No. 3 Harvard Completes Weekend Sweep
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Potsdam, N.Y. - Forward Sarah Vaillancourt had a goal and assist and forward Randi Griffin scored her second goal of the road trip, as Harvard topped Clarkson, 3-1, on Saturday afternoon at Cheel Arena. Vaillancourt's assist came in thrilling fashion for the Crimson, as her pass led to a Sarah Wilson goal with 0.2 seconds remaining in the second period.
In the first 20 minutes of action, Harvard (16-1-0, 13-0-0 ECAC Hockey) and Clarkson (14-5-3, 5-4-1 ECAC Hockey) were each penalized once, and the Saints out shot the Crimson, 10-4, but neither team could get on the scoreboard.
Harvard kept the puck deep in the Clarkson zone in the opening minutes of the second period and had several quality chances, including a backhand attempt by forward Liza Ryabkina just to the right of the slot. In another scoring opportunity, Sarah Vaillancourt skated down the left side of the ice and moved in on the Golden Knights goalkeeper, Eve Grandmont-Berube. Vaillancourt shot the puck at Grandmont-Berube's chest, picked up the rebound and almost scored on her second attempt.
The Crimson kept crashing the net, and at 8:21 of the second, Vaillancourt took a shot in front for her team-leading 11th score of the season.
Less than two minutes later, Harvard was called for checking, setting up a Clarkson power play. The Golden Knights moved the puck quickly into the Crimson zone and capitalized on a slap shot from the blue line by defenseman Carlee Eusepi at 9:53. Eusepi was assisted by defenseman Kimberly McKenney and forward Genevieve Lavoie, as Clarkson tied the game.
The goal ended Harvard goalkeeper Christina Kessler's scoreless streak at 219:20, as she had not allowed a goal since 10:24 of the third period in Harvard's 4-1 victory over Cornell Jan. 4. Since then, the sophomore goalie earned three consecutive shutouts (Colgate, Boston College, St. Lawrence) en route to tying Harvard's single-season record with seven shutouts. Kessler now shares the record with Ali Boe '06, who set the mark in 2003-04. Kessler finished the game with 20 stops, earning her 15th victory of the year, while Grandmont-Berube recorded 29 saves for the Golden Knights.
Harvard bounced back later in the period, scoring at 12:20 to regain the lead, 2-1, on a tally by Randi Griffin, her second goal in the last two games. Griffin's line mates, Kate Buesser and Deborah Conway, fed her with passes on the play.
In the closing moments of the second, Vaillancourt found forward Sarah Wilson crashing in front of the Clarkson goal. Wilson fired and scored with only 0.2 seconds remaining on the clock to give Harvard a 3-1 advantage heading into the second intermission. Harvard led 19-4 in shots in the second period, and had all three of the frame's penalties.
Harvard killed off a 5-on-3 power play for Clarkson midway through the third period, as Kessler shut the door to retain the 3-1 Crimson lead. Both teams remained scoreless for the duration of the third, and Harvard picked up its second victory of the weekend in Upstate New York. The Crimson downed St. Lawrence, 2-0, on Friday evening.
The Crimson was 0 for 2 on the power play for the game, while the Golden Knights were 1 for 7 with the advantage.
With nine ECAC games left, Harvard, unbeaten in conference play, returns to Bright Hockey Center to host Dartmouth Sunday, Jan. 27 at 2 p.m.
