Crimson tidal wave

In last year’s Beanpot consolation game, the Boston University women’s ice hockey team took a step forward, defeating Boston College, 3-1.

Yesterday, the Terriers took two huge steps back against Harvard University, losing 8-0 in the first round of the 2009 Women’s Beanpot at Northeastern’s Matthews Arena.

The Terriers (13-11-5) were 0-for-6 on the power play and allowed 37 shots. Harvard (12-7-3) seniors Sarah Vaillancourt and Jenny Brine each had hat tricks, and Vaillancourt also added four assists.

Things could not have been much worse for the Terriers.

‘Nothing good comes when they get eight, and you don’t get any,’ BU coach Brian Durocher said. ‘They came out flying tonight and put us on our heels right out of the gate. They never allowed us to catch our breath.’

Early in the first period, Wilcox let in a relatively easy shot, giving Harvard the advantage, 1-0. After Wilcox saved a previous shot and collided with one of the Crimson’s players, the goalie lost her stick and was forced to take one from a teammate.

A few seconds later, Crimson junior Jen Brawn sank one in the right side of the net on the power play, taking advantage of the still-recovering Wilcox. Junior Anna McDonald and sophomore Kate Buesser were credited with assists on the goal.

About four minutes later, Harvard again made scoring look easy. Vaillancourt skated through the Terriers’ defense, shooting from the right side of the net and around the BU defender. The puck sailed just above Wilcox’s reach to make the score 2-0.

Harvard’s defense was dominant in the first period, giving BU very few chances to shoot. The shot differential was widely in the Crimson’s favor, as they outshot the Terriers, 14-4.

The Terriers’ troubles came in part from their inability to take advantage of several power-play opportunities. They also took several penalties of their own. By the end of the period, BU was still without a score.

‘We thought maybe we got our feet under us at the end of the first, and maybe if we would have gotten one in the second, we could have made it a hockey game,’ Durocher said. ‘Unfortunately, they got the next two, and it was kind of lights out from there. Sometimes when you’re moving and playing well, you get a good bounce, and they did.’

Harvard continued to pull away in the shot count in the second period, tallying 12 more shots in the frame as it capitalized on the Terriers’ faltering defense.

About 10 minutes into the period, Harvard senior Kati Vaughn took the puck near the right faceoff circle in BU’s defensive zone. Skating up to the net, Vaughn took the shot, but Wilcox denied it. However, the rebound found Brine’s stick, and the Truro, Nova Scotia native scored at 9:57.

The Terriers continued to struggle as the second period progressed. Almost two minutes after their first second-period goal, the Crimson scored again. This time, Vaillancourt skated up to the net from the right side with two Terriers defending her. The senior passed the puck to an open Brine, who scored on the clearly frustrated Wilcox. The score stood at 4-0 in Harvard’s favor.

Things kept getting worse for BU in the third. The Terriers would allow four more goals in the final stanza. Vaillancourt scored on Wilcox again, this time on a power play just 30 seconds after the start of the period. Another goal came when Brine scored her third about three minutes later at 16:31.

At 8:31, junior Cori Bassett sent a shot screaming over the head of junior Ashley Leichliter ‘-‘- who replaced Wilcox in goal ‘-‘- for Harvard’s seventh of the game. Leichliter would allow one more goal in the game, the third goal of the night for Vaillancourt.