Freshman goaltender EMILY VITT has only been scored against once in three games, with a goals-against average of 0.33.

Led by co-captain Angela Ruggiero’s three goals and two assists, the Harvard women’s hockey team extended the best start to a season in program history this weekend.

No. 3 Harvard (7-0-0, 2-0-0 ECAC) shut out Maine 6-0 at home and followed with a 2-1 victory against rival No. 8 New Hampshire at the Whittemore Center.

With the Crimson and the Wildcats (6-4-2) deadlocked at one and 5:52 remaining in the game, Ruggiero slapped the puck past UNH goalie Melissa Bourdon to extend the Crimson winning streak against the Wildcats to eleven games dating back to the 1997-1998 season.

With the five points she posted over the weekend, Ruggiero also improved her career totals to 76 goals and 132 assists, placing her fourth on Harvard’s all-time scoring chart.

Harvard 2, UNH 1

Given the large ice rink at the Whittemore Center, Harvard switched to an L forecheck in order to keep the play more compact and thus take away any home-ice advantage. Large rinks accentuate passing and speed on the ice.

UNH outplayed Harvard in the first period, outshooting the Crimson 9-8, but momentum began to change in Harvard’s favor in the second and by the end of the third, the teams were even at one.

Then, late in the third period, Ruggiero took over.

After taking a pass from freshman winger Jennifer Sifers at the top of the left faceoff circle, Ruggiero pulled the puck across the ice, bringing Bourdon to the opposite side of the net, and fired a shot back into the lower left corner of the goal at 14:08.

The Crimson outshot the Wildcats 17-5 in the third period, dominating the frame from start to finish and sealing the victory.

“After the first few shifts, we knew it was going to be a battle,” co-captain center Lauren McAuliffe said. “Our best play was in the third period. In the first one, we were going for the long bombs, going for the home runs. By the third, we were passing well, hitting more singles.”

McAuliffe played a key role in Harvard’s first-period goal that opened the scoring and gave the Crimson the crucial first goal on the road.

After she received a pass from sophomore Jaclyn Pitushka, McAuliffe’s shot clanged against the goal post. Sophomore center Jennifer Raimondi picked up the loose puck and deposited it in the back of the net to put Harvard up 1-0 at the 10:37 mark.

Sophomore goaltender Ali Boe made 16 saves to improve her record to 4-0-0 with a 0.25 goals-against average.

Boe, too, had to adjust to the large rink.