Year in Sports 2023

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The Harvard Crimson

MAY 2023

COMMENCEMENT 2023

Year in Sports

HARVARD IN FULL FORCE

JULIAN J. GIORDANO, DYLAN J. GOODMAN, CORY K. GORCZYCKI—CRIMSON PHOTOGRAPHERS , SAMI E. TURNER—CRIMSON DESIGNER

HEARTBREAK OF THE YEAR

COACH OF THE YEAR

GRACE TAYLOR OVERCOMES THE ODDS

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The Harvard Crimson

s t n e t n Co

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YEAR IN SPORTS

STAFF

SPORTS CHAIRS Mairead B. Baker ’24 Aaron B. Shuchman ’25

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STAFF WRITERS Jack Canavan ’26 Callum J. Diak ’25 Josephine S. Elting ’26 Nadia A. Fairfax ’26 Sydney E. Farnham ’25 Katharine Forst ’25 Zadoc I.N. Gee ’24 Molly R. Malague ’26 Bridget T. Sands ’24 Jack Silvers ’25 DESIGN EDITORS Toby R. Ma ’24 DYLAN J. GOODMAN—CRIMSON PHOTOGRAPHER

Sami E. Turner ’25 PHOTO EDITORS Julian J. Giordano ’25 Dylan J. Goodman ’25 Cory K. Gorczycki ’25 Joey Huang ’24 PRESIDENT

THERESA MOORE ’86 GIVES BACK

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Former track star Theresa Moore ’86 has built a production company that tells untold stories from the Black community.

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Women’s lacrosse star Grace Taylor ’25 has continued to excel on and off the field – all while battling cancer.

GRACE TAYLOR ’25 DEFIES ODDS

MAGGIE MCCARTHY ’23

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Basketball captain Maggie McCarthy ’23 captained the Crimson to a historic run – and then hit the lacrosse field days later.

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Running back Aidan Borguet ’23 and defensive lineman Truman Jones ’23 look to latch onto NFL rosters for the 2023 season.

BORGUET AND JONES HUNT NFL

Cara J. Chang ’24 MANAGING EDITOR Brandon L. Kingdollar ’24 BUSINESS MANAGER Cynthia V. Lu ’24

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FROM THE EDITORS

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he 2022-23 season marked Harvard’s second campaign in action after the Covid-19 pandemic. Fans have surged back to campus in droves, teams have returned to complete practice and game schedules, and Crimson Sports has had the opportunity to cover Harvard’s return to normalcy across more than 40 varsity sports teams.

The season has brought incredible triumphs and heartbreaking defeats for the Crimson, which brought home two national championships while making 17 postseason tournament appearances. While dominant dynasties have continued their reign at the top, Harvard has fallen just short of securing coveted bragging rights, conference championships, and even national titles. Crimson squads have announced themselves on the national stage, rising to new heights and breaking long standing records, while some have fallen from the pinnacle of achievement into periods of rebuilding.

At The Harvard Crimson, we have had the privilege to cover all of the action. From storied rivalries to dominant performances to heartbreaking defeats, our reporters have sought to bring the stories behind Harvard Athletics to life.

Driven and committed athletes have fought through tremendous adversity to compete at an elite level, persevering through injuries and defeats in their pursuit of excellence as student-athletes. On the sidelines, visionary and inspiring coaches, established campus legends and rookies alike, have continued to set a high standard of achievement and drive Crimson competitors to be their very best.

This Year in Sports issue aims to tell the story of a monumental year for Harvard sports by highlighting the stories of the extraordinary people that defined the season, and the results, good and bad, of all of their dedicated commitment.

- MBB & ABS

The Harvard Crimson COMMENCEMENT 2023

The Best of 2022-23 Awards nominated and voted on by The Crimson Sports Staff

Top 10 Moments of 2022–23 SEE PAGE 18

MALE

Coach of The Year CARRIE MOORE WOMEN’S BASKETBALL

Team of The Year

SEE PAGE 20

Game of The Year

TRACK AND FIELD

FEMALE

HARVARD VS. Cornell MEN’S LACROSSE

Performance of The Year

SEE PAGE 12

GRAHAM BLANKS TRACK AND FIELD

FEMALE

SEE PAGE 24

FEMALE

Rookie of The Year BRONTE-MAY BROUGH FIELD HOCKEY SEE PAGE 8

Athlete of The Year MAIA RAMSDEN TRACK AND FIELD SEE PAGE 4

Heartbreak of The Year BEANPOT TITLE GAME MEN’S ICE HOCKEY SEE PAGE 16

Performance of The Year AINSLEY AHMADIAN WOMEN’S SOCCER SEE PAGE 22

MALE

Rookie of The Year TEDDY MALONE MEN’S LACROSSE SEE PAGE 10

SEE PAGE 14

MALE

Athlete of The Year MARWAN TAREK MEN’S SQUASH SEE PAGE 6

Year in Sports Photos SEE PAGE 34

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The Harvard Crimson COMMENCEMENT 2023

Maia Ramsden

Female Athlete of the Year

Women’s Track and Field

Ramsden Races to Rewrite the Record Books

By AARON B. SHUCHMAN

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CRIMSON STAFF WRITER

lthough junior Maia Ramsden has only competed on the Harvard track and field and cross country teams for two seasons, her name is quickly taking up a lot of real estate in the Harvard Athletics record book.

After a strong sophomore campaign in 2021-22, Ramsden emerged as an anchor of the women’s track and field program in 2022-23, captaining the team to a historic season that included victories at the Ivy League Cross Country, Indoor, and Outdoor championships.

A native of New Zealand, Ramsden has been a star on the track even since her years before Harvard. Ramsden won the U20 New Zealand National Championship in the 1500 m and the 800 m, and she earned New Zealand National Silver honors in the 800 m at the U18 levels.

Ramsden was also a decorated performer during her time at the International Community School of Addis Ababa in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. She holds the

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International Schools of Southern and Eastern Africa (ISSEA) records in the 400 m, 800 m, and 1500 m, and she was twice honored as an ISSEA All-Star.

Ramsden kicked off her campaign with a cross country victory in the 5000 m race at the Sept. 10th HYP meet against Yale and Princeton. In late September, she finished seventh at the Oklahoma State Cowboy Jamboree in the 6000 m with a time of 20:32.7, and took home another seventh place ranking at the Nuttycombe Invite in Wisconsin two weeks later, improving to a time of 20:04.5.

At the Ivy League Championships on Oct. 28th, Ramsden won the Ivy League individual title in the 6000 m with a time

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Ramsden hit the ground running at the start of the track and field indoor season, setting a school record in the 3000 m with a time of 8:54 at the HBCU and Ivy Challenge. Ramsden picked up her record-setting ways soon after winter break, setting a program record in the 1000m at the HYP Meet in late January.

“I’ve never run the 1000 meters before, so I knew I was going to PR since I didn’t have any other time,” she noted. “I really wasn’t sure what was going to happen — it was a really pleasant surprise, I’d say.”

Despite another strong performance, the junior noted that there were lessons to be learned in Harvard’s team defeat to Princeton.

She certainly is the epitome of a student athlete, pursuing academic and athletic excellence.

Jason Saretsky Track and Field Head Coach

of 20:42.4, leading the Crimson to a league title. Less than two weeks later, Ramsden secured a spot in the NCAA Championship meet with another 6000 m win at the NCAA Northeast Regional Championships, this time posting a 20:20.6 result, but she saved her best time of the season for the mid-November national championships, finishing in 11th with a time of 19:52.3 to cap off a stellar fall cross country season.

After posting a season-best time in cross country’s biggest meet of the year,

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“Our coach is pretty keen on us peaking at the right time,” Ramsden said. “I think that at first that means on the scoreboard — Princeton beats us, but in the long term, it’s better because we’re learning to adapt to new races.”

The next weekend, Ramsden broke a 43-year-old school record in the mile run in a time of 4:30.19 at Boston University’s Scarlet and White meet. Ramsden finished first in the entire collegiate field in the race and rose to second place in the en-

tire NCAA with her historic time. While she could not match her school record at the Ivy League Indoor Championships in late February, Ramsden won two gold medals with firstplace finishes in the mile a n d 1000 m.

Her stellar performance earned her the Ivy League Most Valuable Track Athlete award.

After finishing the Ivy League season with a dominant performance, Ramsden earned First-Team All-American honors in two events at the NCAA Indoor Championships in N.M. in mid-March. In her first event of the meet, Ramsden finished fifth in the mile with a time of 4:36.54, and she followed up with a ninth-place finish in the 3000 m only hours later, securing a spot on the podium each time to complete a brilliant out-

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The Harvard Crimson COMMENCEMENT 2023

door season, one that saw the track and field team send its biggest group of athletes to the national championship in 17 years.

“I was incredibly proud of Maia,” said track and field head coach Jason Saretsky.

“She certainly is the epitome of a student athlete, pursuing academic and athletic excellence, and for her to have that recognition in front of her peers was just a testament to her hard work and how dedicated she is as a student athlete.”

With the outdoor season in full swing, Ramsden posted a dominant performance at t h e

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Our coach is pretty keen on us peaking at the right time...we’re learning to adapt to new races.

Maia Ramsden ‘24 Track and Field Captain

126th biannual Harvard-Yale Oxford-Cambridge meet. After winning the 1500 m in 4:15.77, Ramsden dominated the 5000 m, setting a personal record of 16:08.27 and securing victory by a margin of 15 seconds. She posted another strong 1500 m time two weeks later to finish fourth at Wake Forest, taking second place in the Harvard record book and rising to 13th in the nation.

In the final Ivy League competition of the season, the captain defended her 2022 title in the 1500 m, winning by three seconds in a time of 4:12.54. She won the 5000 m title only five hours later, taking the lead in the final lap to earn the individual Most Outstanding Track Performer award.

The women’s team won its sixth ever Ivy League title, and first since 2017, behind Ramsden’s dominance.

“I think that’s a lot different than last year, where I was just going to race with the field, sit on the leader, and kind of make it fast if we have to,” Ramsden said after the championship.

“This year we kind of had some goals for what the first half of the race should look like, and that was to go out pretty hard. I ended up going out a little too hard, but it COURTESY OF THE IVY LEAGUE worked out in the

end.”

The junior captain has another chance to secure some national hardware at the upcoming NCAA Regionals and Indoor Championships in June, but regardless of the outcome, Ramsden’s consistent brilliance on the track has entrenched her place in the Harvard record books, and her leadership and teamwork has helped push the Crimson to a historic and unforgettable season.

“I think it’s a reflection of our program, the more qualifiers we can have at NCAA Regionals. So definitely trying to help and support and motivate as many people as we can this first weekend.” aaron.shuchman@thecrimson.com

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IVY TITLES

Women’s Field Hockey

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goals scored by Rookie of the Year first-year Bronte-May Brough

“We’re consistently trying to be a high-performing, competitive team in the top five to 10 teams in the country.”

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The Harvard Crimson COMMENCEMENT 2023

Marwan Tarek

Male Athlete of the Year

Men’s Squash

The Magnificent Marwan

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By CALLUM J. DIAK CRIMSON STAFF WRITER

ince joining the Harvard squash team in 2018, Marwan Tarek has drawn crowds and headlines alike.

During a four-year tenure at Harvard, the senior has accumulated a collection of trophies and titles that could fill the case at the Murr Center on their own.

Now, after what has been an impressively dominant senior season for the Harvard squash program, Tarek has added another set of achievements to his resume — another Potter Cup, the prestigious Skillman Award, and, of course, The Harvard Crimson’s Male Athlete of the Year. Harvard has had a great year packed with athletic successes across the sports spectrum. For the teams and individuals competing in the male division of their sports, there have been many notable

season-long performances: ice hockey, basketball, skiing, have all seen Crimson athletes excelling at the highest level of competition.

However, nobody stood out amongst teammates and competitors the same way that Marwan Tarek has excelled on the squash court.

Of course, like any accomplished athlete, Tarek’s dominance can be understood in the numbers even by the most casual observers.

To start, 60 is the number of matches that he has played wearing the Crimson colors. A regular season has twelve matches in it, so for Tarek to have even played 60 over four years means he not only qualified for the post-season every year he has been at Harvard, but also done well enough to play the maximum of three playoff games every year to reach this impressive total. Of these 60 matches, the now seasoned veteran has managed to

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The Harvard Crimson COMMENCEMENT 2023

post an all-time record of 56-4. To put this in perspective, the legendary 1996 Chicago Bulls ended the season with a 72-10 record.

If Tarek had his record extrapolated into a standard 82-game NBA season, he would clock an unfathomable 77-5 season, steamrolling the Jordan, Pippen, and Rodman power trio.

Yes, Tarek wins. Yes, Tarek makes the finals. But does he win in the finals? Yes. The Cairo, Egypt native has won four Potter Cups with the Crimson, and in finals play, Tarek has been a perfect 4-0 in his individual matches.

In Harvard’s biggest games this season — the Ivy League-clinching win over the University of Pennsylvania and the Potter Cup final against Trinity College — Harvard’s go-to-guy has delivered. In a regular season game outside of Ivy League competition, Tarek secured a win over Trinity College’s Mohammed Sharaf, three games to one. A month-and-a-half later, he then repeated this performance in an entirely different context to score an essential point that brought Harvard its fourth straight national squash title.

With a true championship mindset exemplified in his on-court grit and rigor, spectators watching Marwan Tarek compete are reminded that athletes do not ever play to lose. In both of the Trinity College matches this season, one with no stakes, the other with the highest stakes in college squash, Tarek maintained the same level of focus and precision to close out his opponent. In both instances, Tarek won the first game comfortably, and then proceeded to drop the second. Whether winning or losing, Tarek is always focused, composed. His ability to come off a lost game and string together two straight victories against an opponent as undeniably skilled as Trinity’s Sharaf is a true testament to Tarek’s unique talent as an athlete.

It is not that he is ever visually bothered. It is the opposite actually: it is generally difficult to tell what exactly the Crimson’s No. 1 is thinking when he is locked

into a match. This makes Tarek exceptionally dangerous to an opponent. Maybe he is fazed by making an error and losing a point? Maybe he is so confident in his skill that he never feels the pressure of a single point? Regardless, an opponent that conceals his emotions until the very end, when he is able to drop his racquet and cheer to his fans is a terrifying adversary, especially when composure is just an additive to an already bursting kit of squash IQ and skillful shots.

The on-court persona of a silent killer, however, immediately dissipates after the 23-year-old economics concentrator leaves the confines of the squash court. Once his match ends, Tarek will jump quickly out through the plexiglass door in search of one of his teammates playing, so that he can cheer them on loudly. Tarek certainly holds himself in a way that reflects expertise and experience, which could be easily interpreted as unapproachability.

But Tarek could be seen all season fully engaged in his mentor role, shouting motivation and conversing one-on-one with teammates about specific points of a game or opponent tendencies.

“When you’re on the court alone, you’re not actually alone. You have your guys there supporting you,” teammate Tate Harms elaborates on the importance of getting energy and advice from the team.

And this is the true sign of a gifted athlete: a generational talent on the court who also uses his abilities to elevate the play of his teammates. After all, college squash is a team sport, and Tarek has led Harvard to the most successful four years of competition it possibly could have had.

The most notable deviation from his reserved style requires a look back once again to Harvard’s final game of the season against the Trinity College Bantam in the finals of the CSA National Championships.

Tarek had won games one and three, dropping the second game. The bigger picture is that while the Crimson’s best player is on the court, the overall score of the matchup

is 4-3 in favor of Harvard.

The spectators and players alike begin to realize that Tarek could secure the fifth point for the Crimson and clinch the title with one more game victory over Sharaf.

An already sizable crowd was locked in on the number-one ladder game; however, once the stakes were realized, every eye in the building fell onto the Egyptian national champion. Dancing around his opponent, Tarek, on surely tired legs, looks just as fresh as he did in the first game of the season. But now he wears the familiar look of a man hungry for another title.

Up two games to one, Tarek ran the score up rapidly on Sharaf, until match point, and champion point, were established. Tarek and Sharaf traded drives down the line on this crucial point, until Tarek switched the flow of the rally unexpectedly — slithering past Sharaf to deliver a high volley to the top of the wall. The high shot forced Sharaf to reach for a difficult spike shot that ultimately errored into the bottom runner.

With the bang of the ball on the metal, a collective breath slips from the mouths of the entire crowd. And then the Harvard team erupted into cheers. While his teammates celebrate outside of the court, jumping up and down and hugging. Marwan Tarek shakes his opponent’s hand, and then lets emotion take over. His hands rise up and rest on his head as he realizes what he has just accomplished: a fourth title for him and for the Crimson. And right on cue, the team floods through the plexiglass door, swarming their hero — their champion — jumping onto him and collectively collapsing onto the floor as one big pile.

In recognition of his exceptional season and overall career, this Crimson ace was awarded the Skillman Award by the CSA — the highest honor in collegiate squash for an individual athlete. A coalition of coaches determines the recipient of this award annually, and it is always an athlete who embodies college squash skill and sportsmanship. Nominees are judged for the Skillman on criteria surrounding six ar-

eas: on-court poise and demeanor, skill level, and ability in squash, team play, contributions to college squash, leadership, and cooperation with players, coaches, and tournament officials. It is safe to say that Tarek excels in all fields. Tarek joins a very high company of Crimson Skillman Award winners, including last year’s recipient, Victor Crouin ’22, and former Professional Squash Association World No. 1, Ali Farag ’14. Tarek, who boasts one of the most successful college squash careers ever, will go down in history as a Harvard squash legend, and one of the best to step on the college squash circuit.

Looking now to his future in squash, the 2023 graduate shows plenty of promise, already participating in PSA competitions alongside former Crimson stars Crouin and Farag, who are both active professional squash players, with the latter recently claiming another PSA world championship title this month. The Harvard squash program has been very successful at springboarding its athletes into successful professional squash careers. With a talent and drive as special as his, Tarek will likely begin making noise professionally very soon.

Until then, squash fans can reflect and revel in Marwan Tarek’s collegiate career and admire his fitting season finale that earns him the Male Athlete of the Year award for 2022-23. callum.diak@thecrimson.com

THC Read more at THECRIMSON.COM

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goals made by junior attack Callie Hem, earning First-Team All-Ivy Recognition

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Harvard defeated Princeton on September 24 as part of the program’s 40th Anniversary celebration

“As a whole, I believe this team takes pride in backing eachother.”

LENNOX LONDON ’26 Backrow / Right Wing

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The Harvard Crimson COMMENCEMENT 2023

Bronte-May Brough

Female Rookie of the Year

Field Hockey

Heart of Defense, and One of Gold: Bronte-May Brough

By MAIREAD B. BAKER

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CRIMSON STAFF WRITER

oming into collegiate athletics, an uncomfortable adjustment for many Division I athletes is no longer being in the starting lineup, playing in every game, or racking in the most minutes played.

For Bronte-May Brough, a first-year on Harvard’s top-notch field hockey team, it was quite the opposite.

Leading the team in games played (17), games started (17), goals (12), shots (73), game-winning goals (3), and overall points (25), the defender was at the heart of each game in the 2022 season. Despite this, she hands off most of the credit to her team.

“Field hockey is a team game,” the Uttoxeter, England native said. “Without the other 25 girls around me, the season wouldn’t have even happened.”

Brough and other first-years on the team began their first season with the Crimson following a tremendous, history-making 2021 season by Harvard field hockey where it made it to the Final Four

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of the NCAA tournament, losing in a double overtime heartbreaker to Northwestern, who went on to win the entire tournament. This made the 2022 season very highly-anticipated, one with high expectations and even higher standards — two things Brough was well aware of in moving across the Atlantic to Cambridge.

“I feel like most of that expectation was within the team and driven by us,” she stated. “Obviously, this season, we didn’t quite achieve what we’d hoped.

[It] all came down to the one Princeton game, and we didn’t quite achieve that.”

Despite holding an impressive 13-4 record, in which all four losses were against top-15 opponents, Harvard fell short of the ending it had worked for, ending the season without an Ivy League championship nor a bid to the 2022 NCAA Division I Field Hockey Tournament. Instead, this right was granted to another Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) team, most likely Louisville or Wake Forest.

The Crimson had toppled Louisville in 2021 during the NCAA tournament to reach the quarterfinal round for only the second time in program history. At the At the first game of the season, Brough drives the ball up the field in Hartime in 2022, Harvard was in a strong po- vard’s 1-0 victory over Miami University. COURTESY OF HARVARD ATHLETICS

TEAM RECAPS 8

sition to gain the bid, sitting at 16th place in the nation and holding a 0.765 winning percentage. Princeton had received an automatic bid from the Ivy League — which is given only one ticket — while eight other teams received at-large qualifiers, with four from the ACC and four from the Big Ten. Historically, Princeton field hockey is the main rival of Harvard. Each year, the Ivy League title switches off between the two schools. In 2021, Harvard earned the title after a well-fought penalty shootout, ending the game at 2-1.

In 2022, Princeton had the advantage of an older squad, whereas many of Harvard’s starters and key players were

first-years and sophomores who had not yet experienced the Harvard-Princeton intensity — one where Ivy titles and NCAA tournament bids are at stake.

This year, Brough and her classmates will have more experience in playing in Tiger territory and are motivated to earn the bid they missed out on last Fall.

“We have Princeton week, which is the week before the Princeton game, [where] we [are] especially driven towards the game, adapting our training sessions, but mostly like focusing on ourselves and what we’re going to control,” described Brough about the way Harvard prepares for the Princeton game.

“I think the team deals with it really, really well in a way that it’s more excitement rather than nerves — everyone’s really up

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The Harvard Crimson COMMENCEMENT 2023

for it,” continued the Ivy League Rookie of the Year.

“That was such a different vibe that I was getting from the team in that week, everyone was so excited, so ready,” Brough said. “I think everyone loves the competition, which is such a nice feeling rather than the other. Everyone’s out there ready to go for it instead of shying away.”

There’s no doubt that Harvard field hockey is fired up about the way its season ended so abruptly last fall, and that it will return in full force in August. Once considered the underdogs, they are far from underdogs.

Following Harvard’s surprising lost chance at an NCAA tournament run, the NCAA will change the way the single Ivy League bid to the tournament is chosen: rather than the Ivy League tournament deciding both the named Ivy Champion and NCAA ticket holder, the two will be mutually exclusive.

The Ivy League will now have a regular season champion — the Ivy Champion — and an Ivy League tournament will follow, which decides who gets a bid to the nation’s Division I tournament. If Harvard wins in the regular season and loses the tournament, there is still a chance it can receive an at-large bid from the NCAA, given that it would still be the Ivy League Champion.

“We all know we want to go further and potentially win, so that’s what we’re aiming for,” Brough said. “Before, [we] were considered underdogs, and [we are] trying to adapt to ‘Oh wait, maybe we’re not underdogs anymore.’ That mindset is kind of hard, but I think we’re getting there.”

After beating ranked opponents and playing well-matched games against many other schools, such as Saint Joseph’s University, Maryland, and the University of Connecticut, the Crimson knows that it has what it takes to make statement victories and gain an automatic berth in the NCAA tournament.

“The feeling of disappointment when we didn’t get a bid for the NCAA, taking it through to next year, we have a really strong list of teams we are planning for next fall,” Brough said. “Taking that feeling into every game is going to be really important for the team instead of letting others decide whether we get through the NCAAs, making sure we win the Ivies and the Ivy Tournament, ensuring we get in on our own is going to be massive, I think.”

And Brough will continue doing just and more that this fall as she embarks on another impressive season with Harvard — possibly, one with more shots and goals scored than she already has racked up — but definitely one with more confidence, skills, and knowledge in how to play her best game in collegiate field hockey.

mairead.baker@thecrimson.com

DYLAN J. GOODMAN — CRIMSON PHOTOGRAPHER

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Seniors Grace Thawley (63), Brooke Hourigan (53), and Evan Tingler (46) led Harvard in goal scoring for the season

Harvard beat two top-10 opponents in one season for the first time in program history

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The Harvard Crimson

Teddy Malone

Male Rookie of the Year

COMMENCEMENT 2023

Men’s Lacrosse

First-Year, First Line: Malone Attacks the Net

By KATHARINE A. FORST

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howing grit and determination throughout a highly-anticipated season, first-year attackman Teddy Malone made an instant impact on the Harvard men’s lacrosse team.

Appearing in all twelve games and starting in ten, Malone finished the year tied for the second-most points on the team, finishing with 18 goals and six assists. Working his way into the first-line attacking unit made up of sophomore Sam King and senior Hayden Cheek, Malone was so key in the team’s successes that he was twice named the Ivy League Rookie of the Week.

The first-year star grew up in Philadelphia, Penn. and graduated from Haverford.

He started playing lacrosse in the second grade after watching his older brother TJ — a fifth-year senior and standout attacker at Penn State — who inspired him to pursue the sport as well.

Malone ultimately played for Mesa, a

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POINTS

club team run out of his high school, where he continued throughout the entirety of his recruiting process. In deciding where he would ultimately take his talents, Malone considered Harvard, other Ivy League schools, as well as Penn State. However, when the coaching staff for the Crimson reached out to him, it made the decision to

a creative sport,” Malone reflected. “Having your own stick that you can customize makes it so that there are endless things you can do. I’m always learning something new, there are so many ways to get better and it’s just so much fun to play” It is this joy that drives him to excel both in the classroom and on the field. Balanc-

Having your own stick that you can customize makes it so that there are endless things you can do...it’s just so much fun to play.

Teddy Malone First-year attackman

play for Harvard incredibly easy.

“Hailing from Philly powerhouse The Haverford School, Teddy brings a ferocity mixed with joy to every practice, lift, and drill and that mixture bodes well for what I see as an All-Ivy and All-American caliber career as we aim for an Ivy League and National Championship,” head coach Gerry Byrne noted.

Lacrosse is not a family tradition for Malone beyond him and his brother. His mother ran track at Richmond and his father did not compete in a sport collegiately, although he was a competitive soccer player. Despite this, Malone’s love for the sport runs deep.

“I play lacrosse because it can be such

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ing a rigorous schedule of Harvard classes, lacrosse lifts, meetings, and practices, Malone has adjusted well to the fast-paced environment in Cambridge. However, even with his instant impacts, he recognizes the stresses of being at such a lauded institution.

Malone remarked that attending Harvard, he realized just how talented everyone is. Everyone was the best at their niche, whether that be art, sports, or music, and so trying to perform well amongst his peers has been a challenge due to the competitive nature of his class.

“I think that makes it extremely competitive. In the classroom you’re surrounded by people that seem way smarter than

you — a n d same thing on the lacrosse field,” he said.

“Every single person that is recruited to go to Harvard for lacrosse is the best person on their high school team, the best player in the area.”

“I think just going from this side of the river, in the Yard, from classes, being surrounded by super smart, talented individuals, and then going to lacrosse also surrounded by super smart, talented individuals, they just push you,” he continued. “It can be really challenging if you fall behind, and it’s easy to get down on yourself, but I think ultimately makes everyone a better person, a better student, a better athlete” At a school noted primarily as being the best academic institution in the nation, there can be situations in which student-athletes feel pressure from professors as a result of their having to juggle both pursuits in the classroom as well as on the field. However, Malone has not only not felt this, but he has been supported by his faculty.

“All my teachers have been super interesting — they’re super curious about lacrosse,” Malone said. “I know some of my professors have even come out to the games. From my experience, the heart, my

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“Squash is an individual sport but this couldn’t have been more for a team win. Whether it was playing, coaching, or cheering, we all fed off each other’s energy.”

BRECON WELCH ’25 Squash Player

The Harvard Crimson COMMENCEMENT 2023

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Harvard professors have been super supportive, and just super interested in my own life, which is really nice to see” Building confidence has been a hallmark of Malone’s rookie season. Rebounding from an injury in the fall, Malone was forced to sit out fall ball, which meant that he entered this year without much game experience. Slotting into the starting attacking unit and working with a slew of underclassmen, Malone noted that he thinks there is room for the team to grow and outperform this past performance.

“You see all the sophomores contributing, and even a lot of freshmen contributing this year. As a freshman class, we’ve all discussed with ourselves how we have such a bad taste of losing at the end of the season,” the first-year noted. “We don’t want that to happen again.”

“I know a lot of us took the blame for that,” he continued. “A lot of us will be working over the summer to have that not happen again. I think we have a lot of room to grow, but I think we are completely able to do so.”

This blame stems from a lack of experience in some big moments on all ends of the field.

However, making those mistakes as a rookie rather than as an older player shows that despite this naivete, the team boasts potential and talent in its younger classes, so these players will be able to gain ex-

perience and learn from those difficult situations on the field.

Malone is one of those talents. In the first game of the year against No. 1 Virgina, Malone scored two goals and tallied an assist. Against Dartmouth, he scored the first four goals of the game and also notched an additional four in the win against Brown.

He is far from a silent impact on the field — his successes had an immediate ef-

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GOALS fect on the outcome of each game, and his lacrosse IQ continued to develop over the course of the season as he played more collegiate games.

With his season ending before his brother’s —who is still in contention for an NCAA title with Penn State — Malone did not allow defeat to stymy his appreciation for the sport and for his teammates.

Coach Byrne is unique in that he delegates responsibilities to the upperclassmen to foster a cohesive bond within the units. Malone emphasized this tightness within the team and how it is an integral aspect in the team’s successes.

Looking onto the next three seasons, Malone has his goals set high.

“Win a National Championship and win an Ivy League championship,” Malone said. “And I think just have a great time playing lacrosse together — just really enjoying the sport together, and making it fun — I think that’s how it should be played.” katharine.forst@thecrimson.com

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The Harvard Crimson COMMENCEMENT 2023

Track and Field Breaks Records and Wins Titles

By NADIA A. FAIRFAX

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reaking records left and right, marking new tournament and Ivy League titles in its record book, and sending athletes across the country to take podium places at every meet, Harvard track and field has earned itself the honor of Team of Year — both on paper and in the hearts of its members — who will remember the 2022-23 season as a season like no other.

The Harvard track and field/cross country team has had a historic year, winning four championships over the course of the three seasons. Their most recent win — the Outdoor Ivy League Heptagonal Championship victory — marks the first time in program history that both the Harvard men’s and women’s teams have won the meet. For the men’s team, it marks the first time they’ve won the outdoor Heptagonal championships since 1983 — 40 years ago.

“I feel like we’ve just had an incredible year,” head coach Jason Saretsky reflected. “The team has progressed in so many ways and it’s really wonderful to see all their hard work and dedication paying off.”

“We always try to emphasize enjoying the process,” he continued, “but at the same time it’s nice to be able to have the end result be what you hoped for as well.”

The women’s team set a high standard for their success, beginning in the fall with a victorious season. In late October, the Crimson women raced to first place in the Ivy League Heptag-

onal Cross Country Championships with junior Maia Ramsden taking the lead for Harvard in the championships race. Ramsden won the individual title in the women’s 6K, with a time of 20:42.4 seconds. The team ended up scoring 54 points, leading by nine points more than the second place finisher and famed Harvard track and field rival,Princeton.

The men’s team finished in second place in the Ivy League the fall. It was junior Acer Iverson for the men’s team who secured the individual title, running a time of 23:59.3 seconds for the men’s 8K to win first place. Sophomore Graham Blanks was the second place finisher, running 24:04.1 seconds to follow his teammate. Their first and second place finishes marked the first time since 1969 that the Crimson had two male runners take the gold and silver medals at Heptagonals.

Harvard also had seven runners earn AllIvy Status during the Cross Country Heptagonals. At the conclusion of the meet, assistant head coach Alex Gibby was awarded the Ivy League Women’s Cross Country Coach of the Year.

The Ivy League Champions, Ramsden and Iverson were also awarded the All-Ivy Award, which recognizes student-athletes who have contributed majorly to their team, as well as maintained a GPA of 3.0 or more. The men’s and women’s team overall was named All-Academic team by the U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCA).

For Harvard, having a culture that

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cultivates community is a big proponent of their success.

“There’s a genuine [care] for one another and a feeling that this is a big family,” said Sarestsky about the team’s culture and its relation to their success. “When you have that sense of belonging to something that’s much bigger than just yourself, it allows you to do so much more than you otherwise could.”

In the indoor season, the women’s team continued to dominate. They won the Heptagonal Ivy League Championships with 177 points, a full 25 points more than second-place Princeton.

Ramsden was named the women’s Ivy League Most Valuable Track Athlete for her two wins in the women’s mile and 1000 m run. Senior Stephanie Ratcliffe was named women’s Most Va l u able Field Athlete for her Ivy League record-setting weight throw performance.

In a heartbreaker, the men’s team came even closer to the championship title during the indoor Heptagonals. By just one point, they narrowly lost with 163 points to Princeton’s 164.

Sophomore Kenneth Ikeji was named men’s Most Outstanding Track Performer.

At the conclusion of the championships, 27 Athletes earned All-Ivy Status. Sarestky was also named the Ivy League Women’s Indoor Track and Field Coach of the Year.

Harvard also sent six athletes — who had all obtained a top sixteen spot

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players earned spots on the New England Women’s Intercollegiate Soccer Association’s First-Team

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ALL-IVY the process. It is really nice to see that extra recognition and to have that recognition coming from those two groups is really rewarding.”

Heading into the outdoor championship season, the team was looking to carry on their legacy of success, and they managed to do just that.

The women’s team completed their triple crown, winning the Outdoor Ivy League Heptagonal Championships with 193 points, 33 more than second place Princeton. Ramsden was again recognized as the Women’s Most Outstanding Track Performer for her 1500 m and 5000 m wins.

The men’s team finally came victorious, winning the Outdoor Championships by 66 points.

Their win marks their eleventh outdoor title. Ikeji was also recognized as the men’s Most Outstanding Field Performer. The men’s team had also bumped up to 22 in the NCAA top 25 rankings after their Ivy League win.

At the conclusion of the meet, Harvard had 32 athletes named All-Ivy, and Coach Sarestky was recognized as the Ivy League Men’s and Women’s Coach of the Year.

“There’s so many, it’s hard to pinpoint just a few,” said Sarestky about his proudest moments and accomplishments of the team. “Starting on the women’s side, to be able to complete the triple crown is such an amazing achievement.”

“Every Ivy League school is gunning for those championships each and every time, every school is filled with really talent-

ed, hardworking student athletes, and they’re all well coached,” he continued.

“The end result is on the day. It’s a real testament to our women’s team. We were one point shy of [the championship] last year. This team operated with the idea of trying to be the best version of themselves, each and every day, and trying to get better.”

“On the men’s side, coming so close in cross country — and even closer on the track indoors — to finally sort of breakthrough, and in a record setting way for Harvard was really wonderful,” Sarestky continued. “Forty years is a long stretch, so we’re really happy and proud of our student athletes.”

The Harvard track and field men’s and women’s team has maintained a number one Northeast Regional Ranking throughout the course of the outdoor season. The team is currently gearing up for its next target: the NCAAs. “First and foremost, we don’t feel like our season is done,” Sarestky made clear. “Our attention is now squarely on the NCAAs, and we’ve got a large contingent that will be representing Harvard at the NCAA first round, and we’re trying to advance as many athletes as we can to the NCAA final round.”

“It’s something we try to continue to emphasize, being present, and being in the moment,” he said. “I’m fairly sure we’re gonna have a record number of Harvard track and field student-athletes at NCAA first round, so that’s what I’m most excited about and focused on.”

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in their event — to the indoor NCAAs. “I think it’s a credit to our student athletes and our coaching staff, for the hard work and dedication they put in,” said Sarestky about the recognition that the program has gotten from both the league, as well as USTFCCA. “We try to really emphasize enjoying the journey, and it’s more about

COMMENCEMENT 2023

“We can all start and finish games and we can all come in for each other” RILEY FLYNN ’26 Pitcher

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The Harvard Crimson COMMENCEMENT 2023

Harvard v. Cornell

Game of the Year

Men’s Lacrosse

Seeing Red: Men’s Lacrosse’s 10-8 Comeback Against Cornell

COURTESY OF DYLAN J. GOODMAN / HARVARD ATHLETICS

TEAM RECAPS 14 PAGE DESIGN BY TOBY R. MA—CRIMSON DESIGNER

The Harvard men’s lacrosse team runs to its goalie, junior Christian Barnard, who made a career-high 16 saves in net. In a highly anticipated game, the Crimson upset Cornell 10-8. COURTESY OF DYLAN J. GOODMAN / HARVARD ATHLETICS

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The Crimson faced off with the then-No. 4 Kansas Jayhawks in December, losing 68-54 at the legendary Allen Fieldhouse in Lawrence, Kansas.

The Harvard Crimson COMMENCEMENT 2023

By KATHARINE A. FORST CRIMSON STAFF WRITER

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warding a title of “Game of the Year” at a school with such an historic rivalry as Harvard vs. Yale might seem a bit trivial. It seems to be the obvious choice to praise such a game for its history and hype. However, this particular year, the Harvard men’s lacrosse team pulled off a comeback victory against No. 4 Cornell that altered the trajectory of its season, put it back in contention for a spot in the Ivy Tournament, and proved that despite not performing to the same level as last year, that the team did indeed deserve to be lauded amongst the other top schools in the nation.

In a performance that was the best of the season for the young Crimson team, the Harvard men’s lacrosse team shocked the lacrosse world with a decisive 10-8 comeback upset against the No. 4 Big Red. Coming into the contest battling a slump that included losses against Boston University and Dartmouth, the team played with a fire and intensity to dig out a win and topple the Big Red. In head coach Gerry Byrne’s signature fashion, the game was attended by thousands of fans who brought energy to Jordan Field. Harvard hosted the most spectators in the Ivy League for the second season in a row, and this energy helped create a vivacious atmosphere that propelled the team.

“The combination of nearly 3000 fans, a sunny day ,and a top-five opponent created a Holy Trinity that propelled our team to play its most complete game of the year,” Byrne remarked.

The Ivy League as a whole produced powerhouse men’s lacrosse programs in the 2022 season, and the competitiveness between programs heightened as the coveted slots for the League tournament became necessary to secure an NCAA Tournament bid. This carried into 2023, a season which marked a decisive decrease in the number of Ivy League schools in the NCAA Tournament from six teams (out of seven total) to just two: tournament winner Princeton and wild card bid Yale.

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The victory over Cornell was a pivotal moment for the Crimson because up to that point, the team’s performance throughout the season had been markedly more sluggish than the previous season. Earning a win against the Big Red was a victory not just for the team’s record, but also for its confidence.

The win proved that Harvard had the capacity to play top teams, and that it could hold its own.

“Defeating the NCAA Championships runner-up from 2022 in front of a packed house is a predictor of where this program can go in future years, and we hope for many more wins like this as we welcome not only

as the standout first-year attackman Teddy Malone — who was named the Ivy League Rookie of the Week for his performances against both Dartmouth and Cornell — the team shined on both ends of the field. Cornell played with a speed that challenged the Crimson squad for that first few minutes of play before the team was able to adapt and then excel against it.

“They are a high-energy, high-skill team, and you can’t meet it, you have to exceed it.

So, I challenged our guys in the locker room before to be great,” Byrne said. “You know that you’re going to be imperfect, so you’ve got to move through mistakes, which is a

“

Defeating the NCAA championships runner-up from 2022 in front of a packed house is a predictor of where this program can go in future years.

Gerry Byrne Harvard Men’s Lacrosse Head Coach

our Ivy League rivals to campus every year but NCAA powerhouses like Duke and Virginia as well,” Byrne noted.

The game proved to be a triumphant four quarters of lacrosse for the squad. After a rocky start where Cornell took a quick threegoal lead, the young squad showed poise in regrouping in a timeout called by Byrne.

It then returned to the field, scoring twice in the first before eventually tying the score and remaining neck-in-neck for the remainder of play. This poise was evident as well in how the Crimson strung together cohesive plays across the field. Struggling throughout the season to excel both offensively and defensively in the same game, this particular contest showed that the team had what it takes to rally back and defend its home turf.

Led by junior goalie Christian Barnard — who with a 66% save percentage was named the Ivy League Player of the Week — as well

good life lesson, and we just needed to compete with them.”

“They are one of the most competitive teams, high-energy, ferocious, physical teams, and we had to meet it and exceed it,” continued Byrne. “I think that when we were playing well — which was a lot of that game — we did that.”

On the defensive end, sophomore defenseman Collin Bergstrom locked-down Tewaaraton Award Finalist C.J. Kirst, who was third in the nation in points and first in goals. Mitigating the threat allowed the defense to play aggressively off-ball and work as a unit. This unit consisted of sophomore defender Tommy Martinson and first-year defender Charlie Muller, who together held the 28th most efficient offense in the nation — averaging 14.56 goals per game — to only eight goals and a 16.3% efficiency rate, allowing just eight goals on 49 possessions.

“I think we put it all together today. The offense was scoring goals, and the defense was playing very well,” Barnard stated at the time. “They have one of the best players in the country in C.J. Kirst and I think that we did a really good job trying to minimize him.

You can’t contain him completely, but you [have to] minimize his plays — I think our defense did an extraordinary job of that.”

This solid play on the defense translated into the team’s most stellar performance on offense of the entire season. Despite having trouble settling down for the first few minutes of play, the offense looked fast. Gaining a step on defenders, making crisp passes, and moving the ball allowed the attack to penetrate the seams, initiate one-on-one dodging, and play clean team offense. Similarly to the defense, which plays a team-style rotation without one player taking on a specific matchup, the offense showed incredible depth as well. Eight different players tallied goals, which proved that the team was able to capitalize on those looks.

While the season did not end the way that the squad would have liked, this game shows just how great the team can be when it strings together four cohesive and aggressive quarters of lacrosse. In a season that was touted as a breakthrough by lacrosse insiders, only to then fall short of that goal, this performance showcased the grit of the men’s team to battle against one of the toughest opponents in the nation, and come out victorious. katharine.forst@thecrimson.com

10-8 WIN

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Points per game by senior guard/ forward Chris Ledlum

Pass rushers senior Truman Jones and junior Thor Griffith were a formidable duo on the defensive line, combining for 11 sacks and 25 tackles for loss.

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“It’s a brotherhood that has been formed this year. The guys fought. They fought to the very end, the entire season. That’s a culture thing. That’s a team thing. And that’s something that lives on from team to team.”

AIDAN BORGUET Senior Running Back

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The Harvard Crimson

Beanpot – Harvard v. Northeastern

Heartbreak of the Year

COMMENCEMENT 2023

Men’s Ice Hockey

The Shootout that Cost Boston’s Famed Beanpot Title

By BRIDGET T. SANDS

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CRIMSON STAFF WRITER

t was a difference of one shot.

In the highly-anticipated, annual duel of Boston’s best collegiate hockey teams, the No. 9 Harvard Crimson fell to the No. 16 Northeastern Huskies in a shootout.

The heartbreak took place on the second Monday of February, at Boston’s iconic TD Garden, in the final of the 2023 Beanpot Tournament — the 70th edition of the historic competition — and the first time Harvard faced Northeastern in the finals.

The Crimson had fought hard to earn their spot in the championship, with first-year forward Marek Hejduk playing hero in the first round with two goals, including the overtime winner that gave Harvard the victory over the Boston College Eagles.

The title match, of which Harvard had not returned to since its last victory in 2017, was a hard-fought battle, one in which both Harvard’s former senior goalkeeper Mitchell Gibson and the Huskies’ Devon Levi played instrumental roles in the game. Both allowed only two goals in regulation and none in overtime, with Gibson recording 27 saves while Levi chalked 32.

Levi was eager to revisit the Crimson, with Harvard having scored eight goals against the top-10 Hobey Baker finalist in a 8-4 New Year’s Day w i n earlier in the season.

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“They put on a clinic against me,” Levi said at the post-game press conference. “I wanted revenge.”

And revenge was just what Levi led the Huskies in serving. After former sophomore forward Matthew Coronato got by him twice in the second period to give the Crimson the lead, Levi stopped all 14 of the Crimson’s shots on goal in the third period. His teammate Gunnarwolfe Fontaine scored his second of the game to tie the score five minutes into the third period, sending the game to overtime.

After an action-packed 3-on-3 overtime — the first of its kind in Beanpot Championship game history —the game was sent to a shootout. With the entirety of TD Garden on its feet and silenced with anticipation, Harvard’s own top-10 Hobey Baker finalist, former junior forward Sean Farrell, skated in on Levi but was stopped by the Canadian, as was Northeastern’s first shooter Jack Hughes by Gibson. In the second round, Levi refused to allow Coronato to get past him a third time, stopping the Crimson’s second attempt.

However, the Huskies’ tallied a mark with captain Aidan McDonough getting a wrister by Gibson. With the game on the line, Harvard’s choice was junior forward Alex Laferriere, who, like his teammates, could not get past Levi. The Beanpot trophy went home with the Huskies for the eighth time in program history, and the Crimson were sent packing with their tails down.

“I think it’s an incredible opportunity to [have] play[ed], in that environment,” Harvard head coach Ted Donato

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’91 said at the time. “For us, it’s certainly a learning experience. If we want to have success at the end of the year, we’re going to have to play in tough environments and play in high stress situations.”

“I think we’ll look back at this as a real growing opportunity,” he said. However, for the remainder of the season, heartbreak would become a recurring theme.

In the weeks following the Beanpot bungle, the Crimson played some of its best hockey of the whole season. The team rode a four-game winning streak to finish out the regular season, taking on and taking down four ECAC opponents: Union College, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, St. Lawrence University, and Clarkson University, respectively. With the win over Union, it secured a first-round bye in the ECAC Tournament.

In the second round and quarterfinals of the contest, Harvard hosted the Princeton University Tigers, and sent them back to New Jersey in decisive fashion, needing only the first two of the potential threegame series. With the series win, the Crimson earned a spot in the semis in Lake Placid, and the team headed back to the famous Herb Brooks arena with high hopes to defend their ECAC title.

Taking on rival No. 10/11 Cornell in the semi-finals, the No. 6 Crimson were ready for a dog-fight. Though winning both regular season games against the Big Red, Harvard had already lost the 2022-23 Ivy League Crown to Cornell, as it is awarded relative to conference points.

The Crimson, a dominant force in the Ivy League, struggled with putting away its conference foes in regulation, having beat-

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en Cornell, Princeton, and Yale in overtime, as well as dropping a pivotal game against Brown on January 21st. At the end of the season, they were short of the Ivy title by a single point.

The game remained scoreless through regulation, as Gibson again put on show to match Cornell goalkeep Ian Shane save for save. Laferriere secured the team’s championship appearance with a quick goal in the first five minutes of overtime, capping off a swift passing sequence with first-year Joe Miller and senior captain and forward Baker Shore.

The Crimson faced the unranked Colgate Raiders in the finals the next night.

Having upset the No. 2 — and eventual 2022-23 NCAA Champions — Quinnipiac Bobcats the night before, the underdog Raiders came in hoping to continue its unexpected momentum. Scoring within the first minute of the game to gain a lead they would refuse to succumb, Colgate did just that, beating Harvard with a final score of 3-2.

Unlike in 2021-2022, when its ECAC title triumph automatically secured its spot in the NCAA tournament, Harvard’s regular season success persuaded the selection committee to grant it a playoff berth. The No. 7 Crimson took on No. 8 Ohio State in the first round in Bridgeport, CT., on Friday, March 24th.

The game provided a crushing end to a season that had started with so much hope, as the Crimson fell to the Buckeyes 8-1. By the end of the second period, it was 7-1. Harvard’s typical explosive offense was completely silenced; its lockdown defense beat. Gibson was pulled for the start of the

Men’s Ice Hockey “This is a really special group… as close a group I’ve been able to be around as coach in 19 years.”

TED DONATO ’91 Head Coach

The Harvard Crimson COMMENCEMENT 2023

third for junior goalkeeper Derek Mullahy, though returning to the goal with five minutes remaining for the final minutes of his collegiate career.

“It’s a career-ending loss that was probably the worst loss I’ve had in my hockey career so far,” said former senior forward and captain John Farinacci. “It’s not one that I’m used to — being down by that many goals, it’s a tough one — I can’t really put it into words right now. I have to digest it and move on.”

After the end of the season, the Crimson saw five of its stars sign professional contracts. Farrell, after being named ECAC and Ivy League Player of the Year, signed and made his NHL debut with the Montreal Canadiens. His first-linemate Coronato did just the same with the Calgary Flames, and Laferriere followed suit with the Los Angeles Kings. By signing, all three chose pro over their remaining collegiate years, with Farrell and Laferriere being juniors, and Coronato a sophomore.

Former senior captain and ECAC Defenseman of the Year Henry Thrun joined the San Jose Sharks for their final weeks of the season, while Gibson signed an amateur tryout contract with the Washington Capitals and joined their AHL team, the Hershey Bears. Farinacci was expected to sign with the Arizona Coyotes — the club that drafted him in 2019 — but failed to come to an agreement.

Graduating alongside Thrun, Gibson, and Farinacci will be forward and captain Baker Shore, first-pair defenseman Ryan Siedam, forwards Wyllum Deveaux and Austin Wong, and defensemen Jace Foskey. After the loss — though neither originally drafted by NHL organizations — Shore and Deveaux signed minor league tryout deals. Shore signed with the South Carolina Stingrays, an ECHL affiliate of the Washington Capitals, while Deveaux inked a deal with the Wheeling Nailers, an ECHL affiliate of the Pittsburgh Penguins.

“I think this [was] a really special group.

I think coaches say that kind of normally, but I think this group is probably as close a group as I’ve been able to be around as

coach 19 years,” said Donato in the Ohio er room and excite their teammates for the State post-game press conference. potential success the 2023-24 season can “It was a really close group. We had a bring. group of guys that felt it was a privilege to play for Harvard and treated [that] way,” he bridget.sands@thecrimson.com continued. “This season won’t be defined by this [NCAA first round loss]. It’s disappointing, but these guys have had a great year and certainly, I’m proud of not only their performance but how they care for each other and how they carry themselvesthey were an amazing group to coach.”

All in all, the Crimson’s season was filled with highs and lows, provided by a team of majority returning players.

Next year — down 11 familiar faces and names on the roster — Harvard will look to have another surprisingly suc c e s sf u l season as it did in 202122, filled w i t h younger playe r s .

N e w ly-named captains, sophomore defenseman Ian Moore and s o p h o more forward Zakary Karpa, will look to set the expectaDYLAN J. GOODMAN—CRIMSON PHOTOGRAPHER tions in the lock-

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“...we have a lot to learn from and the guys returning are hungry and ready to do what it takes to be better next year.”

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Top 10 Moments Went undefeated in Ivy League play for the second consecutive year and advanced to NCAA Tournament Sweet 16

Went 3–0 against archrival Cornell, including two overtime wins

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2 Advanced to the first Great 8 in the WNIT tournament in program history

Advanced to Division I title game, but lost to Dartmouth

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4 Advanced to the CWPA title game for the second consecutive year, finished as runner up for second consecutive year

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TOBY R. MA—CRIMSON DESIGNER, AARON B. SHUCHMAN—CRIMSON STAFF WRITER

The Harvard Crimson COMMENCEMENT 2023

of 2022–23 6 Men’s Squash

Won fourth straight Potter Cup as national champions

Beat Princeton for the first time in a decade

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Won the Ivy League championship for the sixth consecutive year

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Won eighth straight Howe Cup as national champions

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The Harvard Crimson COMMENCEMENT 2023

Making History and Ready for ‘Moore’ for Women’s Basketball

By MOLLY R. MALAGUE

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arrie Moore’s career as Crimson basketball coach tipped off to a tremendous start in the 2022-23 season. In her first year at the head of the program, the former Western Michigan standout and retired professional basketball player led the team to a 9-5 Ivy League record and a deep run in the WNIT tournament — one that made program history.

“Unity, grit, integrity, and joy,” Moore said. “If you look back and you watch our games, [...] you’ll be able to witness a lot of unity, a lot of joy, you will have seen some really gritty moments and you’ll just really believe in the fact that we have a ton of integrity within our program.”

Moore and her staff settled on these four principles before preseason began, and they carried the team through the trials and tribulations of the season.

“We definitely nailed those down into our culture,” senior

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co-captain Maggie McCarthy added.

Establishing this new culture was a top priority for the team. As the College’s first new coach in 40 years, the arrival of Moore and her staff offered an opportunity for a program-wide refresh, and as they set goals, they aimed high.

“That championship focus,” McCarthy said. “We always wanted to win games, but coming in from a coaching staff that expected you to give your all every time, [we began] realizing that it all comes down to little things, and that’s what wins championships.”

The Crimson did all the little things, but ended up heartbreakingly short of an Ivy championship title.

After stunning Columbia with a 72-65 overtime win in the first round of Ivy tournament play, Harvard faltered in the final, ultimately falling to

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Harvard finished third in the Ivy League with 12 points, its best finish since 2015, and the Crimson finished with a 7-1-1 record at home.

a fourth quarter Princeton comeback, 4854.

Despite the strength of the conference, only the champions landed a spot in March Madness, leaving the Crimson with a spot in the WNIT.In that tournament, the team tore through Towson, the University of Massachusetts, and the University of Rhode Island before falling to conference foe Columbia in the Great Eight.Though disappointing, these losses did not define the season. Persistence and resilience were far greater headlines. Young players stepped into big roles, and grit carried the group through tough stretches of injury.

In fact, “[injuries] benefitted us later in the year in the playoffs because we could

The Harvard Crimson

Carrie Moore

Coach of the Year

Women’s Basketball

play different lineups that we had to play with,” McCarthy said. Adversity forced “team growth and making up for some of the experience that we might have lacked in some areas towards the end of the year.”

Moore’s championship mindset and perfectionist drive traces to a growing love of the game and a personal understanding of the grind. The Michigan native put together a remarkably impressive playing career. In her four years at Western Michigan University, the guard amassed a program record 2,224 points. In her senior year, she even led the entire country in points-per-game, averaging 24.5.

A competitive dancer until discovering basketball midway through middle school,

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Moore remembers her quick progress and discovery of joy on the court.

Of her prowess, Moore said, “[It] totally took off and [I] started to fall in love with it more and more each day.”

Love and excellence brought Moore two WNBA contracts — Phoenix Mercury and Chicago Sky — then all the way to Poland for a one year stint with the professional team KSSSE AZA PWSZ Gorzow Wielkopolski.

In time, she was subbed off to take a new spot on the sideline, adjusting to a coaching role that has taken her around the country. Since the end of her playing days, Moore has been a part of the the at Princ-

of 367-168, winning eleven league titles, and making six NCAA appearances.

Despite the fact that Delaney-Smith coached Harvard for more years than

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You’ve just got to figure out how to get [the] girls to play at their best. That was something I really wanted to master.

Head Coach Carrie Moore Harvard Women’s Basketball

COURTESY OF HARVARD ATHLETICS

eton, Creighton, the University of North Carolina, and, until accepting the Harvard position, Michigan. Each stop through her coaching career has reinforced her purpose and passion.

“You’ve just got to figure out how to get [the] girls to play at their best. That was something that I really wanted to master,” Moore said. “[To] give back to the game that gave me so much, [and to] inspire younger players the way that my coaches inspired me to be great.”

Moore is only the fourth women’s basketball coach in Harvard history, and her direct predecessor put together a tough act to follow. Kathy Delaney-Smith was the leader in Lavietes for forty years, compiling a conference record

Moore has been alive, the newcomer already has the veteran beat in one category: since joining the Princeton staff in 2009, Moore has been a part of eight trips to the tournament. Princeton, Creighton, UNC, and Michigan all made it to the big dance with her help. In 2022, Michigan took a No. 3 seed all the way to the Elite Eight.

In other words, Moore knows what it takes to be great. Her championship focus has already taken root, and she is confident that her crew can compete with the best.

Securing an Ivy Championship and punching a ticket to March Madness are first up on the agenda.

“We’ve definitely got the pieces,” she said. “Learning how to win those [big] games — that takes time.”

“I think we are well on our way.” molly.malague@thecrimson.com

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The Crimson posted an overall record of 129-24, winning in each position over the course of the season by a margin of 12-5 or greater.

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Seniors Marwan Tarek and George Crowne combined to go 25-3 from the number one and number two positions over the course of the season.

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The Harvard Crimson COMMENCEMENT 2023

Ainsley Ahmadian

Female Performance of the Year

Women’s Soccer

Ahmadian’s Brace vs. NC State Sets Tone for Season

By ZADOC I. N. GEE

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n a year that saw some fantastic individual performances across all sports for Harvard, women’s soccer’s sophomore forward Ainsley S. Ahmadian ’24 took the crown.

With a team featuring two All-Americans, the Ivy League Defensive Player of the Year, two other First Team All-Ivy selections, and one Second-Team and Honorable Mention, the Crimson put up phenomenal individual performances every match — but Ahmadian’s two-goal masterpiece to lift Harvard above No. 17 North Carolina State (NC State) was the performance of the year.

The Crimson entered its fourth game of

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In soccer, no individual performance is possible without a strong team effort, and it was Harvard’s defensive line and junior midfielder Hannah Bebar who helped create the chances for Ahmadian to score. The Crimson held the Wolfpack — who averaged just under eleven shots per game the whole season — to just six shots all game, only two of which were on goal.

“Our defense and midfield were doing a great job of bringing the ball up with lots of energy throughout the first part of the first half,” Ahmadian said. “The mentality and fight they had to stop NC State’s top-level forwards was very motivational.”

Ahmadian credited the team’s decision-making and variety of attack to get good looks on goal. It was yet another Bebar-Ahmadian connection that netted

They also did a fantastic job of mentally preparing us. This was the hardest game that a lot of us have played in college soccer.

Ainsley S. Ahmadian ’24 Women’s soccer sophomore forward

the season on Sept. 4 with a record of 3-00 (0-0-0 Ivy League), coming off a dominant 4-0 performance two days prior over UNC-Greensboro. Temperatures in the eighties would make for a grueling contest, not to mention the big home crowd atmosphere for NC State.

the first strike of the match. The two Illinois natives have played together since the start of middle school, and it shows on the pitch. In the 31st minute, Bebar delivered a beautiful pass over a throng of Wolfpack players to Ahmadian about thirteen yards from goal, splitting the last two defenders

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before putting it home past NC State’s Maria Echezarreta.

Coming into the second half with some real momentum, it took Ahmadian just five minutes to silence the Wolfpack crowd and expand the cushion yet again. From over twenty-five yards out, she split the defense again and upon seeing an opening, fired a laser into the top-right corner, catching Echezarreta a bit off-guard and with no play on a save.

“I just saw a little bit of an opening and thought I would go for it, and it ended up working out,” said Ahmadian, perhaps downplaying the absurdity of the brilliant goal.

Ahmadian said head coach Chris Hamblin and the coaching staff were great in preparing the team both strategically and mentally for the early road trip, which certainly showed with its polished performance in just the fourth game of the year.

“They did a great job of not making things too complicated and just focusing on some of the key tactics in our defensive strategies, because we were going up against great offensive players, but also how we would break them down [offensively],” Ahmadian said.

“They also did a fantastic job of mentally preparing us,” she continued. “This was the hardest game that a lot of us have played in college soccer.”

The victory set the tone early for the Crimson, proving to itself and others that Harvard was going to be a threat this year.

The match saw Harvard launch from unranked in the United Soccer Coaches top25 poll to No. 20. The 2-0 away win was by far the biggest win of non-conference play, and rivaled if not beat out the 2-2 draw with

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IVY WINS No. 17 Texas Christian University on Sept.

17 for the most thrilling non-conference matchup.

“One of the things we talked about before the game was just making sure that we’re paying attention to all the details, all the little pieces that add up to a good performance,” said head coach Chris Hamblin back in September after the road trip. “I think the team executed incredibly well on both sides of the ball — I was really proud of how they took the challenge on against a top25 team and made a statement.”

Harvard continued its success after the North Carolina road trip, finishing the season 12-2-3 (5-0-2 Ivy League), just narrowly losing the Ivy League title to Brown, but earning an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament and advancing to the second round, before losing a thriller to South Carolina.

This upcoming season, the Crimson will get another marquee matchup versus the Wolfpack — this time at home on Jordan Field, where Ahmadian and Harvard’s returning team will be ready yet again, this time joined by the talented Class of 2027. zing.gee@thecrimson.com

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“The class is gonna always be special to me as they leave the program. They’ve brought so much in and out of the pool to our program, and they’re gonna be missed.”

TED MINNIS Head Coach

The Harvard Crimson COMMENCEMENT 2023

COURTESY OF HARVARD ATHLETICS

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“They drew on all that hard work when the pressure moments came, and I thought they responded beautifully, and just clearly have a great competitive fight and spirit — I think that was really what defines this team and what has made them successful.”

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ANDREW RUEB ’95 Head Coach

Ivy League

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The Harvard Crimson COMMENCEMENT 2023

Going the Distance: Graham Blanks ’25

COURTESTY OF HARVARD ATHLETICS

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“I’ve been on the team for a couple of years, including the Covid year, and this year is really special because it seems the team is really starting to take shape in the sense that things are starting to click. We’re starting to do really well.”

PHILIP CONIGLIARO Junior Co-Captain

By JACK CANAVAN AND NADIA A. FAIRFAX CRIMSON STAFF WRITERS

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arvard track and field has had a dominant three seasons this year, creating a powerhouse within its sprints and distance group. At the head of this distance dominance was sophomore Graham Blanks ’25, a Georgia native who has taken Harvard and the Ivy League by storm.

Blanks began the season as Harvard’s No. 2 returning runner at the 8K distance and its top seed at the 10K, having posted times of 23:41 and 29:21 in the year prior.

With the regular season consisting of 8K’s and five-mile races, Blanks and junior distance runner Acer Iverson formed one of the best two-man duos across the country.

The pair snared top-30 finishes at both the OSU Cowboy Jamboree and the Nuttycombe Wisconsin Invitational against fields containing the best runners in the country before moving into postseason play, beginning with the Ivy League Heptagonal Championships.

Facing off against conference rivals for the Ivy League crown, Blanks and Iverson replicated their regular season dominance, claiming the top-two individual spots in the Ivy League against the talented Princeton and Cornell squads.

At the front of the pack, Blanks and Iverson tactically broke away from their competition near the midpoint of the race to become the first finishers of the race.

“It was basically just to sit in the pack in the first 6K or so,” said Blanks about his coach’s advice going into the race. “There’s

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Athletes sent to the NCAA championship, the first time since 2012

The Harvard Crimson

Graham Blanks

Male Performance of the Year

Track & Field

a really big hill called Cemetery Hill, which is kind of like a renowned hill in the cross country world in the U.S., and that was kind of where we were gonna make our move.”

“So, [we] let our competitors do all the hard work during the race and then put a big surge up that hill, which is already hard enough,” Blanks recalled. “That’s what I did when we hit that hill, and Acer just followed right along with me, and we only had one other guy challenge us from Princeton, and then on the down hill we were able to shake him loose.”

Despite these performances and strong races from freshman Vivien Henz and senior David Melville, the Crimson came up just short to Princeton 41-38, losing the team title to the Tigers for the second-straight year.

“We were looking to win the [Ivy] league, hopefully,” Blanks said. “We had a really good program, we’d run a few good races that season. We knew it would be tight with Princeton at the top, so the goal individually was to win the race or just get the first two spots with Acer, which we were able to do which was great.”

“Definitely a sense of accomplishment crossing the line with him, and getting to turn around and watch as our guys came in,” he remarked. “But when the dust settled, we lost by two points which hurt a little bit. It put some fire underneath us. But it was definitely in retrospect probably our best race that year as a team.”

After Blanks’ performance at the Heptagonals, he then raced at the NCAA Regional Championships, and came out with a win at 29:14.00 seconds. His first-place finish earned him a spot to compete and on the national stage in the 10K at Stillwater, Okla.

“I love the NCAA cross country meets,” Blanks claimed. “[It’s] definitely ‘the best day of the year,’ [which] is what I tell all the guys on our team.”

“The year before in Tallahassee, I had a really good race by the standards of how my season went,” he remembered. “So I was looking forward to hopefully doing something pretty big and [match] that this year. I

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didn’t really have a season that would indicate where I would finish that day.”

For Blanks, the change in competition scenery between the Ivy League conference and the National League helped his racing.

“It’s actually kind of nice being in such a competitive conference, which brings along a lot of pressure, especially with how few competitors there are,” said Blanks about the different racing environments.

“There’s no hiding from any mistakes when you’re racing a small field like in the Ivy League.”

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I had to reset going into the track season, but for me it was a pretty smooth transition just because I had that excitement.

Graham Blanks Sophomore distance standout

“It’s nice to get into the NCAAs, where you’ve got hundreds of people from all around the country and you can really just kind of focus on flowing with the race, putting yourself in spots that you need to without being seen, and without having to worry about team tactics as much,” he added.

Blanks put that racing strategy to the test, and ended up running 28:58:40 seconds to earn sixth place in the nation. With this time, he earned himself a personal best in the event.

“The goal for me is always to win. I wanted to put myself in a position where I’d be fighting for that win in the last half mile,” Blanks said.

“It worked out pretty well — I had to make a few decisions, there was a split in the front pretty early on, and I didn’t want to risk going with a hot pace if I didn’t know I’d be able to hold it,” he reflected. “So, three people went ahead and I was able to hang on to that chase pack and fight on for that fourth spot, and ended up getting sixth,

which I was ecstatic about, and I think my coach was as well.”

Blanks’s sixth place finish at NCAAs earned him First-Team All-American status, an honor that’s awarded to athletes who finish in the top 15 places.

“It felt good,” said Blanks about his sixth-place finish. “It was self-reassurance.

I’d like to imagine that all the best runners in the country think they are the best, and I do think I’m pretty good as well, so it was nice to get a result and finish in the single digits at NCAAs.” “It was definitely a big confidence booster,” he added. “I would credit that race to a lot of my success this track season, because it brought a lot of self-belief that I might not have had up to that point.”

With Blanks’ finish, combined with the efforts of the rest of his teammates, Harvard finished 17th at NCAAs, six places higher than their ranking coming into the meet. The Crimson also finished as the top Ivy League program in the nation.

“I was lucky enough to finish on a high note,” said Blanks about the end of his season. “I had to reset going into the track season, but for me it was a pretty smooth transition just because I had that excitement.”

“This year we had a much greater team mindset on the track team than we’d had years before, just because I think with the Ivy League Championships, we were able to show our guys back home, not necessarily on the distance team, but sprints, throws and jumps as well, that we’re here to compete this year,” he added. “I think we set the tone for the team.”

Blanks continued on through the indoor and outdoor track season, setting new records at Harvard and in the Ivy League, including in the men’s indoor mile and 3K, as well as the men’s outdoor 5K. He also earned the indoor Ivy League title in the men’s 3K and 5K, and the outdoor Ivy League title in the 5K and 10K. His times have already qualified for the NCAA Regionals, where his season will continue. jack.canavan@thecrimson.com nadia.fairfax@thecrimson.com

Baseball After getting off to a 2-14 start, the Crimson righted the ship with a 17-8 stretch, entering the Ivy League tournament in mid-May as the No. 2 seed.

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“I mean, obviously, there’s a little bit of disappointment in some of the games up north that we’ve played in. But, for the most part, this club has stayed together. They’ve rallied around one another.”

BILL DECKER Head Coach

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The Harvard Crimson COMMENCEMENT 2023

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COURTESY OF THERESA M. MOORE ‘86

The Harvard Crimson COMMENCEMENT 2023

Theresa Moore ’86: Track, ESPN, and the Power of Stories

By JOSEPHINE S. ELTING

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heresa M. Moore ’86 is not only a decorated Ivy League track star but a storyteller committed to shedding light on those whose tales have not been told. The former Harvard track and field captain has been an influential member of many communities beyond the track squad, including ESPN and now her own production company, T-Time Productions.

As a child, Moore had a passion for all sports. She and her two siblings played in various youth leagues in Rhode Island. She continually found herself on the softball diamond, the basketball court, the volleyball court, or the ice rink. Her brother was an avid hockey player and the family every winter built their own rink in the backyard for the kids to skate.

Playing multiple sports helped Moore develop a high level of athleticism. While she was great at all the sports she played, she excelled the most in track and field.

In high school, she dominated competition in her state, winning ten state championships in long jump and the 100 and 200 meter dash. Her athletic career coincided with the passage of Title IX, which afforded her many opportunities that past female athletes did not have — opportunities of which she took advantage.

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“To find out that just 15 years earlier, that you had people that weren’t even able to use the track at the same time as the men at Harvard was just crazy to me,” Moore reflected. “It’s really afforded me opportunities from friendships, from life skills, from travel.”

The life lessons she learned in her youth as an athlete contributed to the development of her deep passion for athletics, which continued through college. Moore’s impressive high school career earned her offers to both Stanford and Harvard. Ultimately, the East Coast native chose to stay close to home and continued her track career at Harvard.

In Cambridge, Moore was a textbook example of what it means to be a student-ath-

captain as a senior. In addition to being a supportive teammate, she sure was a fast one, winning the 100-meter dash at the Ivy League Championships in 1985.

On the other side of the Charles River, Moore spent her time as a resident of Kirkland House. Like many students, she started out as an economics concentrator before switching to history.

“I loved history. I love the stories. I love the narrative,” Moore said.

This passion for storytelling manifested into a career in media and production.

She found her way into a job with ESPN. At ESPN, she worked with various departments including sales, advertising, media, and programming. There she created the series “The Block Party” and the documen-

To find out that just 15 years earlier, that you had people that weren’t even able to use the track at the same time as the men at Harvard was just crazy to me.

Theresa M. Moore ‘86 Founder of T-Time Productions

lete. She was a superlativesprinter, a teammate, all while being a hard-working student. Track and field — one of the largest teams at Harvard — most often calls for individual competition. Balancing this individual and team mentality is difficult for its participants, yet Moore understood this challenge very well.

“I’m having a great day, but the team is still losing. So let’s figure out how we get other people to have their personal best,” said Moore when discussing how she balanced her personal and team achievements during competition.

Her skillset earned her the title of team

tary “Images in Black and White,”the latter of which was a part of ESPN’s Black History Month program. The film has been nominated for awards including the Peabody, Sports Emmy, Billie, and the NAACP Image awards.

In 2006, Moore founded her own production company — T-Time Productions — where she could lead in telling the untold stories of sports to the public.

“I just found a way that I could take my love of history and storytelling and take sports and combine them into my work and so that’s kind of what we’re doing.”

Third and Long, a T-Time Productions

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IVY WIN

documentary, explores the history of African Americans in the NFL. Both educational and entertaining, the film is a great characterization of Moore’s and the larger company’s work.

While she has certainly mastered the domain of sports, she has also produced and written pieces that go beyond the world of sports which includes the documentary License to Thrive: Title IX at 35.

Throughout her athletic and professional career, Moore has been dedicated to the betterment of the student experience in the Harvard community, especially for students of color.

“We have the responsibility, to make the future even better, for the generations behind me. We should always be pushing and making sure that change is underway for the better,” Moore said.

“I feel that responsibility to the students that came behind because I know, as they say, I stand on the shoulders of people who were there before me.”

Today she is a Chair of the Harvard Board of Overseers Visiting Committee for Athletics and also serves on other boards at the Harvard Varsity Club. Not only did Moore contribute to the Harvard community as one of the school’s fastest sprinters in history, but through continuingto support the University by giving voices to all students and creating a more inclusive josephine.elting@thecrimson.com

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The Harvard Crimson COMMENCEMENT 2023

McCarthy Excels On the Court and On the Field

By MAIREAD B. BAKER

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CRIMSON STAFF WRITER

ome Harvard students devote most of their time to studies, others spend hours split between the classroom and the field, while others begin their morning in one jersey and end their day in another. Well, just one: graduating senior and women’s basketball captain Maggie P. McCarthy ’23.

In a college experience defined by waking up near dawn for lacrosse practice, heading back across the river for class, rushing to the dining hall for togo dinner, and racing back to Lavietes Pavilion for basketball practice, McCarthy’s two-sport life will soon come to an end.

“I tell my friends, jokingly, they never saw me semester-time at Harvard,” she laughed.

The Medfield, Mass. native was initially recruited to Harvard for basketball, a program to which she has made immense contributions and which made program history this year by making it to the Great Eight of the NCAA’s WNIT. Her high school experience was shaped by the routine of sport and schoolwork, something she wanted to continue this regimen through college athletics.

McCarthy’s parents and her two older brothers are graduates of Amherst College, a Division III school, and somewhere she always thought she would attend. That was until her freshman year of high school at Medfield — where she was playing soccer, basketball, and

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lacrosse — Harvard reached out to her, though she wasn’t completely sold on the Ivy League.

“I just loved Amherst and thought I was going to follow in my family’s footsteps,” she recounted.

But what ultimately gave Harvard the green light was her conversations with the legendary Harvard basketball coach Kathy Delaney-Smith.

“As they kept talking to me, and I kept trying to make the right decision, ultimately, it was Kathy Delaney-Smith, who was the basketball coach at the time.”

Delaney-Smith — a 40-year veteran of the Harvard basketball program — racked up 630 victories, eleven Ivy League championship victories, and six NCAA tournament appearances during her time as head coach. Though she retired last year, new head coach Carrie Moore has not disappointed in her first season at the helm.

It was strong and talented powerhouses in the field of collegiate athletics — in addition to world-renowned academics and opportunities like no other — that locked in McCarthy’s decision to play at Harvard, a common sentiment shared by many Ivy League athletes.

“That’s why I made the decision,” she said. “I wanted to be surrounded by great and impressive people all the time, especially the female role models like Kathy, and then Devon [Wills], the lacrosse coach now.”

In the 2018-19 season, her freshman year with the Crimson, McCarthy only played on the basketball team. But after basketball season finished, something was missing: her natural routine of practice, school, eat, practice, repeat. So, McCarthy followed her gut and

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The Harvard Crimson COMMENCEMENT 2023

walked on to the women’s lacrosse team her sophomore fall in 2019.

However, the Covid-19 pandemic stripped McCarthy of what would have been her first year in college playing two sports, let alone halting the women’s basketball team’s 2020 playoff run. She then took a gap year in 2020-21, making the long-awaited 2021-22 season — the Ivy League’s official return to collegiate athletic competition — her first time playing

in games for both basketball and lacrosse.

“Sophomore year, I was following my instinct — and I’m so glad that I did.”

The captain has since split her time between the two sports, which requires her to plan her weeks according to how many hours the NCAA allows her to practice and play for even multi-sport athletes, which is 20 hours per week.

“If you just look on paper, I don’t even know how many hours I’ve spent over the river. So much of my experience [at Harvard], I’m learning in class a lot,” McCarthy said. “But the number of hours of the day [I spend at] basketball, I’d be there for like five hours, [and] in lacrosse would be like two hours in the same day because I would like go to

lacrosse in the mornings to watch even if I couldn’t play and [then] go to basketball.”

The two teams are very different: while basketball has nearly thirteen active players, women’s lacrosse has over thirty names on the roster. This year, as captain of women’s basketball, McCarthy had to balance the dynamic of leading one squad and then switching to another with more voices, different captains, but with the same senior status.

Last year, she worked her way up into the starting lineup for lacrosse, currently making her a starting player for both teams. The avid athlete heads into each new lacrosse season fresh off a playoff-mindset from basketball, an experience she tries to share with the lacrosse team.

“Going through a whole long season with basketball, where it’s a smaller team, you’re getting to know like the ins and outs of every player and kind of how teams work, and the ups and downs of the season,” McCarthy reflected. “Being able to bring what I learned from my basketball season to lacrosse, especially [since] I would have just gone through playoffs — how that is, and the heat of that — and coming into lacrosse where they haven’t quite reached that point yet.”

This switch wasn’t the easiest to pick up on, however. Some of the sliding and movement skills between basketball and lacrosse are pretty transferable, but the one hump McCarthy had to get over were the stick skills. She turned to a simple practice familiar to many athletes that only requires three things: a stick, a ball, and a wall.

“Junior year, I hadn’t picked up a stick since like, senior year of high school. So I was like, ‘Okay, gotta get the wall ball,’” she remembered. “I remember during J-term, winter term, we’re here for basketball. I would get a stick on the wall.”

“I think I did it outside of Winthrop [House] one time and it was hitting someone’s room, and they came out and were like ‘Can you stop?’” the senior captain joked.

Though this year might have been smoother since she had a year of playing both sports under her belt, an unforeseen challenge presented itself to McCarthy during the start of her basketball season: injury. It was the first time she had been

SAMUEL M. BENNET—CRIMSON PHOTOGRAPHER

truly injured during sports.

In November, during a 85-63 loss to Purdue at the team’s Cancun Challenge in Mexico, the captain fractured her foot in an unlucky play while stepping on an opponent’s foot when changing directions, though she played on the fracture for the remainder of the game. The stint put her on the bench for the remainder of December.

Shortly after returning in January, McCarthy injured her wrist during a 66-53 win over Cornell. In an attempt to draw a charge on defense, a Big Red player knocked McCarthy down to the court, forcing her to use her wrist to break the fall. Despite the break, she wrapped it up and returned to play the remainder of the game somewhat one-handed.

Princeton Tigers, the Crimson couldn’t pull it off, granting Princeton its fourth Ivy title and an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament.

“Losing the Ivy championship this year was terrible,” McCarthy reflected. “We had success, high hopes.”

The silver lining, however, was the way her team came together after the loss.

“I remember I had a tougher time than I ever had losing a game,” she remembered.

“Usually, I feel like I can get over it pretty quickly, because you can move on, but I think it was also [because of] being a senior.”

“Everybody was upset, but like the way we came together as a team, I realized [that] a game is a game, that’s something out of

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I remember having a conversation with my brother and my mom, and I was like, ‘I just love competing and love sports.’ I can’t image my life or my future without [them].

Maggie P. McCarthy ‘23 Women’s Basketball Captain and Lacrosse Defender

This was the first time McCarthy had been truly out of competition. During this time, it forced her to step back and reflect on how deep her love for sports ran.

“I remember having a conversation with my brother and my mom, and I was like, ‘I just love competing and love sports,’” she said. “I can’t imagine my life or my future without [them]. That’s why I decided to apply to graduate school.”

After working with the NCAA Eligibility Center, McCarthy discovered she had a fifth year of eligibility to use due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The Massachusetts native will take her talents to the women’s lacrosse program at Duke University.

One hope McCarthy had — shared by her teammates and coaches in the women’s basketball program this season — was to win the Ivy League title. With a 20-12 overall record, supported by a 9-5 conference record, and a great deal of agility built from bouncing back from consistent injuries, the team’s chances appeared very strong.

In a devastating six-point loss to the

our control,” she continued. “But just focusing on what I can control and what has been so valuable to me over the years, it was the funny memories that we made, even after losing together as a team. Going on that run in the WNIT that we had this year in the playoffs. That kind of gave us the perspective to give it all you have in every game.”

McCarthy will take this new, optimistic perspective not only to her new team in North Carolina, but the rest of her life — a sentiment and experience that forms many collegiate student-athletes, especially the ones here at Harvard, who spend much of their time on both sides of the Charles River. “[The] learning experiences and relationships and memories built across the river are invaluable.”

mairead.baker@thecrimson.com

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Grace Taylor Succeeds Amid Cancer Battle COURTESY OF HARVARD ATHLETICS

By SYDNEY E. FARNHAM

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CRIMSON STAFF WRITER

arlier this month, Harvard women’s lacrosse’s sophomore defender Grace A. Taylor ’25 earned her second All-Ivy Honorable Mention accolade as a key member of the defense that led the Crimson to the Ivy League women’s lacrosse tournament. Impressive, yes, but even more impressive is how Taylor was using her stick as a cane less than six months earlier.

The Dedham, Mass. native is the middle of three children, a family of avid athletes.

Her mother played collegiate lacrosse and while it wasn’t her favorite growing up, Taylor was enticed by the speed and ag-

gression of the game she now loves. When deciding where she would further her lacrosse career, she was drawn to the culture head coach Devon Wills was building

25 GROUND BALLS

at Harvard.

“I wanted to be part of a team that was like creating a new standard. And then I

30 PAGE DESIGN BY SAMI E. TURNER—CRIMSON DESIGNER

also have a younger sister, so I really wanted to be close to her. I wanted her to be able to come to my games and to be part of her life as well,” Taylor said.

Having her family close would prove to be indispensable when last August — less than an hour before fulfilling her duties of a Peer Advising Fellow to the class of 2026 at first year orientation — Taylor was diagnosed with an aggressive variant of papillary thyroid cancer. She had been sent by her primary care physician to Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) after they discovered swelling in her thyroid at a routine visit. Taylor had prior experience with injuries, but there is no game plan for a Division I student-athlete battling cancer.

Following her diagnoses were countless medical decisions to be made. For most people, the easier choice would be

to step away from school and sports and focus on their health. Instead, Taylor leaned into her communities for support, remaining enrolled for her sophomore fall.

“People thought I was crazy. They told me I was crazy, but I think it was like, I knew if I came home, I would be so wrapped up in my own like misery and like pain,” commented Taylor when asked about the decision. “ I think it was like partially the distraction and then it was like a big part was being part of my team. And I wanted to fight to be able to compete again.”

In mid-September, Taylor underwent two procedures to have the cancer and metastasis removed. After being bedridden for two weeks postoperatively, she commuted to Cambridge. While there were certainly moments when she doubted her-

The Harvard Crimson COMMENCEMENT 2023 self, she made it work with the support of her family.

“I’m fortunate that I have parents that were able to support me and sacrifice for me. My mom was getting her master’s and she took a semester off so [that] I didn’t have to,” Taylor reaccounted.

Her second family, Harvard women’s lacrosse, as well as her roommate, both played a huge role in supporting Taylor through her diagnoses and treatment. Taylor was clear in her plans of returning to competition early on and her team backed her up every step of the way.

“The biggest thing my coaches did was believe in me and even if they doubted me, they never showed that,” Taylor said. “I think that was really important because so many people around me were starting to doubt [me].”

“I think on the days that it’s really hard, it’s easy to amplify the doubts, but I had coaches and teammates who believed in me that I was able to like to amplify their voices,” Taylor said.

Over winter recess, when she underwent radiation treatment, which left her isolated for the holidays, two gift baskets were delivered to Taylor — one from her Harvard teammates and another from Columbia’s women’s lacrosse program.

Stripped of much of her strength, but determined to return to lacrosse, she turned her sights to the 2023 season.

Taylor adopted and began sharing the motto “We Can Do Hard Things.” When asked where this phrase came from, she shared it was a feeling, an adage she had adopted as an athlete, not as a cancer patient.

“I can do anything for 24 hours. Sports showed me that I can compete for 24 hours.

I can endure for 24 hours. You don’t have to go win a marathon or win a race — we can do hard things,” Taylor shared.

“It’s just like taking one step forward,

COURTESY OF HARVARD ATHLETICS

sometimes I just had to literally crawl forward, and sometimes other people had to carry me,” she said. “It’s not like you’re doing something hard alone —you’re doing something hard with a support system, with a group of people that can move you forward.”

On February 19th, five and half months after being diagnosed, Taylor returned to the field for the Crimson in its season open-

ation.”

“There was like a lot of things that I wish I knew or that I could have changed, but I had no one to talk about it with.”

Following the game, Taylor heard from many other athletes who embraced her message of “We Can Do Hard Things,” receiving countless direct messages on Instagram and even a message from the HEADstrong Foundation — a non-profit organiza-

I had to fight like hell to be able to return to the fields.

Grace A. Taylor ’25 Harvard Women’s Lacrosse Defender

er against Michigan. She had been cleared by her physicians and trainers for “diet and exercise,” thereby defining a return-toplay plan for an athlete battling cancer. After months of deservedly maintaining her privacy within a close circle, she decided it was time to use her story to help others.

At MGH, Taylor is a part of the Adolescent and Young Adult Cancer Program (AYA) which was formed under Dr. Annah Abrams. The program aims to acknowledge the unique circumstances that young adults face in making their own medical choices and leading social and developing lives. Harvard women’s lacrosse decided to honor the program that had done so much for one of its own by dedicating their April 15 home game against Yale. Taylor and her teammates were able to raise over $6500 for the campaign.

“That was one of the happiest days of my life, I think,” Taylor reflected. “I love beating Yale, but [the AYA] program has been really instrumental in helping me balance a lot of like the nuances of being a cancer patient, [of] trying to be a student and an athlete.”

She also hoped to create a new narrative and community surrounding cancer in Division I lacrosse and athletics. Taylor wanted to help create a blueprint where there hadn’t been one — a place for other athletes to turn for some much-needed guidance that she had been missing.

“I think being back on the field and showing myself and other people that I could play gave me the courage to share my story,” she said. “When I was going through it, I had no one to look up to,and I didn’t even know how to come back from surgery —I didn’t know how to come back to radi-

tion dedicated to helping families affected by cancer — which offered its support.

While Taylor’s battle is not over, her perseverance and initiative have inspired others and pioneered a support-based forum. She has blazed her own path forward, leaving no room for those who doubted her or held her back. She has had hard days — some of the darkest of her life —but Taylor has also gained new perspective on lacrosse and life.

“There was a moment where I was told I was really sick and I had a moment where I was like ‘Nothing I’ve done matters,’” she recounted. “It’s like, the grades aren’t going to save you, like nothing that I’ve really done felt significant except for the love that I had for my people and the love that they had for me.”

She also experienced this shift in perspective on the field, saying, “To compete is such a privilege — that’s been part of the culture that we’re building [here at] Harvard. [Harvard] women’s lacrosse is like, ‘We are hungry to be [here], we want to compete, we sacrifice a lot,’ and I think like I had to fight like hell to be able to return to the fields.”

Taylor played in all but three games for the Crimson this spring and led her team in groundball pickups — six of which she made against Yale. The sophomore has two seasons left, but she has already made an immeasurable impact on those around her by leaning in to those who know her best — her teammates and her family — despite the unknowable challenges the past year has thrown at her. sydney.farnham@thecrimson.com

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The Harvard Crimson COMMENCEMENT 2023

JULIAN J. GIORDANO—CRIMSON PHOTOGRAPHER

By JACK SILVERS

A

CRIMSON STAFF WRITER

fter four years of being called to step up for Harvard football on Saturdays, Truman L. Jones ’22 -’23 and senior Aidan P. Borguet ’23 were hoping to hear their names called in a different way last month so that they might play football on Sundays instead.

While that wish didn’t come true during the National Football League’s (NFL) draft in Kansas City, their broader goal of playing football on the world’s biggest stage is still alive. As they have in the past, the two former Crimson stars will simply take the road less traveled.

Jones — an Atlanta, Ga. native and de-

­

NFL Dreams in Sight for Truman Jones & Aidan Borguet

fensive end who graduated with a degree in biomedical engineering last December — signed a free agent contract with the Kansas City Chiefs the day the draft ended and will compete for a roster spot as the summer goes on.

Meanwhile, Borguet — the engine of Harvard’s offense this past season and a finalist for the Walter Payton Award (the “Heisman of the FCS”) — was invited to multiple NFL teams’ rookie camps and is hoping to sign with a team in need of support in the run game.

Tim Murphy, the Thomas Stephenson Family Head Coach for Harvard Football, pointed to both players’ intangibles as an essential part of their journey to where they are today.

“Their overall character transcended what people thought was the limit on their

32 PAGE DESIGN BY TOBY R. MA—CRIMSON DESIGNER

ability and because of that, they got better and better every year, to the point where now they would fit in on any NFL preseason roster,” Murphy said.

For Jones, as he begins his professional career with the Chiefs, he’ll be able to draw on his experience working his way up a depth chart. After starring in high school for Westminster, where he won state championships in football and lacrosse, Jones was recruited into Murphy’s program as an outside linebacker. After seeing action in just three games as a freshman, Jones moved to defensive end and found immediate success as a sophomore.

Despite being set back in his development by the Covid-19 pandemic and having a down year as a junior in 2021, Jones rediscovered the “prove-yourself” mentality he had in 2019, leaving it all on the field in

2022. Jones recorded 40 tackles, six sacks, and three blocked kicks for the Crimson last season, and continued to display a skill that’s been evident in his character since high school: leadership. After captaining his Westminster squad in 2017, Jones served as the 148th team captain in Harvard football history.

Because he took the fall semester of 2020 off, Jones graduated last December and was able to return to Atlanta after the season to train and be with his family for the draft.

However, he still describes that week as a whirlwind: after going undrafted during the day on Saturday, April 29, Jones received the call from the Chiefs that night, and news of his signing made the rounds among NFL scouts the following day.

Within a week, Jones had flown out to

The Harvard Crimson COMMENCEMENT 2023

Missouri for rookie camp, where he participated in drills and walkthroughs with 70 other rookies. After a brief sojourn back to Atlanta, Jones was back in Kansas City

by May 14 to participate in voluntary team workouts, a chance to practice and learn from veterans.

It is hard to envision a better landing spot for an undrafted player than the 2023 Super Bowl champion Chiefs, who boast a coaching staff led by Andy Reid, one of the most well-respected coaches in the league, as well as a defensive line stacked with veteran playmakers like Chris Jones and Danny Shelton. Jones will join a crop of edge rushers looking to fill in the gap left by the departure of Frank Clark, who started 15 games at defensive end for the team last season and had five sacks. In addition to signing Jones, the team spent its first-round pick in the draft on a pass rusher, Felix Anudike-Uzomah of Kansas State, as well as its fifth-round pick on Stephen F. Austin’s BJ Thompson.

“We each have a lot to learn from each other because it’s a big step from collegiate football to professional,” said Jones of his fellow rookie edge rushers. “It’s been great to have those guys by my side. We build off of each other and we’re all going to grow together.”

One luxury that Jones has already enjoyed since becoming a professional is the ability to focus solely on football. As a biomedical engineering concentrator, Jones balanced an intense course load with his responsibilities to the Crimson; he listed time management as one of the biggest lessons he took away from his four years in Cambridge. While medical school will wait for now, his former coaches don’t doubt his ability to excel in the field down the line.

Jones displays “an unbelievably amazing pursuit of excellence in everything he does,” according to Coach Murphy. “You can try to coach that — but you either have that intangible, that character, or you don’t.”

Joining Jones on the 2022 Academic All-America Team was Borguet, whose soft-spoken demeanor belies a powerful rushing style on the field which allowed him to become one of the most accomplished rushers in recent Ivy League memory.

Unlike Jones, Borguet saw significant action as a freshman coming out of Delsea Regional in Franklinville, N.J. The player who came to be known by the nickname “AB” set the record for most rushing yards in the 136th playing of The Game in

2019, scorching Yale for 269 yards and four touchdowns on just 11 carries. Murphy remembers this game as the moment when the coaching staff realized Borguet was special, and special he continued to be: after averaging a prolific 7.1 yards per carry as a freshman and a solid 5.2 yards per carry as a sophomore, Borguet saved his most impressive season for last.

tion to First Team All-Ivy and the Walter Payton Award finalist designation, he was the Bluebloods Ivy League Offensive Player of the Year and a finalist for the Bushnell Cup. “He was always working as hard or harder than anybody on the team. He was never satisfied,” said Murphy of Borguet, who added that the running back has “the

“

I’m just trying to do my best to follow in those footsteps and take what is expected of a Harvard student to be an intelligent football player and bring that to the NFL. Truman L. Jones ‘22-’23 Former Harvard Football player

Throughout last season, the Harvard offense lived and died with Borguet: he carried the rock more than 15 times in all 10 games, gaining over 100 yards in seven of them, in which Harvard went 6-1. At the end of the season, his 1182 yards on the ground represented the highest total from a Harvard back since Clifton Dawson ’07 set the single-season record with 1,302 in 2005.

Going into the final game of the season against Yale, Borguet was 182 yards off of Dawson’s r e cord, an imposing total but not much more t h a n the 179 yards he had garnered against Dartmouth earlier in the year.

However, Borguet was stymied for only 62 yards as the Crimson fell to the Bulldogs 19-14. Still, after the season, the awards piled in: in addi-

ANGELA DELA CRUZ — CRIMSON PHOTOGRAPHER

combination of work ethic, that toughness, that amazing pursuit of finding little ways to get better.”

Now, Borguet is attempting to match the success of Dawson, who signed with the Indianapolis Colts after going undrafted and played 15 games in the NFL for the Colts and the Cincinnati Bengals from 2007-2008. He can also look to more recent members of the Harvard rushing corps who have gone professional: Aaron Shampklin ’21, who started for the Crimson during Borguet’s freshman year, recently signed a futures/reserve contract with the Colts.

Notably, Dawson and Shampklin both faced concerns about their size, as they played at 5’10” for the Crimson, while the average height of an NFL running back is closer to six feet. Borguet, who listed at 5’10” but was tabbed at 5’9” by some draft evaluators, has faced similar headwinds, but he has also demonstrated exceptional strength in other areas. At Harvard’s Pro Day in March, Borguet put up 35 repetitions on the 225-pound bench press; the record at the NFL combine for the position is 32.

If the lens is expanded to every position, Borguet and Jones will look to follow in the footsteps of a cadre of former Harvard standouts who went on to have productive NFL careers, including Ryan Fitzpatrick ’04, Kyle Jusczyk ’13, and Cameron Brate ’14. Fitzpatrick, the former quarterback and 121st captain in team history, and Brate, an undrafted tight end who won the Super Bowl with the Buccaneers in 2021, even played on the same Tampa Bay Buccaneers team from 2017-2018. On October 15, 2017, the two connected for a Harvard-to-Harvard touchdown reception, the first such “Crimson Special” in recorded history.

Though Jones and Borguet won’t ever be able to share a scoring connection by virtue of their positions, it is possible that they could start their careers on the same team.

In addition to rookie camp invites from the Miami Dolphins and Philadelphia Eagles, Borguet received an invitation from the Chiefs, who have dealt with injuries to running back Clyde Edwards-Helaire in the past two seasons. Borguet’s rushing style shares some similarities with Isaiah Pacheco’s, who is the Chiefs’ likely starter this coming season and a back who was billed as a tough, physical runner coming out of Rutgers in 2022.

Another New Jersey native, Pacheco rose from a seventh-round pick and backup to become the Chiefs’ starter in the Super Bowl in February, perhaps a sign that the organization might be willing to take more fliers on sleeper running backs in the future.

Whether their NFL careers end up taking off in Kansas City, Miami, or somewhere else, Borguet and Jones will continue to represent the Crimson wherever they go.

“They will represent Harvard well, and I think they’ll find a way to get it done,” Murphy said.

Murphy’s biggest piece of advice for the two burgeoning professionals? Believe in themselves.

“Self belief is no small thing. Sometimes it’s easy to say, ‘What the hell am I doing here?’” said Murphy. “Just stay with it, because we’ve had so many kids that were not highly recruited that have played in the league.”

“I feel reassured that this has been done before,” said Jones. “I’m just trying to do my best to follow in those footsteps and take what is expected of a Harvard student, to be an intelligent football player, and bring that to the NFL.” jack.silvers@thecrimson.com

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The Harvard Crimson COMMENCEMENT 2023

From the Sidelines

By DYLAN J. GOODMAN SPECIAL TO THE CRIMSON

As a sophomore at Harvard, there is still no place I would rather be than on the sidelines, camera in hand, wholeheartedly capturing the dynamic spirit and unwavering energy of the world of sports. As a photographer, and more importantly a storyteller, I am honored to have the opportunity to document, capture, and engage with the talented and passionate athletes who spend countless hours honing their skills. From the Sidelines, I am able, and honored, to witness the unfiltered emotions and contagious spirit of Crimson athletes. Through photography, I aspire to perpetuate these captivating stories, inviting others to experience the same profound connections and narratives that unfold before my lens.

For the second year at Harvard and the third year overall (as this essay started in high school), I conducted From the Sidelines: a photo essay that exposes and celebrates the personalities, commitments, and accomplishments of selected graduating student-athletes at Harvard. I reached out to coaches from each athletic team on campus in search of the senior athlete that they believed best represented their team and deserved such recognition. Of the teams that responded, I conducted individual photoshoots, showcasing each athlete’s individuality and personal connection to Harvard and their sport. The photos published here are only a mere snapshot of the many athletes photographed and images captured.

From the Sidelines honors and commemorates the incredible achievements of just a few of the thousands of inspiring athletes at Harvard; furthermore, it provides me with a medium to showcase my deep appreciation for my beloved spot on the field: the sidelines.

McKenzie E. Forbes ’23—Harvard Women’s Basketball

Chase D. Yager ’23—Harvard Men’s Lacrosse

Ryan K. Hong ’23—Harvard Men’s Volleyball

Mihaela L. Marculescu ’23—Harvard Women’s Tennis

THC

Read more at THECRIMSON.COM

34 PAGE DESIGN BY JULIAN J. GIORDANO—CRIMSON DESIGNER

The Harvard Crimson COMMENCEMENT 2023

Year in Sports Photos From Cambridge to California, The Harvard Crimson finally put the pandemic in the past and returned to competition in full force in 2022-23. Fans and alumni returned to Cambridge to take in legendary events and bitter rivalries, while the Crimson made deep runs to national championships, conference championships, and NCAA tournaments.

Thanks to the hardworking Crimson photographers who helped bring all of the action to life.

CRIMSON PHOTOGRAPHER

R HE AP GR TO HO NP SO RIM —C EN CH W. IE JOS R HE AP GR TO HO NP SO IM I— CR CK I— ZY CK RC ZY RC GO K. GO K. RY RY CO CO

—CRIM AN SO M NP OD HO O TO .G J GR N A AP L Y HE D R

CO RY K. GO RC ZY CK I—

SAMUEL M. BENNET—CRIMSON PHOTOGRAPHER

CRIMSON PHOTOGRAPHER CHRISTOPHER S. LI—CRIMSON PHOTOGRAPHER

DYLAN J. GOODMAN—CRIMSON PHOTOGRAPHER

ZADOC I.N. GEE—CRIMSON PHOTOGRAPHER

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