CAMBRIDGE, Mass. - Harvard women's hockey open the Bright -Landry Hockey Center this weekend with an ECAC series against Union and RPI. The Crimson will look to capture its first victory of the season when it takes on the Garnet Chargers and the Engineers in Boston. Harvard is coming off a narrow 4-2 loss in the season opener at Dartmouth (Oct. 13) last weekend. The Crimson got goals from Gabi Davidson Adams and Kayley Crawford in the contest. Five of the six members in Harvard's first-year class made their debuts in the matchup.
Now, the Crimson will turn to face off with Union and RPI. Harvard recorded a tie and a loss to the newly named Garnet Chargers last year and grabbed a tie and a win over RPI. Historically, the Crimson has seen success over these two opponents, posting a combined 55-10-4 all-time record against the two programs.
The Landry Family Head Coach for Harvard Women's Ice Hockey, Laura Bellamy, also hopes to secure the first victory of her head coaching career this weekend.
WHAT'S HAPPENING
Harvard Athletics is excited to welcome back Harvard Hockey fans for another exciting season. In the Friday night contest against Union, Harvard will be giving away 2023-24 schedule posters. Saturday will serve as the program's Youth Day. Youth fans from across the New England are invited to come enjoy the action between Harvard and RPI and will have the chance to interact with the Crimson women's hockey team during a postgame autograph session.
GAME NOTES
Scouting The Competition
Union and RPI come into the weekend with eight games under each of its belts in 2023-24. The Garnet Chargers (3-5-0, 0-0-0 ECACH) and the Engineers (4-1-3, 0-0-0 ECACH) will open up ECAC play this weekend with matchups at Harvard and Dartmouth.
The Garnet Chargers opened the season with two losses against St. Cloud State before splitting with Robert Morris and sweeping Holy Cross. Union is coming off two losses to RIT last weekend. Union was outscored 26-17 in those games. The Garnet Chargers strength has been its powerplay that has scored on six of its 29 attempts (.207). On the other side, Union has played down a skater a lot this season as the team averages five penalties per game for an average of 11.8 minutes.
RPI (4-1-3, 0-0-0 ECACH) has only dropped one contest this year, a 3-2 loss to Syracuse last weekend. The Engineers are outscoring its opponents 22-9 thanks to solid goaltending from grad student Amanda Rampado.
Our New Leader
Harvard welcomed the new Landry Family Head Coach for Harvard Women's Ice Hockey, Laura Bellamy '13, this August. Bellamy began her second stint in Cambridge after eight seasons on staff at the University of Minnesota Duluth (UMD). After arriving in The North Star State as an assistant coach in 2015, Bellamy was elevated to the associate head coach role prior to the 2019 season. During her eight years in Duluth, Bellamy helped transform the Bulldogs into a national power, securing four NCAA tournament berths and two Frozen Four appearances, and a finish as the national runner-up in 2022. UMD was consistently ranked inside the national top 15 under and earned its highest ranking in program history after earning a No. 4 ranking this past season.
A noted developer of talent, Bellamy coached 10 Olympians, two Patty Kazmaier Top-3 Finalists, seven All-Americans, two Hockey Humanitarian Award Finalists, 26 All-WCHA Selections, three WCHA Student-Athletes of the Year, one WCHA Player of the Year, two WCHA Defenders of the Year and two WCHA Goaltenders of the Year during her time in Duluth.
Her efforts did not go unnoticed as in 2022 she was named the American Hockey Coaches Association (ACHA) National Assistant Coach of the Year. Now, Bellamy will return to coach the Crimson for a second time, hoping to bring similar success back to Bright-Landry Hockey Center.
After her graduation from Harvard in 2013, Bellamy chose to stay in Cambridge and begin her coaching career with the Crimson. The Duluth native led all video coordination, scouting and training efforts for Harvard, helping lead the team to a run of success during the 2013-14 and 2014-15 seasons. In just three years in her role, Harvard earned two NCAA tournament bids and finished as the national runner-up in 2015 after making the Frozen Four.
Bellamy hopes to breathe new life into the program and bring Harvard women's ice hockey back into the national spotlight.
LAST TIME OUT
Harvard battled in a narrow 4-2 loss during its season opener at Dartmouth. Gabi Davidson Adams scored the first Crimson goal of the season and Kayley Crawford followed up with the second Crimson goal and the first of her career. Alex Pellicci backstopped the effort with 23 saves between the pipes.
FIRST OF MANY
Five of the Crimson's six members in the class of 2027 made their career debuts against Dartmouth. Zoe Boosamra, a first-year forward, notched her first career point with an assist in the matchup. First-year defender, Maria Pape, also preformed will in her first collegiate contest and was on the ice for both Crimson goals for a +2 rating, a team-high after the first game.
GETTING IN THE WAY
One of the Crimson's biggest strengths last season was its ability to block shots and clog opponent shooting lanes. Harvard continued that practice against Dartmouth, blocking eight shots as a team. Jenna MacDonald posted a team high three blocked shots and her defensive partner, Maria Pape, had two in the outing.
CHORSKE IN THE MIDDLE
Harvard junior forward, Hannah Chorkse, made her first career appearance at center against Dartmouth, leading the teams with 11 faceoff wins. Chorske also led the team with five shots on net and also notched an assist in the matchup. Chorske's line that included Ellie Bayard and Gwyn Lapp on her left and right side, respectively, played well in their first game together, creating a number of dangerous scoring chances.
HISTORY vs. UNION
Harvard has enjoyed success against Union historically, owning a 34-3-1 record against the Garnet Chargers in the all-time series. The Crimson have outscored Union 30-10 in the past eight contests to go along with a 6-1-1 record in those contests.
HISTORY vs. RPI
The Crimson has seen similar success against RPI historically, holding a 21-7-3 series lead dating back to 2006-07. Harvard is unbeaten in its last 10 contests against the Engineers recording a 9-0-1 record. The Crimson has also outscored RPI 31-13 in those last ten matchups.
STARTING STRONG
The 2023-24 Crimson got its first taste of game action this season in an exhibition tilt against McGill University of Canada. Harvard scored four goals in a 4-0 shutout of McGill, who only tallied 22 shots in the contest. Brooke Manning, Ellie Bayard, Gwyn Lapp and Shannon Hollands tallied the goals for the Crimson while Alex Pellicci, Daisy Boynton and Emily Davidson combined for a shutout.
KEY PLAYERS BACK IN CRIMSON
Key players from last years roster will return to the Crimson lineup this season including Shannon Hollands (6g, 8a, 14p), Gabi Davidson Adams (8g, 5a, 13p) and Mia Biotti (2g, 7a, 9p). Starting goaltender Alex Pellicci - who started all but one game a season ago - will be back between the pipes to lead the goaltending efforts for the Crimson.
NEW FACES BEHIND THE BENCH
Coach Bellamy got to work right away, hiring Meredith Roth as her associate head coach. Roth joins the program for the 2023-24 season after previously serving in the same role at the College of the Holy Cross. Bellamy also added Amy Zappen earlier this offseason, who will serve as the goaltending coach for the Crimson.
