Harvard at Cornell lax 2014 - Har 14-9 (final)

First Harvard win over Cornell since 1998. Badly outshot. No significant offense from many of the scoring leaders (Lintner 1G, Donovan and Buczek, 0G 0A). Beaten badly on faceoffs, 20-7. Christian Knight gave up a horrible goal. Hopefully this was our horrible game and we recover right quick, since Syracuse is here Tuesday. Box score: [www.cornellbigred.com]

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Running notes from the game. Game starts late because women's game goes to 2 OT (Cornell 11 Dartmouth 10).

HAR 3 3 6 2 - 14
COR 4 2 1 2 -  9

1st. Cornell then Harvard score first 3 -1/2 minutes in. Cornell runs off 3 goals to lead 4-1, Harvard gets 2 back, one of them when Cornell misses a defensive matchup. Quarter ends 4-3 Cornell, killing Harvard on ground ball but Harvard ahead of faceoffs. Cornell did a decent job on man-down with a takeaway but also giving up the third Harvard goal just after the man-up ends.

2nd. Harvard ties the game early in the second. Cornell up 6-5 late in the second. Ouch! Harvard ties the game with a minute to play. Goalie Christian Knight behind the goal on a clear and pressured, suffers brain freeze, clears the ball to a Harvard shooter in front of the net. 6-6 at halftime. Cornell hurt by penalties, faceoffs, and also by hit pipes. Harvard is playing well.

3rd. Harvard gets the lead 7-6 3 minutes into the third. 8-6 Harvard 5 minutes in. Cornell more than 15 mins no score. Hogan gets it to 8-7 and Harvard fouls (1:00) but Tesoriero can't control the faceoff. Announcers say it was a 19-minute scoring drought. Two more goals by Harvard and Cornell is down by 3 with 3 to play in the third. Now 11-7 with 2:24 to go third. We're gonna need one heck of a fourth quarter. Cornell finally gets a settled possession, loses the ball, Harvard scores, 12-7 with 7 secs to play, Harvard controls the faceoff and manages to hit the pipe (no goal) as time expires. Sheesh!

4th. Harvard needs 20 seconds to make it 13-7. Cornell gets its 2nd goal of the half (hat trick for Hogan) with 10:18 to play. Shades of Pannell: Edmonds backs in, shoves behind the back to cut to 13-9 with 9:35 to go. But that's about it. Harvard gets it to 14-9 with less than 5 to play. 2:00 to play, only question is whether Cornell will get to double digits on the scoreboard, how far we fall in the polls, and who's first to say "told you Cornell was overrated." Cornell loses its cool final minute and draws penalties, 2 of them. Final 14-9 for Cornell.

Now 6-6 after a series of brain farts by Cornell: turnovers, goals waved off stepping in the crease, players forcing clears and losing the ball, Knight passing to a Harvard guy standing right in front of the goal, and too many unnecessary penalties.

Getting killed on faceoffs, too: 10-4.

Now four straight for Harvard and an 8-6 lead. H still winning faceoffs and we're still doing dumb things. This time Buczek running into a double-team and losing the ball.

H goes from 1-4 to 12-7 as Cornell does nothing right in second and third periods. Harvard came ready to play and is poised and deliberate in picking apart the Cornell D. This looks much like the second and third periods in last year's NCAA semifinal against Duke. Can't win a faceoff, can't clear, can't hang on to the ball after causing a turnover.

Donovan and Buczek have no goals or assists. 16-6 faceoffs in favor of Harvard. Harvard's faceoff guy went to Ithaca High School.

Al DeFlorio
H goes from 1-4 to 12-7 as Cornell does nothing right in second and third periods. Harvard came ready to play and is poised and deliberate in picking apart the Cornell D. This looks much like the second and third periods in last year's NCAA semifinal against Duke. Can't win a faceoff, can't clear, can't hang on to the ball after causing a turnover. Donovan and Buczek have no goals or assists. 16-6 faceoffs in favor of Harvard. Harvard's faceoff guy went to Ithaca High School.

Maybe he's the answer.

Not looking good now and Syracuse with a week's rest is up next for Cornell. Even if the Orange barely got by Binghamton at midweek.

Time to wipe the glaze off the car.

Cornell with a chance to cut lead to three goes offside.

Al DeFlorio
Cornell with a chance to cut lead to three goes offside.

Maybe all the screwups are gonna be in this game?

Harvard unbeaten in the Ivies. Still has to play Yale and Penn on the road, Princeton at home. Also plays first-year varsity BU. We have already beaten Yale and Penn. But there's a good chance the Ivy tournament now will not be in Ithaca. Trying to recall who hosts if there's a multi-way tie.

billhoward
Harvard unbeaten in the Ivies. Still has to play Yale and Penn on the road, Princeton at home. Also plays first-year varsity BU. We have already beaten Yale and Penn. But there's a good chance the Ivy tournament now will not be in Ithaca. Trying to recall who hosts if there's a multi-way tie.

From four years ago [elf.elynah.com]

Credit to Harvard but this game pointed to one of the weaknesses of the college game which is the faceoff. The rules committee needs to look at some reforms which would negate faceoff advantage. I think a 45 second shot clock would be a step in the right direction.

rss77
Credit to Harvard but this game pointed to one of the weaknesses of the college game which is the faceoff. The rules committee needs to look at some reforms which would negate faceoff advantage. I think a 45 second shot clock would be a step in the right direction.

That's what SU wants. We should be able to beat them, they're terrible at faceoffs.

Jim Hyla

rss77
Credit to Harvard but this game pointed to one of the weaknesses of the college game which is the faceoff. The rules committee needs to look at some reforms which would negate faceoff advantage. I think a 45 second shot clock would be a step in the right direction.

That's what SU wants. We should be able to beat them, they're terrible at faceoffs.

Because the Harvard game was so lopsided on faceoffs, it skewed the game's outcome. Does this become like basketball where the team scored on gets the ball? Then the skill advantage goes to how well you can ride the clear and maybe the game becomes harder hitting with more injuries. Doug Tesoriero has done yeoman work for Cornell on faceoffs but as he improves on his awesome Cornell career stats (just shy of 600 FO wins?) there have been games where the other team outdid us.

I'd love a rematch with Harvard. We won't give up that bad brain-fade goal by Christian Knight's errant clear. Donovan, Lintner, and Buczek won't be held to 1G 0A. Although Florida was probably thinking UConn couldn't get lucky twice in one season against them.

billhoward

Jim Hyla

rss77
Credit to Harvard but this game pointed to one of the weaknesses of the college game which is the faceoff. The rules committee needs to look at some reforms which would negate faceoff advantage. I think a 45 second shot clock would be a step in the right direction.

That's what SU wants. We should be able to beat them, they're terrible at faceoffs.

Because the Harvard game was so lopsided on faceoffs, it skewed the game's outcome. Does this become like basketball where the team scored on gets the ball? Then the skill advantage goes to how well you can ride the clear and maybe the game becomes harder hitting with more injuries. Doug Tesoriero has done yeoman work for Cornell on faceoffs but as he improves on his awesome Cornell career stats (just shy of 600 FO wins?) there have been games where the other team outdid us.

I'd love a rematch with Harvard. We won't give up that bad brain-fade goal by Christian Knight's errant clear. Donovan, Lintner, and Buczek won't be held to 1G 0A. Although Florida was probably thinking UConn couldn't get lucky twice in one season against them.

They actually tried eliminating face-offs in the late 70's. I don't remember when they went back in.

Jeff Hopkins '82

billhoward

Jim Hyla

rss77
Credit to Harvard but this game pointed to one of the weaknesses of the college game which is the faceoff. The rules committee needs to look at some reforms which would negate faceoff advantage. I think a 45 second shot clock would be a step in the right direction.

That's what SU wants. We should be able to beat them, they're terrible at faceoffs.

Because the Harvard game was so lopsided on faceoffs, it skewed the game's outcome. Does this become like basketball where the team scored on gets the ball? Then the skill advantage goes to how well you can ride the clear and maybe the game becomes harder hitting with more injuries. Doug Tesoriero has done yeoman work for Cornell on faceoffs but as he improves on his awesome Cornell career stats (just shy of 600 FO wins?) there have been games where the other team outdid us.

I'd love a rematch with Harvard. We won't give up that bad brain-fade goal by Christian Knight's errant clear. Donovan, Lintner, and Buczek won't be held to 1G 0A. Although Florida was probably thinking UConn couldn't get lucky twice in one season against them.

They actually tried eliminating face-offs in the late 70's. I don't remember when they went back in.

I think it was the next season. It is remembered by those old enough to remember as a colossal failure. (I'm old enough to remember, but don't. I didn't really follow lax until I arrived at Cornell in 1984.)

At what point does the specialist dominate the faceoff and affect the outcome, when he wins 2 of 3, 3 of 4? If I recall, the Harvard faceoff guy was nothing special, like 55% going into the Cornell game. Wait, here:

GoCrimson.com
Gabriel Mendola set career-highs with 20 faceoffs won and 10 ground balls collected. Mendola has won 55.8 percent (82-142) [20x27 at Cornell, 74%-ed] of the faceoffs he has taken this season.

\
So, yes, winning 3/4 of the faceoffs tilted the game.

mountainred

Jeff Hopkins '82

billhoward

Jim Hyla

rss77
Credit to Harvard but this game pointed to one of the weaknesses of the college game which is the faceoff. The rules committee needs to look at some reforms which would negate faceoff advantage. I think a 45 second shot clock would be a step in the right direction.

That's what SU wants. We should be able to beat them, they're terrible at faceoffs.

Because the Harvard game was so lopsided on faceoffs, it skewed the game's outcome. Does this become like basketball where the team scored on gets the ball? Then the skill advantage goes to how well you can ride the clear and maybe the game becomes harder hitting with more injuries. Doug Tesoriero has done yeoman work for Cornell on faceoffs but as he improves on his awesome Cornell career stats (just shy of 600 FO wins?) there have been games where the other team outdid us.

I'd love a rematch with Harvard. We won't give up that bad brain-fade goal by Christian Knight's errant clear. Donovan, Lintner, and Buczek won't be held to 1G 0A. Although Florida was probably thinking UConn couldn't get lucky twice in one season against them.

They actually tried eliminating face-offs in the late 70's. I don't remember when they went back in.

I think it was the next season. It is remembered by those old enough to remember as a colossal failure. (I'm old enough to remember, but don't. I didn't really follow lax until I arrived at Cornell in 1984.)

I just remember the fans couting off the goals and going "We want more.....FACE-OFFS!"

the problem is less the faceoffs and more that once you win them you can control the ball and pace of play for so long. they need a hybrid shot clock.. if you win the faceoff the clock starts and you have until it runs out to score or lose the ball. once the clock is done the ball goes to the other team. make it min or two but something so a team doesnt possess the ball for 3-4 min and take 5-10 shots.. then they score and win the next faceoff and one teams offense is left standing for 75% of a period..

this way you reward one part of the game, but dont punish a team for losing a faceoff.

Agreed and the point I was trying to make. The hand held clock is not working this season.