CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – The Cardiac Crimson was at it again on Saturday afternoon at the Bright-Landry Hockey Center as Kaley MacDonald scored the overtime game-winner to help Harvard defeat St. Lawrence in the Opening Round of the 2026 ECAC Championship. The Crimson (15-13,3, 8-11-3 ECAC) came away with the 3-2 win after a perfect special teams performance (3-for-3 on the penalty kill and 1-for-1 on the powerplay) and 27 saves from starting goaltender Ainsley Tuffy. Ella Lucia and Angelica Megdanis scored the two regulation goals for Harvard, who earned its first playoff victory since 2022 and first advancement in the ECAC Championship since the 2020 season.
 

How it Happened

The ECAC Championship tournament for the Crimson began this afternoon with a matchup against ninth-seeded St. Lawrence. Harvard, the tournament's eighth-seeded squad – hosted the Saints at the Bright-Landry Hockey Center in the team's first playoff home game since 2022.
 
After the opening draw, the teams raced traded long possessions, but it was Harvard who made the first move towards goal, as Morgan McGathey logged the games first shot on target just 18 seconds into the contest. The Crimson would throw four more shots on target but could not find the back of the net. St. Lawrence went on the counter, getting a shot past starting goaltender, Ainsley Tuffy, to score the game's first goal seven minutes into the matchup. After a string of scoring chances, Harvard found its answer courtesy of Ella Lucia, who tied up the game on the powerplay. The sophomore scored off a nifty turnaround shot on the doorstep after being set up by Gwyn Lapp and Alex Paulsen. Tuffy cleaned up the next four shots she faced to send the game into the first intermission with the teams tied at 1-1.
 
The strong defensive effort for Harvard continued into the second period, with the Crimson blocking five shots and Tuffy saving seven more – including four on the penalty kill – to hold off the surging Saints. Despite the stand, St. Lawrence was able to find an angle and score the go-ahead goal with five minutes remaining in the second period. Harvard looked to counter but could not get one to cross the line in the following sequence. The Crimson would head into the locker room down 2-1 heading into the final frame.
 
Harvard's penalty kill was called upon again in the third period. The group continued to excel, holding the Saints off the board on two separate penalties to keep it a one-goal game. The Crimson fought back with a few chances deep in the SLU zone, but the Saints' goaltender cleaned up all three chances on the rush to keep the Saints in the lead. Angelica Megdanis broke through for the Crimson at the 13-minute mark, scoring the game-tying goal after a snap-shot attempt beat the SLU goalie. After another trio of Tuffy saves, Harvard and St. Lawrence went into an overtime period.
 
The Crimson came out flying in overtime, taking control of the game early. Harvard put four shots on net in the opening three minutes before scoring the overtime game-winner. Kaley MacDonald scored the goal after her shot was first blocked and popped up into the air. The SLU defenders could not locate the floating puck before it dropped in behind the Saints' goaltender and across the goal line. MacDonald and the Crimson skated off into the quarterfinal round with a 3-2 win over St. Lawrence.
 
 

Harvard Highlights

• Kaley MacDonald scored the overtime game-winner.
• Ainsley Tuffy made 27 saves in net.
• Ella Lucia started the scoring for Harvard with a goal in the first period.
• Angelica Megdanis logged the game-tying goal in the third period.
• Gwyn Lapp logged two assists.
• Lucia, MacDonald and Paulsen all registered assists in the matchup.
• The Harvard penalty kill went 3-for-3 and the powerplay went 1-for-1 in a perfect special teams effort.
• MacDonald also led the team with three blocked shots.
• Morgan McGathey was lights on the faceoff dot, winning 14-of-19 draws.

 

Up Next

The Crimson will now move into the quarterfinal round, which will be a three-game series with the second-seeded Princeton Tigers. The first two games of the series will be Friday, Feb. 27 and Saturday, Feb. 28. Should a third game need to be played, it will occur on Sunday, Mar. 1. Game times and ticket information will be announced early this week.