W. hockey starts weekend strong, fizzles vs. Harvard

After playing 41 minutes of excellent offense and scoring three goals, women's hockey's front line went ice cold for the rest of the weekend.

Princeton (3-2-1 overall, 2-2 Eastern College Athletic Conference) managed to hold off Brown (3-2-0, 2-1-0) for a 3-2 victory Friday night. But on Saturday the stagnant offense was blanked by Harvard (3-1-1, 3-1-0) by the score of 3-0.

The No. 8-ranked Tigers started the homestand at Baker Rink against the No. 9 Bears, and jumped off to a quick lead.

Only a minute and a half into the game, sophomore forward Alison Ralph stepped into a crowd in front of the Brown net, collected the puck, and blasted it past Brown goalie Stacy Silverman. Senior defenseman April Brown and junior defenseman Chrissie Norwich earned assists.

The game then settled down until 7:29 into the second period when Brown defenseman Amy McLaughlin got called for checking. The Tigers took advantage of the ensuing power play, as freshman forward Brittany Salmon finally scored after two deflections, by junior forwards Sarah Greer and Sarah Butsch.

The Bears responded in the 17th minute of the same period after senior forward Becky Stewart was sent to the penalty box on an obstruction-interference call. Brown forward Christine Holdredge scored the power-play goal, beating junior goalie Roxanne Gaudiel.

With only a tenuous one-goal lead, heading into the third period, the Tigers needed a spark, which would soon be provided by sophomore forward Laura Watt.

In the first minute of play, Watt streaked past her defender and received a well-aimed pass from junior forward Heather Jackson. Watt received it on the fly and quickly flicked it into the back of the net for what proved to be the game-winning goal.

Brown went on to rally, as McLaughlin scored on a power play with just over two minutes left in the game. But it was too little, too late.

Despite an increase in confidence after the solid win, the Tigers were completely dominated by the No. 3 Crimson the following night at Baker Rink.

Harvard, on the other hand, had just suffered an upset loss to Yale the previous night.

"We really came into the game complacent, while Harvard was really ready after losing a game they shouldn't have," sophomore defenseman Dina McCumber said. "We need to remember this feeling for when we play them again."

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The Crimson started off the scoring in the ninth minute of the first period, after sophomore forward Kim Pearce was called for holding. Crimson forward Kat Sweet beat Gaudiel after a brilliant pass by forward Nicole Corriero, who had a hand in each of Harvard's goals.

The second goal did not come until the third period, thanks in large part to Gaudiel, who finished the game with 24 saves. But at 4:31, forward Jennifer Raimondo found the back of the net on another Corriero assist.

Corriero then rounded out the scoring herself in the 14th minute of the period, with defensemen Caitlin Cahow and Julie Chu earning assists.

The Tigers continue their season next weekend, as they travel to Erie, Pa. to take on Mercyhurst, before continuing their ECAC schedule in hosting Yale the following Wednesday.