CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – It was a great day for lacrosse in Boston as the No. 2 Virginia Cavaliers came into town to battle the No. 16 Harvard Crimson on its home turf for the first time in series history. 3,000 fans from across the region piled into Jordan Field to set a new attendance record and take in the top-20 showdown. The Crimson had Virginia on the ropes for a majority of the contest, holding a 10-6 fourth quarter lead before the Cavaliers rallied down the stretch to pick up a 13-10.
 
Harvard (6-3, 0-2 Ivy) went toe-to-toe with one of the nation's best squads in the No. 2 Hoos (9-1, 0-0 ACC), in what ended up being an incredible college lacrosse contest.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• The Crimson took on Virginia this afternoon in a rematch of last season's shootout that resulted in a narrow loss for the Crimson after 46 combined goals – that set a new NCAA record at the time – in 2021.
• Over 3,000 fans rolled into the friendly confines of Jordan Field to witness the action, setting a new attendance record for the venue.
• The Cavaliers struck first blood in the contest, scoring just under a minute into the action after being denied once previously by starting Harvard goalkeeper, Christian Barnard. The goalie made one more save in the next sequence and Collin Bergstrom came up with a caused turnovers and groundball that led to Harvard's first goal from Logan Ip.
• The Hoos quickly matched with a goal just 52 seconds later before both sides locked down their cages for the remainder of the quarter. Harvard caused two Virginia turnovers - courtesy of Logan Darrin and Martin Nelson - and Barnard made one more stop to hold off the Cavaliers for the remainder of the first quarter and head into the second trailing by just one.
• The Crimson was on a roll in the second quarter, going on a 5-1 scoring run beginning with a Jack Speidell goal at 9:57 in the frame. After another Barnard stop, John Aurandt and Sam King registered back-to-back goals to give Harvard a 4-2 lead heading into the media timeout. The lead would move to three goals after first-year Jack Petersen found the net for his first career goal. The Hoos got one goal back to make the score 5-3 before Teddy Malone dove across the crease to pocket a goal and send Harvard into the half up three goals.
• Four caused turnovers and four saves by Barnard helped Harvard build the lead heading into the half.
• Harvard continued to roll in the third quarter, setting the tone with three consecutive solid offensive possessions. The first possessions included five Crimson shots, none of which were able to find twine. After another caused turnover by Martin Nelson, Harvard went on to score its seventh goal after Graham Blake beat the Virginia keeper to the bottom left corner. Blake added another goal just over two minutes later to give the Crimson an 8-3 advantage.
• Despite the deficit, Virginia did not shy away, as the Hoos went on to score three straight goals to get back within two goals of Harvard. Malone ended the run with his second goal of the game, making the score 9-6 in favor of the Crimson.
• The fourth quarter opened with some fireworks after Harvard caused a turnover off the initial faceoff. Andrew O'Berry scooped up the loose ball – off a turnover that was caused by Logan Darrin – and quickly sent it to LSM, Greg Campisi, who turned on the jets to get behind the scrambling Virginia defense and score his first goal of the season. The goal made the score 10-6 in favor of Harvard with 14 minutes remaining.
• Virginia began its comeback at the 13-minute mark, scoring the first of seven unanswered goals. The Crimson had a handful of chances come up short down the stretch to put a stop to the rally, but no shots could find the net. Barnard made a trio of saves in an attempt to stop the bleeding.
• The Cavaliers would hold on to the lead to ride out of Cambridge with a 13-10 win over the nationally ranked Crimson.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Harvard's defense held Virginia to its lowest goal total of the season.
• Martin Nelson set a new career high with five caused turnovers.
• Logan Darrin added three CTOs, also setting a new career high.
• Virginia had 17 turnovers on the day, the third-most this season.
• Sam King and Teddy Malone tied for the team lead with three points each.
• King notched a goal and two assists to increase his season total to 53.
• Graham Blake notched a pair of goals in the matchup to increase his goal-scoring streak to ten games.
• Harvard was two-for-three on EMOs, getting goals from Blake and Logan Ip.
• Greg Campisi also added three CTOs in the matchup.
• The Crimson scooped up 44 ground balls in the contest, the second highest total of the season.
• Matt Baraco went 11-for-18 in the faceoff circle for Harvard. 

UP NEXT

Harvard will return to Jordan Field to return to Ivy League play and end its three-game homestand when it plays host to the Dartmouth Big Green. The Crimson and the Big Green will square off at 3:30 PM in Cambridge and on ESPN+.