CAMBRIDGE, Mass. - Harvard is one of the four ancient eight teams that will compete in the first-ever Ivy League women's soccer tournament this weekend. The Crimson was slotted as the tournament's two-seed after compiling a 5-1-1 league record in 2023. The teams will compete for the league's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament at Brown University in Providence, R.I. on Friday Nov. 3 (Semifinals) and Nov. 5 (Finals).
WHAT TO KNOW
2023 Ivy League Women's Soccer Tournament
UR/19 Harvard (10-3-2, 5-1-1 Ivy) vs Princeton (9-4-3, 4-2-1 Ivy)
Friday, November 3, 2023
Stevenson-Pincince Field • Providence, R.I.
GoCrimson.com • NCAA.com • ESPN+
AGAINST THE FIELD
Harvard posted a 1-1-1 record against the rest of the Ivy League Tournament field in the 2023 regular season. It defeated the tournament's four-seed, Columbia, with a 2-0 result in New York City and tied it's first round matchup and the tournament's three-seed Princeton 1-1. The Crimson's only Ivy League loss was to Brown, who defeated Harvard 2-0 in early October. The Crimson was missing key performers Josefine Hasbo and Jade Rose in the first contest against the Bears.
IN THE POLLS
Harvard made its way back into the TopDrawerSoccer National Polls this past week, moving up to no. 19 in the nation. The Crimson has also climbed up to no. 16 in the RPI poll, it's highest ranking of the 2023 season. The Ivy League is currently ranked the second-strongest conference in the nation in terms of RPI and all four Ivy League tournament teams enter the matchup with RPI rankings inside the top 25.
CONSISTENT SUCCESS
The Crimson has posted ten or more wins in four consecutive years and five of the seven seasons under Chris Hamblin. Additionally Harvard is back in the top 25 of the RPI Poll for the third consecutive year.
POST SEASON ACCOLADES
Harvard tallied six 2023 All-Ivy selections, including three First Team All-Ivy honorees, in addition to two Second-Team All-Ivy members. Two Crimson players were also awarded major conference awards.
IVY ROOKIE OF THE YEAR
First-year forward Ólöf Kristinsdóttir earned Ivy League Rookie of the Year honors after a seven-goal season in 2023. Kristinsdóttir became the 15th Crimson student-athlete to earn the Rookie of the Year award and the second in three seasons (Hannah Bebar – 2021). The Icelandic standout played in all 15 games this season, totaling 16 points with her seven goals and two assists.
IVY LEAGUE DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Junior defender and team captain, Jade Rose earned the Ivy League's Defensive Player of the Year award for the second consecutive season. Rose is still the only player to earn the honor in Ivy League history (award began in 2022). The captain started in all 12 games she played in this season, scoring one goal and adding three assists to total five points on the year offensively.
Rose led a Harvard defensive unit that allowed opponents only 6.3 shots per game and 41 shots to reach Harvard's net all season. Her efforts contributed to six Harvard shutouts in 2023. The Markham, Ontario, Canada native was also unanimously chosen to the All-Ivy First-Team for the third time in her career, becoming the 11th player in program history to earn three All-Ivy League First-Team honors.
FIRST TEAM ALL-IVY
Jade Rose, Josefine Hasbo and Hannah Bebar were named to the All-Ivy League First-Team after their remarkable regular seasons. It was the third straight year Harvard had three or more selections to the league's first-team. Bebar and Rose became the 11th and 12th players in program history to be selected to three All-Ivy First-Teams. Hasbo, a Second-Team selection in 2022 and an Honorable Mention selection in 2021, received her first appointment to the First-Team.
SECOND TEAM ALL-IVY
Three players from Harvard earned Second-Team All-Ivy distinctions in 2023. Smith Hunter, Anna Karpenko and the league's Rookie of the Year, Ólöf Kristinsdóttir.
IVY TEAM STATISTICS
As a team in the Ivy League rankings, Harvard ranks first in assists per game (2.67), corners per game (6.13), points per game (7.73), scoring offense (2.53), shots on goal per game (8.00) and shots per game (16.87).
TEAM DEFENSE
As a team, Harvard has posted six shutouts – including in three Ivy games – on the season and notched a 1.13 GAA. In Ivy play, the Crimson allowed just six goals over seven games for a 0.86 GAA. Harvard has compiled clean sheets in four of its last nine contests.
OFFENSIVE PRODUCTION
Harvard has scored three or more goals in seven games this year and tallied multiple goals in 11 of 15 contests this season. The Crimson has outscored its opponents 38-17 on the year and outshot its opponents 253-95. Harvard held a 15-6 goals edge and 118-46 shot advantage in Ivy League play.
SUCCESS STREAKS
At home, the Crimson has registered a 6-1-1 record on the season and a 31-8-2 mark since 2018. The Crimson has had similar success on the road, posting a 19-4-5 mark away from Jordan Field since 2019.
DOMINANT AT HOME
The Harvard offense has lit up the scoreboard at Jordan Field since the 2018 season, outscoring opponents 63-21 on its home turf. In the last ten matchups, Harvard owns a 31-7 advantage over its opponents and that increases to a 44-10 advantage in the last 16 contests.
CRIMSON IN PROVIDENCE
Harvard is unbeaten in its last six games played at Brown with a 4-0-2 record in those contests. The Crimson own a 12-5 goals advantage over the Bears on its home turf in those matchups.
HARVARD vs. PRINCETON
Harvard and Princeton have had a number of battles in recent history, including a hard-fought 1-1 draw this season at Jordan Field. The Crimson hold a 32-13-2 advantage in the all-time series, but its record is level at 5-5 in the past ten matchups. This will be the first contest between the Ivy League foes played on neutral ground in its 47-match history.
IT'S NOT HOW YOU START
The Crimson went unbeaten in its final six matches of the regular season, marking the fourth consecutive season that the club has posted an unbeaten streak of six games or longer. The Crimson overcame a two-game losing streak - its first since the 2018 season - to go on the run.
THE DEFENDERS
Junior defender Jade Rose earned a spot on Top Drawer Soccer's Team of the Week on Oct.10. She has also scored a goal to go along with a trio of assists this season. Her back-line teammate, August Hunter has had a stellar sophomore year, leading the team in minutes played with 1,342. Her sister, Smith Hunter, is second among field players with 1,168 minutes played. Taylor Fasnacht - who scored her first goal of the season in the final contest against Yale - completes the Crimson's starting back-four.
SHARING IS CARING
Seven members of the Crimson have scored three or more goals in 2023, the most in the Ivy League and two more than the next highest total of five. Additionally, eight Harvard players have registered three or more assists which is three more than the next closest Ivy League team (5).
