Harvard Crimson Women 2012-2013

[Skate79]

Re: Harvard Crimson Women 2012-2013

Thinking you answered your own question here skate It had to be on Saturday at 2 because that's the TV slot.

Also the game is on WHRB at 7pm if you want to pretend it's at a normal time. I don't usually pub for them anymore now that I'm a ghost but I just feel bad that the schedule forced them to do a tape delayed game.

Well another example of how TV rules. Tough with the short turnaround but it's good exposure for the Crimson because there is not much else going on this afternoon sports wise on the tube.

 

[alslammerz]

Re: Harvard Crimson Women 2012-2013

Okay, so as a former WHRBie (or ghost as the case may be), I have to come to alslammerz' defense. I don't think it is fair to blame 'HRB for a lack of student interest in Harvard athletics. That is where the athletic department needs to step in and do a better job of promoting the teams. WHRB has to provide balanced coverage of different types of programming. Believe me, there were students and profs while I was there who were none to happy to hear hockey, basketball or football broadcast in place of cultural programming like the 'Met. I think but I'm not sure the 'Met came about because the former WCRB dropped its coverage when it changed its classical format. I can't swear to it but somewhere in the recesses of my mind, I remember a conversation with Dave Elliot who told me about the acquisition. Again, I'm not 100% sure. Either way, I have no problem with the tape delay.

I should also add...if you ask every member of the sports department past or present, we hate that we have this unmovable object in the middle of our Saturday schedule. Hate it.
But having seen the finances of WHRB - the Met is the reason we can afford to broadcast anything. The sports department can just about barely cover its own costs through advertising and the athletic department's help...we certainly don't contribute to the fancy radio tower that allows people to actually hear us. Not only does the Met bring in the most advertising money, but it's also the big property that gets people to advertise during other slots. When WCRB dropped it and we "saved" the Met for Boston classical listeners, we shot up into the conversation among the big commercial radio stations.
As for "forced" true, they weren't forced. Of course, they could also have just not broadcast the women's game at all today.

Don't blame the 10 or so undergraduates who probably care the most about Harvard athletics (outside of the actual athletes) for a lack of student interest in Harvard athletics. The fact that they are traveling to UNH on a Saturday before finals to broadcast a game that won't be aired live speaks to how much they actually care.

My hope that is that we do see a change in the near future. The Met will still be around but as I was leaving, there was the beginning of a push to revolutionize WHRB's online presence. If some of the proposals come to pass, there will likely be many more broadcasts of Harvard sports, at least online on a WHRB 2 - similar to what I know Maine and Northeastern student radio have. It's tough because WHRB receives no money from Harvard proper (although Sports does receive money from the athletic dept. for being the GoCrimson feed) so unfortunately finances are the driving factor in everything WHRB does.

That said, there's a lot that Harvard could and should do to increase student interest in athletics. For all the nationally televised broadcasts we've had this year, esp. away games, I've heard nothing about any form of viewing parties on campus. How hard would that be to do?

Anyway, back to hockey... the women's team is scary good so far. Providence is 3rd in Hockey East!

 

[Veritas]

Re: Harvard Crimson Women 2012-2013

Alsammerz -

Please understand I was not being critical of either you or the people from HRB sports. Thank you for the response. I understand the station's decision better despite the fact that I feel the decision is wrong.

There have been comments on tis thread about Josephine Pucci. As some of you may know she was at the game last night. She is apparently still suffering to some degree from the effects of a vary bad concussion. She has withdrawn from Harvard not only to preserve eligibility but as she was not in any condition to study during the fall semester. She hopes to take some sort of course (non-Harvard to preserve eligibility) during the spring to help her get back on her feet academically. She is such a nice young woman, I hope she has a full and speedy recovery.

 

[alslammerz]

Re: Harvard Crimson Women 2012-2013

Alsammerz -

Please understand I was not being critical of either you or the people from HRB sports. Thank you for the response. I understand the station's decision better despite the fact that I feel the decision is wrong.

There have been comments on tis thread about Josephine Pucci. As some of you may know she was at the game last night. She is apparently still suffering to some degree from the effects of a vary bad concussion. She has withdrawn from Harvard not only to preserve eligibility but as she was not in any condition to study during the fall semester. She hopes to take some sort of course (non-Harvard to preserve eligibility) during the spring to help her get back on her feet academically. She is such a nice young woman, I hope she has a full and speedy recovery.

Oh I knew where you were coming from. Believe me, I asked many of the same questions when I was one of the newer members. Then I saw our finances!

Hate to hear that about Josephine...I really hope for the best for her. Her health definitely has to come first and hopefully she starts feeling better.

 

[Skate79]

Re: Harvard Crimson Women 2012-2013

Oh I knew where you were coming from. Believe me, I asked many of the same questions when I was one of the newer members. Then I saw our finances!

Hate to hear that about Josephine...I really hope for the best for her. Her health definitely has to come first and hopefully she starts feeling better.

Hear Hear. Jo's health is #1. Everything else is secondary. I just interviewed a prospective applicant to Harvard today and she told me about a frightening incident where a collision she had resulted in a severe concussion and multiple lacerations of her face. At one point the surgeon thought she would need plates in her face. So this type of injury is nothing to sneeze at. Let's hope that Josephine has a complete recovery.

Tough about the game today. The short turnaround could not have helped us. Hope the tie won't hurt us in the national rankings.

 

[ARM]

Re: Harvard Crimson Women 2012-2013

ECAC Hockey feature on Laura Bellamy:
http://www.ecachockey.com/women/2012-13/News/SA_Bellamy_Feature.pdf

 

[Skate79]

Re: Harvard Crimson Women 2012-2013

ECAC Hockey feature on Laura Bellamy:
http://www.ecachockey.com/women/2012-13/News/SA_Bellamy_Feature.pdf

Very nice article. Thanks ARM. The Teach for America program is terrific. Locally here in Boston, the Media and Technology Charter School takes about six or eight Teach for America kids for a two year commitment to tutor their high school students. It's great for the kids and a wonderful experience for the college grads serving in Teach for America.

 

[Veritas]

Re: Harvard Crimson Women 2012-2013

Hello! .......Hello!

Is anybody here??

It has been 4 weeks between posts. I would have been checking the obit page but don't know anyone's real names,

Since the last post the women have had 5 wins in 5 games and 4 were by quite convincing margins. They are looking good and have been ranked 2nd or 3rd in the polls, PWR and KRACH rankings for the past month.

Any thoughts or comments??

BTW, I was chatting to Josie Pucci at the UConn game. She looks good, hopes to next back next year and will be taking a course this spring to get her feet back as to course work. She is a nice kid and whether she can play again or not I hope she recovers fully.

 

[ARM]

Re: Harvard Crimson Women 2012-2013

BTW, I was chatting to Josie Pucci at the UConn game. She looks good, hopes to next back next year ...

I imagine that in a perfect world she'd like to be back at Harvard in 2014-15 and use next year to go searching for gold in Russia. Thanks for the update.

 

[alslammerz]

Re: Harvard Crimson Women 2012-2013

Hello! .......Hello!

Is anybody here??

It has been 4 weeks between posts. I would have been checking the obit page but don't know anyone's real names,

Since the last post the women have had 5 wins in 5 games and 4 were by quite convincing margins. They are looking good and have been ranked 2nd or 3rd in the polls, PWR and KRACH rankings for the past month.

Any thoughts or comments??

BTW, I was chatting to Josie Pucci at the UConn game. She looks good, hopes to next back next year and will be taking a course this spring to get her feet back as to course work. She is a nice kid and whether she can play again or not I hope she recovers fully.

Not dead, just not in Cambridge anymore

Maybe everyone left after that shocking performance of giving up a goal to UConn

Anyway...there are still some big tests for this Crimson team ahead that will be interesting to pay attention to. The Beanpot, obviously, plus Clarkson twice and Cornell part II. Have a feeling Harvard loses at least one of those latter 3 league contests but maybe that would be good in the long run? Be nice to hold off the horde behind us and keep home ice for the ECACHL tournament.

Anyone going to the White the Bright night against Yale? Would have loved to have gone if not for this pesky "work" thing...

Finally...good to hear that about Jo. Would love to see her recover for the USA team in Sochi too but one thing at a time.

 

[Veritas]

Re: Harvard Crimson Women 2012-2013

The number attending games seems to be diminishing. During a quiet moment during tuesday's game against UConn I actually sat in my seat and counted the number attending, including children. The grand total was 127 people. That number includes Harvard staff, an ECAC official, theHarvard Sports Med doc etc.

It is sad to see a great team playing great hockey drawing so few to watch.

Of course part of the problem may be the continuing increases in ticket prices and parking costs. Harvard has the highest prices of ant women's hockey team in the US based on a survey on another thread in this forum.

$15 Harvard

$12 Minnesota-Duluth

$10 Minnesota, CIS Schools

$ 8 St. Cloud State, UW-Superior

$ 7 North Dakota, New Hampshire

$ 6 Boston University, MSU-Mankato

$ 5 Wisconsin, Northeastern, RPI, St. Norbert

$ 4 Clarkson, Colgate

$ 2 St. Lawrence (Exhibition Game Rate)

FREE Boston College, Ohio State, Brown, Princeton, Maine, Providence, Syracuse

I know that parking at some of these schools is free while Harvard charges $10 to park at most games. I fear that the increased prices are a disincentive to fans and Harvard may have exceeded the diminishing returns point as to hockey revenue.

I am one of four people who buys season tickets for the women and I buy a season parking pass which saves money. I am a very committed fan but if I had to pay $25 for each and every game I would think twice about attending some of the games.

 

[alslammerz]

Re: Harvard Crimson Women 2012-2013

The number attending games seems to be diminishing. During a quiet moment during tuesday's game against UConn I actually sat in my seat and counted the number attending, including children. The grand total was 127 people. That number includes Harvard staff, an ECAC official, theHarvard Sports Med doc etc.

It is sad to see a great team playing great hockey drawing so few to watch.

Of course part of the problem may be the continuing increases in ticket prices and parking costs. Harvard has the highest prices of ant women's hockey team in the US based on a survey on another thread in this forum.

$15 Harvard

$12 Minnesota-Duluth

$10 Minnesota, CIS Schools

$ 8 St. Cloud State, UW-Superior

$ 7 North Dakota, New Hampshire

$ 6 Boston University, MSU-Mankato

$ 5 Wisconsin, Northeastern, RPI, St. Norbert

$ 4 Clarkson, Colgate

$ 2 St. Lawrence (Exhibition Game Rate)

FREE Boston College, Ohio State, Brown, Princeton, Maine, Providence, Syracuse

I know that parking at some of these schools is free while Harvard charges $10 to park at most games. I fear that the increased prices are a disincentive to fans and Harvard may have exceeded the diminishing returns point as to hockey revenue.

I am one of four people who buys season tickets for the women and I buy a season parking pass which saves money. I am a very committed fan but if I had to pay $25 for each and every game I would think twice about attending some of the games.

I agree. Couldn't believe they were charging for the Russia exhibition either. I'd love to see Harvard 1) lower the ticket prices to maybe $5 and 2) make a combined season ticket for the men and women that was not that much more expensive than the current men's ticket.

 

[Skate79]

Re: Harvard Crimson Women 2012-2013

Hello! .......Hello!

Is anybody here??

It has been 4 weeks between posts. I would have been checking the obit page but don't know anyone's real names,

Since the last post the women have had 5 wins in 5 games and 4 were by quite convincing margins. They are looking good and have been ranked 2nd or 3rd in the polls, PWR and KRACH rankings for the past month.

Any thoughts or comments??

BTW, I was chatting to Josie Pucci at the UConn game. She looks good, hopes to next back next year and will be taking a course this spring to get her feet back as to course work. She is a nice kid and whether she can play again or not I hope she recovers fully.

Well, as it happens I was going to post tonight now that the ladies are back in full swing. I've been traveling for business so I haven't been to games recently although that changes starting tomorrow night.

A few thoughts on the season so far:

I'm pleasantly surprised by how well the Crimson have played, especially defensively. Losing their top two D for the season didn't bode well for them recordwise or in the goals against department. Just goes to show that when you have a good coach with a strong system and get buy-in from the players, anything is possible.

Scoring is still a concern. There are nights when the Crimson are an offensive juggernaut. Then there are nights when they struggle to bury the biscuit. Against not so great competition (I'm thinking Colgate and Princeton at home). Then again, if they keep playing shut down D, a couple of goals a game should do it.

Bellamy has played well this season but it is really hard to tell how well given the D in front of her. Same for Maschmeyer. While regular season stats are fine, it's the playoffs where it counts and so far Bellamy hasn't come through with a shutdown performance. She needs to deliver if the Crimson expect to go deep into March.

The schedule hasn't been a killer save for Cornell, BU and maybe Northeastern. Other than that, they haven't been tested and they could use a few more prior to March. The Beanpot and the Clarkson games should help.

 

[Veritas]

Re: Harvard Crimson Women 2012-2013

I agree. Couldn't believe they were charging for the Russia exhibition either. I'd love to see Harvard 1) lower the ticket prices to maybe $5 and 2) make a combined season ticket for the men and women that was not that much more expensive than the current men's ticket.

That is a great idea, the men's hockey has lots of season ticket holders and I am sure many would pay a bit more, say $2 or $3 per game to have tickets to the women's games. Even if they did not get to all the games they would add a bit to the fan base. It would also provide some extra revenue even if all 4 women's season ticket holders were to get a larger discount due to the change.

I will say this years policy change to sell a season parking pass for $100 was a good idea. A minor savings if you only go to men's hockey but a big saving if you have season tickets to both. I would probably get to every game anyway. The only game I missed this year was the McGill scrimmage. I would have like to get to that one but when the puck dropped I was inside a MRI machine at Lahey. (I hope all of you consider that a legitimate excuse)

One note re women's prices: Tickets for the Boston Blades of the CWHL are $10 each for day of game sales and CA$60 gets you a season pass good for all games at any arena for all the teams.

 

[Skate79]

Re: Harvard Crimson Women 2012-2013

Watching tonight's game against RPI was like sitting through a tractor pull. Godawful ugly hockey. Probably Harvard's worst game of the season. RPI set women's hockey back 20 years with what they did tonight. They are a disgrace to women's hockey. They did a mugging job on Jillian Dempsey that if it was a Harvard player doing it to an RPI player, it would have been called holding or some other minor penalty. The fact that RPI got away with it until the third period was beyond belief.

What was also inexcusable was Harvard's lack of speed and really slow feet. Their passing lacked crispness and accuracy and they seemed unable or unwilling to engage RPI in the corners. RPI won almost every battle for the puck and consistently jumped Harvard's D and forwards at every opportunity along the boards. The best goal of the night was the first one by Michelle Picard on a shorthanded breakaway where she roofed one over the goalie's right shoulder. A thing of beauty. Another RPI defensive breakdown led to Lyndsey Fry's first of two goals where she did almost the same thing that Picard did in shooting over the goalie's right shoulder.

Jillian Dempsey's point streak came to an end (no surprise given the mugging she received) but I'm sure she'll take the two points. I found it amusing that the RPI coach took the time at the end of the game to give one of the refs an earful about something Harvard was doing that was obviously upsetting to him. His coaching style will drive more fans away from women's college hockey. If this was my first women's college hockey game, I would have asked for my money back. Seriously.

Oh well, bring on the Dutchwomen.

 

[rugrats]

Re: Harvard Crimson Women 2012-2013

His coaching style will drive more fans away from women's college hockey. If this was my first women's college hockey game, I would have asked for my money back. Seriously.

Hey Skate79, in case you haven't noticed, there are no fans to drive away.

 

[Skate79]

Re: Harvard Crimson Women 2012-2013

Hey Skate79, in case you haven't noticed, there are no fans to drive away.

Not true. Dartmouth regularly draws close to 1000 fans per game. Harvard has been drawing on average 650 which isn't great but a whole lot better than last night (semester break). "White the Bright" against Yale should draw a big crowd. Yes, we have to resort to giveaways and gimmicks which is a shame when you consider that the women are one of the best draws around.

 

[papulaisle]

Re: Harvard Crimson Women 2012-2013

The number attending games seems to be diminishing. During a quiet moment during tuesday's game against UConn I actually sat in my seat and counted the number attending, including children. The grand total was 127 people. That number includes Harvard staff, an ECAC official, theHarvard Sports Med doc etc.

It is sad to see a great team playing great hockey drawing so few to watch.


Of course part of the problem may be the continuing increases in ticket prices and parking costs. Harvard has the highest prices of ant women's hockey team in the US based on a survey on another thread in this forum.

$15 Harvard

$12 Minnesota-Duluth

$10 Minnesota, CIS Schools

$ 8 St. Cloud State, UW-Superior

$ 7 North Dakota, New Hampshire

$ 6 Boston University, MSU-Mankato

$ 5 Wisconsin, Northeastern, RPI, St. Norbert

$ 4 Clarkson, Colgate

$ 2 St. Lawrence (Exhibition Game Rate)

FREE Boston College, Ohio State, Brown, Princeton, Maine, Providence, Syracuse

I know that parking at some of these schools is free while Harvard charges $10 to park at most games. I fear that the increased prices are a disincentive to fans and Harvard may have exceeded the diminishing returns point as to hockey revenue.

I am one of four people who buys season tickets for the women and I buy a season parking pass which saves money. I am a very committed fan but if I had to pay $25 for each and every game I would think twice about attending some of the games.

Also hoping your Harvard Crimson player, Josephine Pucci, is recovering fully and expectation is she will be eventually (soon) whole-ly mended. Bravo.

Thompson- 'disincentivize-wise' free (parking), Doctor (I believe...may be U never been/get that far N. from yr. warm Bostonaisse base- the more southern and most East of the Ivy there, plunk, in the Bay state is it?)

As a, 'senior', I believe, not $5.00 and may be is less (tickets; me 'senior' rated)? I have some stubs around here somewhere...

Too, I guess, somehow, V-tas, we draw better than U Cantabs, huh?
Good Golly Miss Molly!
E - ur - ek - a!!

And, is it true...u allowed lowely UConn to get even a goal?
Oye, yoikes.

U could help with these, those ... our, attendance figures- Feb.1, V-tas!
Maybe...

Did you miss that date? In Hanover, Sir/Maam?

Looking forward to that myself. If I get to go, come over and say hello to Rafter!
U will know me, which one I am methinks (I'll likely invite even u to set a spell...but likely you'll want to move off, quickly.)

Go Green Go !

 

[Skate79]

Re: Harvard Crimson Women 2012-2013

I wasn't at today's game but judging by the final score, we had all kinds of trouble finishing. It is somewhat shocking to only win 1-0 at home. I'd even go so far as to say it was a mild upset and surely, it will cost us in the national standings. This weekend won't go down as one to remember.

 

[ARM]

Re: Harvard Crimson Women 2012-2013

I'd even go so far as to say it was a mild upset and surely, it will cost us in the national standings.

In any of the rankings such as PairWise, RPI, KRACH, or Rutter, a win is a win. It doesn't matter by how much or how little.