Cornell University (12-6-4) needs just the bare minimum in a best-of-three ECAC quarterfinal series to take on the Harvard men's hockey team (6-10-6) on Saturday. However, Crimson University lost 4-1. big red
Harvard's loss follows a blowout loss to second-seeded Cornell University on Friday. Crimson University made a brave comeback attempt in the third quarter, but lost the first game 4-3.
Saturday's matchup proved to be a case of déjà vu for the Crimson on Friday, as the Big Red controlled play for the first 40 minutes before a third-period comeback attempt fell short.
Cornell held a 2-0 lead heading into the third period, but the lead was cut in half by junior captain Ian Moore, who buried the puck after receiving a pass from sophomore defenseman Ryan Healy. It was done. But it was too late for Harvard. They allowed two empty-net goals in the final minutes of the game, sealing a disappointing end to the season.
Cornell dominated the first two periods in both games of the series, defeating Harvard 6-1. In each game, the Crimson's offense did enough to keep things interesting, but they couldn't bring Harvard to even ground.
This season was far from the Crimson's previous season, when they finished with a regular season record of 24-8-2 and an ECAC record of 18-4-0. Head coach Ted Donato '91 led the team to his ECAC championship, where they lost to Colgate. The team also qualified for the NCAA Tournament, but lost to Ohio State in the regional semifinals.
Despite a season to forget, Harvard's future is bright. With only three seniors lost, the majority of the team's core is certain to return next season, along with a talented freshman class.
This story will be updated.
—Staff writer Owen Butler can be reached at owen.butler@thecrimson.com.
