CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – The top two teams in the Ivy League will battle once again this weekend, as No. 12 Harvard field hockey (12-1, 4-0 Ivy) will host No. 14 Princeton (8-5, 4-0 Ivy) in what has become one of the great rivalries in college field hockey.
Over the past four completed seasons, the Crimson and the Tigers have split Ivy League titles, with Harvard winning in 2016 and 2018, and Princeton winning in 2017 and 2019. In all four of those years, the winner of the Harvard-Princeton regular season game has determined which team wins the conference crown.
Harvard is keeping pace with the 2018 team matching its best 13-game start in school history. The Crimson has won seven games in a row after winning a road contest at Boston University on Monday. In that game, an early second quarter penalty stroke goal for senior captain
Hannah Pearce was enough offense for the Crimson in a 1-0 win over the Terriers.
Junior goalkeeper
Ellie Shahbo (two saves) earned her seventh shutout, making key stops in the second and third quarters to help the Crimson maintain its lead.
Harvard recorded its eighth shutout of the season.
How to Follow
Harvard vs. Princeton: ESPN+ l
International
Live Stats
Harvard Fall Yearbook/Game Program: Oct. 23, Harvard-Princeton
Twitter: @HarvardFH
What to Know
- Harvard leads the nation with a 0.37 goals-against average, having allowed just five goals in regulation all season in 13 contests. Junior goalkeeper Ellie Shahbo (10-1) is also tops in the country with a .875 save percentage.
- Senior captain Hannah Pearce leads the team with 20 points (nine goals, two assists) and is fourth in the Ivy League with an average of 1.54 points per game. Pearce has points in five straight games (four goals, two assists).
- Pearce was named Ivy League Defensive Player of the Week after playing a key role in Harvard's shutout 4-0 win over Dartmouth last Saturday. Pearce added a goal in that contest and played all 60 minutes of regulation has she has in each game this season. Dartmouth did not record a shot on goal in the game.
- Harvard is second in the Ivy League with 2.54 goals per game and 6.77 penalty corners per contest.
- Princeton enters the weekend having won five straight contests. First-year Beth Yeager is tied for second in the nation with 16 goals on the year.
- Harvard and Princeton will meet for the 50th time in field hockey, with Princeton owning a 40-7-1 edge in the series. Harvard and Princeton have split the last four regular season meetings, and also met memorably in the 2018 NCAA Quarterfinals.
