CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – No. 5 Harvard field hockey capped the 2026 regular season with a thriller, as the Crimson outlasted Yale in overtime, 2-1, at Berylson Field.
In a back-and-forth, even contest, Yale opened the scoring in the second quarter off a penalty corner. Harvard owned the second half, drawing level with a penalty corner goal of its own from senior midfielder and team captain
Lara Beekhuis. After neither side found the winner in regulation, junior forward
Emily Bronckers ended the contest midway through overtime with her fifth goal of the year.
An All-American selection last season, sophomore goalkeeper
Linde Burger was vital between the posts. A native of Heerhugowaard, Netherlands, Burger made five saves, four of them in the third quarter, matching her single game season-high. With the win, Harvard secured its third outright Ivy League title in the last four seasons.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Defense defined the first quarter between Harvard (15-1, 7-0 Ivy League) and Yale (12-3, 4-3), as the Crimson recorded the only shot and penalty corner of the frame. On the first penalty corner of the day, Beekhuis saw her shot at the top of the circle pushed wide by Yale keeper Amelie Schwarzkkopf.
Harvard kept knocking on the door in the second quarter. One of the staples of its offense, the Crimson hit the Bulldogs on the counterattack, as a last second defensive save kept the scoreboard even. On the Crimson's second penalty corner of the contest, Bronckers saw her shot saved.
With just over a minute left in the first half, the visitors scored the opening goal on a strike from Victoria Collee. Yale took its 1-0 lead into the halftime break, as the Crimson took three shots, all of them on target.
The second half started with Harvard applying the pressure both offensively and with the press, as the Crimson tied it up, 1-1, five minutes into the third quarter. Harvard turned the Beekhuis on the attacking penalty corner again, as this time the Crimson's captain converted with a shot into the bottom left corner of the cage for her eighth goal of the year.
Along with the equalizing goal, Burger was instrumental in keeping the score tied in the third quarter, logging four of her five saves on the day in the third quarter alone.
The Crimson pinned Yale back in its defensive half in the fourth but Harvard did not find a winner, as a Crimson contest went to overtime for the third time this year. Harvard dominated possession in the overtime period, as Bronckers pounced on a loose ball in the circle, evaded a defender, and a lobbed a shot over Schwarzkkopf for the game-winner in the 2-1 contest.
Harvard recorded 14 shots compared to Yale's nine, as the Crimson outshot the Bulldogs, 7-0, across the fourth quarter and overtime. With the win, Harvard secured its third outright Ivy League title in the last four seasons.
HARVARD HIGHLIGHTS
- Harvard ends the 2026 regular season with a 15-1 record, as the Crimson post a 31-1 record across the last two regular seasons, the best record in the nation.
- With the win, Harvard will bring a 13-game winning streak to the 2026 Ivy League Tournament, as the Crimson own the nation's longest active winning streak.
- Bronckers scores the Crimson's first overtime winner of the 2026 season. A native of Blaricum, Netherlands, Bronckers matches her career-best in goals with five.
- With her goal in the third quarter, Beekhuis becomes just the fifth student-athlete in school history with 90 or more career points.
UP NEXT
Harvard will host the 2026 Ivy League Tournament at Berylson Field on Friday, Nov. 6 and Sunday, Nov. 8.
For all the latest on Harvard Field Hockey, follow the Crimson on Twitter (@HarvardFH) and Instagram (@harvardfieldhockey).
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