivy League Tournament.”

—Staff writer Uy B. Pham can be reached at [email protected] or on Signal at ubp.88. Follow him on X @uybpham.