That Championship Season In the championship game, Tara Dunn '01 attempts to get the puck past New Hampshire goalie Alicia Roberts. BILL ALKOFER/ST. PAUL PIONEER PRESS

The ending couldn't have been better: a pass from senior superstar A.J. Mleczko to freshman phenomenon Jennifer Botterill, who slammed the puck home to break nine minutes of overtime tension and complete, with a 6-5 Harvard victory, the greatest campaign in the history of women's collegiate ice hockey. The finals of the national championship tournament in Minneapolis offered an ideal matchup: Harvard, the country's top team, against number-two New Hampshire. With 48 saves, the Wildcats' netminder, Alicia Roberts, performed brilliantly against the Olympic-grade Harvard offense. Yet she was not quite enough to contain the awesome Crimson firepower.

Harvard had already beaten New Hampshire three times this year on its way to a 33-1 record that closed with a 30-game winning streak. Only a week before, they tamed the Wildcats in overtime, 5-4, to claim the ECAC crown to go with their Ivy League title. This year, Harvard won almost everything. The Crimson's only loss came in November, to Brown (4-2); after rectifying that anomaly in a February rematch (6-2), they proved their superiority to the Bruins again in the semifinal at Minneapolis (5-3). However, a late-game pileup refractured the collarbone of goalie Crystal Springer '00--the same injury that had sidelined her for 10 midseason contests.

Thus, freshman keeper Alison Kuusisto skated to the net for the final. She had been called upon before under pressure, having tended net during Harvard's capture of the Beanpot (7-6 over Northeastern in overtime; 9-0 over Boston College), when Springer was first injured. Kuusisto again responded ably, extending her record to 11-0 in goal. Meanwhile, her teammates were launching a fusillade at the other end of the ice, outshooting New Hampshire 54-33. Boosted by a hat trick from Angela Francisco '01, Harvard was up 5-3 with less than seven minutes left in regulation. Yet, just as they had done a week prior at the ECACs, the Wildcats stormed back with two late goals to force the overtime showdown.

The line that ended it--Mleczko, Botterill, and Tammy Shewchuck '00--was the most unstoppable in the annals of women's hockey; combined, they scored an unearthly 307 points. Shewchuck led the nation in goals with 51, Mleczko in total scoring with 114 points on 37 goals and 77 assists.

Mleczko (see "Tornado on Ice," March-April, page 78) also received the Patty Kazmeier Award, given to the nation's outstanding female hockey player. She ended her career with 257 points, easily the largest total in Crimson history, and showed an extra measure of guts in the championship game, where she separated her left shoulder and tore back muscles near the end of the second period. After a cortisone shot, Mleczko skated out to play the third stanza and overtime with her customary brilliance. It seemed, however, that in her final game, Mleczko would be personally shut out for the first time all year. But nine minutes into overtime, the star center had one more assist left to dish out.

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