With no time on the clock, the Boston College field hockey team faced its last chance to knot the score as it prepared for a penalty corner.

But, just as she had time and again, tri-captain goaltender Katie Zacarian stopped the shot from Kristen Madden, and the defense cleared the ball to end the game and preserve Harvard’s 2-1 victory on Jordan Field last night.

“Huge, huge, came up huge for us,” coach Sue Caples said of Zacarian. “She’s a great goalie. Her timing was brilliant. She was organizing the defense well, but they had some good point-blank shots and a couple breakaways, but that’s why she’s back there.”

The No. 15 Crimson (10-3) found itself chasing the No. 16 Eagles (10-5) through the first half of the game because of a gap in quickness and then on the scoreboard.

BC took a 1-0 lead with less than five minutes to go in the first half, when the Eagles earned a penalty corner. Zacarian stopped the first shot from Lauren Schultz but was unable to spot the second shot off the rebound from Kerri Doherty.

“They were really quick on that ball,” Zacarian said. “I made the initial save and then didn’t see where it went. They really took advantage of the moment.”

The moment was one of many in the first half, as the Eagles outshot the Crimson 10-1. But as much as the first period was dominated by the BC offense, the second was distinguished by Harvard’s comeback.

“BC had a tremendous first half,” Caples said. “They were beating us off the ball. We were a very different second-half team. We were able to change the momentum.

“We had to transfer the ball quicker, make it more dangerous. We were being very deliberate, methodical, going around and around. They have great speed and they were able to neutralize that.”

A visibly different team in the second half, the Crimson improved its speed and earned two back-to-back penalty corners in the opening minutes, although Harvard failed to convert on either.

But 10 minutes of grueling stickwork and sprints later, the Crimson’s second half turnaround would pay off.

The Eagles’ took a free hit coming out of their defensive end, making a short pass to another BC player just a few feet away. However, Harvard smothered the Eagles’ attempt to clear the ball, and tri-captain Kate McDavitt picked it up from the top left of the circle.

McDavitt sent a hard shot into goal and the ball deflected into the top right corner of the cage to tie the score at one, at 45:19.

It took less than five minutes for the Crimson to tally the winning goal.

Senior forward Mina Pell sent junior midfielder Kate Gannon a pass from the right side of the circle, and Gannon shot the ball into the right corner of the cage.