Marisa Romeo leads Harvard with 22 goals this spring (Ted Keating).

NEW HAVEN, Conn. – Rookie Marisa Romeo established a new career-best with five goals, netting three free-position goals, as the Harvard women's lacrosse team defeated archrival Yale, 11-8, Saturday afternoon.

Audrey Todd and Megan Hennessey each tallied two scores, while Hennessey also paced the Crimson (4-3, 2-1 Ivy League) with five draw controls. Goalie Kelly Weis made eight stops, and Marina Burke collected three ground balls for Harvard. Nicole Daniggelis recorded a hat trick, and goalie Erin McMullen turned aside seven shots in a losing effort for the Bulldogs (5-2, 1-2).

After trailing 2-0 early on, Harvard took its first lead, 4-3, at the 14:57 mark of the first half and never looked back. The Crimson was nearly perfect on clear attempts (12-of-13) and held the advantage in ground balls, 13-8, and shots, 25-21.

Harvard Highlights:

• Marisa Romeo surpassed her previous career-high of four goals by tallying five scores.
• Romeo has scored multiple goals in six of seven games this spring.
• Megan Hennessey led Harvard with five draw controls, while adding two goals. Hennessey has four multi-goal games this season.
• Audrey Todd also netted two goals for Harvard.
• Harvard finished 3-of-6 on free-position attempts, with Romeo scoring all three of them.
• The Crimson went 12-of-13 on clear attempts and has had at least 10 successful clears in all seven games.

Game Notes:

• Harvard improves to 2-3 on the road and 2-1 in the Ivy League this season.
• The Crimson has already surpassed last year's win total and stands at 4-3 overall.
• A freshman has led Harvard in scoring in each of the first seven games.
• Marisa Romeo now leads Harvard with 22 goals and 26 points through six games.
• Harvard improves to 22-20-1 all-time against Yale and 5-2 against the Bulldogs under Lisa Miller.

Game Progression:

• Yale got on the scoreboard first and led, 2-0, at 22:33 of the first half.
• The Crimson followed with back-to-back goals by Megan Hennessey and Maria Romeo, tying the game at the 19:42 mark.
• After the Bulldogs went back up, 3-2, Harvard went on a 3-0 run to take a 5-3 advantage by 13:58.
• The teams then traded the next six goals before the Crimson went up, 9-6, with 23:45 remaining in the second.
• Yale cut the deficit to 9-8 with 11:08 to play, but Harvard pulled away with two scores in the final minutes.

Ties: Two
Lead Changes: Three
Largest Leads: Harvard by 3 (twice) – 2nd: 23:45, 3:46, Yale by 2 – 1st: 22:33

Up Next:
Harvard will host No. 5/5 Boston College at Harvard Stadium Wednesday, March 26 at 7 p.m.