Harvard’s three returning Olympians — senior Jennifer Botterill, junior Angela Ruggiero and freshman Julie Chu — each tallied a hat trick to propel the Crimson to a 12-2 exhibition win over the Pacific Steelers on Saturday afternoon at the Bright Center.
The Steelers got on the board first on a goal by Tsena Tatomir on their first (and only) shot of the first period at the 3:05 mark. The Crimson knotted the game with a Ruggiero goal on the power play at 13:24 to send the teams into the dressing room tied at one.
Harvard came out flying in the second, and tallied six goals, beginning just 19 seconds into the frame and adding the final one as time expired. Harvard extended its lead to 10-1 with three goals in the first nine minutes of the final period before Jenna Spring put the Steelers back in the scoring column.. Botterill scored the game’s final two goals — both on the power play — for the final 12-2 margin.
Jessica Ruddock played the entire game, and was forced to make just five saves. Steelers netminder Michelle Marsz made 48 saves on the afternoon.
Harvard returns to action next Saturday at the Bright Center in its final tuneup before the regular season begins on November 8 at Vermont.
