PROVIDENCE, R.I.--Pursuing their twin goals of an Ivy championship and a regional playoff berth, the Crimson stick-women defeated an aggressive Brown squad, 2-1 in Providence, R.I. yesterday.

The Bruins outhustled the Crimson, but a combination of accurate passing and persistant goalmouth pressure overwhelmed the home team as Harvard recorded its sixth win in nine decisions.

Annie Velie, playing her usual standout game, opened the scoring with 21 minutes remaining in the first half, poking a ten-footer past Brown goalie Meg Stewart.

Velie, Chris Sailer and Maureen Finn dominated midfield, and kept the ball moving throughout the first half.

After intermission, the Crimson offense sputtered, and Bruin Amy Crafts drove home the equalizer with 19:30 remaining.

No Cigar

"It wasn't like she hit a winner," freshman goalie Katie Williams said after the game. "I could have stopped it, I just didn't quite get to it."

But all's well that ends well, and Kate Martin made sure it ended well for the Crimson when she tallied her fourth goal off an Annie MacMillan pass with 11:24 left.

"Brown's hustle kept them in the game," coach Edie MacAusland said. "We played our little game well, but we have to combine it with hustle. Sometimes the small passes get us complacent and we lose our spark."

Need Spark

MacAusland once again capitalized on her squad's flexibility. Sarah Chubb and Julie Cornman, receiving rare opportunities to start, both played solid games. MacMillan proved with her offensive play that she is a capable forward as well as a sterling back, and co-captain Sailer also saw double duty at link and back.

The win improves the Crimson's record to 3-1 in the Ivy League, with games remaining against Princeton and Yale. League-leading Dartmouth stands at 3-0-1, and it must still face Brown and Penn. The Bruins drop to 1-4.

Toil and Trouble

The Crimson is also struggling to qualify for the New England area tournament to be held at Springfield College in Springfield next month.

Unlike last year, when 16 teams participated, only eight area schools will qualify for the tournament, which will send its top two finishers on to the nationals at Princeton, N.J.

The stickwomen have four games remaining, in which they face no weak opponents. But co-captain Elaine Kellogg feels that the Crimson still figure in the face.

"All we really need to do is polish the rough edges," said Kellogg, who added that she expected the team to win the remainder of its games and qualify for the tournament.