Box Score CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – Harvard women's ice hockey battled tonight in its matchup against the 11th ranked Princeton Tigers, falling short in an eventual 4-1 defeat. The Crimson (3-14-1, 1-11-1 ECACH) brought the energy with them to the Bright-Landry Hockey Center, putting together a solid effort that came up just short against it's Ivy League foe.
 

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Harvard and Princeton met for the second time this season on Saturday afternoon after battling to a 1-1 draw earlier in the campaign.
• Princeton got the first tally on the board despite a relentless effort from Harvard's defense.
• The Crimson would go on the penalty kill four times during a chippy first period, relying on its penalty kill units for more than seven minutes. The Crimson killed off all four penalties in the frame, blocking nine shots in total during the first 20 minutes.
• After the early goal, Alex Pellicci bounced back big, saving the next 13 shots she faced including five on the powerplay.
• After a few quality chances for Harvard came up empty, the Tigers went into the locker room with a 1-0 lead after the first period.
• The Harvard penalty kill unit delivered again early in the second period to improve to 5-for-5 on the afternoon.
• The next eight minutes was all Harvard, as the Crimson created four dangerous scoring chances. Gabi Davidson Adams had two clean shots and both Crawford and Kasica had their attempts from the slot denied.
• Princeton countered with some pressure at the midway point in the second period. Just after the Crimson killed its sixth penalty of the night, Princeton snuck another shot past Pellicci, taking a 2-0 lead.
• The Tigers added one more goal, a powerplay strike, to its tally late in the second period to go into the intermission carrying a 3-0 advantage.
• Harvard was held off by the Tigers defense for a majority of the third period but finally got its chance to strike late after a series of Tiger penalties.
• After two scoreless powerplays, Harvard went back on to the advantage looking to strike. Gwyn Lapp netted a Crimson powerplay goal, after a great setup by Brooke Manning and Hannah Chorske, to cut into the Princeton lead with just under five minutes remaining.
• A series of Harvard chacnes were turned away before Coach Bellamy pulled Alex Pellicci for an extra attacker. Princeton would hold off the Crimson for the remainder of regulation and add one more tally on the empty net to secure a 4-1 win over Harvard.

 

HARVARD HIGHLIGHTS

• Gwyn Lapp scored her team-high eighth goal of the season and her sixth in seven games.
• Brooke Manning and Hannah Chorkse added the assists on the Lapp goal.
• Harvard's penalty-kill units went to work tonight, holding off six of the seven Tiger powerplay opportunities.
• Kate Kasica led the defensive effort with four blocked shots.
• Harvard blocked 19 shots as a team while holding down their own zone.
• The Crimson held the advantage in faceoffs, winning 30 of 50 draws.
• Lapp led the team with 11 faceoff wins.
• Harvard outshot Princeton 17-3 in the final period.

 

UP NEXT

The Crimson's focus now shifts to the 2024 Dunkin' Women's Beanpot. The semifinal round of the annual tournament is set for this Tuesday (Jan. 16) at the Bright-Landry Hockey Center. The first semifinal will feature Boston University and Boston College (4:30 PM) followed by the Northeastern Huskies and the Harvard Crimson (7:30 PM). Both games will be streamed live on NESN/NESN+.