CAMBRIDGE, Mass. - Harvard women's hockey returns to action tomorrow night for the first round of the 2024 Dunkin' Women's Beanpot semifinal round. The 45th edition of the tournament will see the teams compete at the Bright-Landry Hcokey Center for the first round games before moving downtown to the TD Garden for the first time in tournament history. The Crimson (3-14-1, 1-11-1 ECACH) is set to meet the Northeastern Huskies (13-9-1, 8-7-1 HEA) for the first time since 2019-20. This will be just the second time in Beanpot history Harvard and Northeastern will square off in the semifinals at the Bright-Landry Hockey Center. The Huskies won the first semifinal battle with the Crimson at Harvard way back at the 7th Beanpot in 1985. 

BEANPOT BITS

• LOOKING FOR REVENGE: Harvard will look to avenge its semifinal loss to the Huskies that took place during the 42nd Women's Beanpot in 2020. That was the last time these cross-town rivals met on the ice, a 3-1 Northeastern victory. 
• HOLLANDS vs. THE HUSKIES: Harvard Senior captain, Shannon Hollands, is the only active Crimson skater with experience against Northeastern. She was on the team that was edged by the Huskies in the 2020 Beanpot, although she did open up her Beanpot scoring register by netting the only Crimson goal in the contest. 
• 2023 BEANPOT RECAPHarvard will take the ice in 2024 looking to get its first Beanpot win since its Championship win at Matthews Arena in 43rd women's Beanpot. The Crimson was shut out in the semifinal last year against Boston College before losing a shootout to Boston University, 7-4. Shannon Hollands notched her first career multi-goal game in the consolation round, while Gabi Davidson Adams also had a solid outing with a goal and an assist. 2023 was just the sixth year in Beanpot history that Harvard went without a win.
• COACH BELLAMY'S RETURN TO THE BEANPOT: The Crimson's first-year Head Coach, Laura Bellamy, will make her return to the Beanpot tournament, where she found a ton of success as a player. Bellamy won the 32nd Women's Beanpot Tournament with the Crimson as the team's starting goalie, not allowing a single goal in the tournament. For her efforts, Bellamy was named the Bertagna Award winner as the tournament's top goaltender. 

CATCHING UP ON THE CRIMSON 

• WHAT YOU MISSED: Harvard started the second half of the season strong, picking up a 2-1 victory over the NEWHA's Sacred Heart University at the Bright. The Crimson allowed a season low 17 shots on goal while putting up a season high 35 shots on net. Gwyn Lapp continued her hot streak, scoring both Crimson goals in the victory. Junior goaltender, Alex Pellicci, allowed just one goal for the second time in three games, making 16 saves and picking up her third win of the season. The team dropped two ECAC contests in the following weekend against a pair of ranked opponents in the No. 6 Quinnipiac Bobcats and the No. 11 Princeton Tigers. 
• LED BY LAPP: Gwyn Lapp has emerged as the team's primary scoring threat in her breakout sophomore season. The Massachusetts native has now scored six goals in her past seven games and leads the team with eight goals and 11 points on the season. Lapp was especially terrific in the win over Sacred Heart, notching her first career multi-goal game against the Pioneers. The Phillips Academy Andover product has cemented her spot in the top-six for the Crimson and leads the powerplay charge with three goals this season. Lapp has now scored six of the past eight Crimson goals to take a hold on the team lead. 
• POINT LEADERS vs. NORTHEASTERN: Shannon Hollands is the only player on the Crimson to record a point against Northeastern. The senior captain scored a goal against the Huskies in her first career Beanpot game in the 2020 tournament. This will be the first time the Beanpot rivals square off since that game. 
• PELLICCI PUTS HERSELF IN THE RECORD BOOK: Junior goaltender, Alex Pellicci, made her way into the record books with her 52-save shutout against St. Lawrence (Dec. 1). Pellicci logged the most saves for a Harvard goalie in a shutout effort in program history and the fourth-most saves in a game all-time. Pellicci now has seven of the 18 highest-save total games in HH history. Her career high save total of 54 against Yale (Oct. 28, 2022) stands third all-time in the record book.
• GETTING IN THE WAY: Maria Pape and Mia Biotti have been fearless in their defensive zone this season, blocking a team high 39 shots each this season. The totals are the best in the ECAC and tied for the 22nd most in the nation. 
• DEFENDING THE BRIGHT: Harvard women's hockey has won three of its past six games at the Bright-Landry Hockey Center, outscoring opponents 6-2 in the three wins. All of Harvard's wins have come on home ice in 2023-24, sparked by relentless defensive efforts. Harvard will conclude a six-game homestand when it takes the ice for the 2024 Dunkin'  Women's Beanpot on Tuesday. 
• GET TO THE GARDEN: For the first time in history the women's Beanpot will be held at the TD Garden. The championship and consolation games are slated for Jan. 23 on the Bruins ice. Harvard takes on Northeastern in the first round of the Beanpot on Jan. 16, fighting for a chance to raise the first Women's Beanpot Championship banner in the rafters at the Garden. 
• WELCOME BACK: Junior forward Paige Lester returned to the Harvard lineup against Sacred Heart, playing in her first game of the 2023-24 season. Lester was slotted on the second line -alongside Shannon Hollands and Gabi Davidson Adams - that had a solid outing in the win over SHU. 

UP NEXT 
The Crimson will play just one ECAC contest this weekend when it makes the trip to Rensselaer to battle the RPI Engineers. Puck drop for the contest is set for 6:00 PM on Friday night (Jan. 19) and will be streamed live on ESPN+.