Keren Gudeman '98 brings a determined, competitive spirit to both the soccer and lacrosse teams

By Buffy Clifford

Keren Gudeman's athletic experiences at Harvard -- as a forward on the soccer team and a defender on the lacrosse team -- couldn't be any more different from each other.

Gudeman began playing soccer at the age of 6 with friends in her Minneapolis neighborhood, developed into a star before high school, and has sparked Harvard's success both in the Ivy League and on a national level. In contrast, her lacrosse endeavors started some 12 years later, at the suggestion of a college friend.

But different paths can often lead to the same result. Gudeman is now a key component of the Crimson's lacrosse squad and has been elected co-captain of this year's team.

Competitive soccer started for Gudeman when she joined an under-12 traveling team, and her career continued to blossom throughout her years at St. Paul Academy. Although she played other sports, soccer became her focus with its many opportunities to play in Olympic Development Programs (ODP) and club teams. While still attending junior high, Gudeman received an almost-unheard-of invitation to play for her high school's varsity soccer team.

"It was a very special opportunity," she explains. "There were only three of us from the eighth grade who made the high school team."

For Gudeman, the year kept getting better as her team qualified for the Minnesota State Tournament and enjoyed one of its best years in school history. Soccer became a year-round passion with indoor teams in the winter and regional teams in the summer. Gudeman twice earned All-Metro and All-State honors during her St. Paul career.

As the process of choosing a college began, soccer played a small part in her decision.

"I wasn't really recruited for soccer," she remembers. "I was looking for a strong academic institution first."

Gudeman narrowed the field to Ivy League schools, with Harvard holding the edge for some very good personal reasons: her mother, Roxane '62; father, Stephen '61; and two sisters, Rebecca '90 and Elise '93, all graduated from Harvard.

"Harvard was my first choice," she says. "I sent Tim [Wheaton, head coach] a highlight video. He encouraged me to apply, and I feel like he really took a chance on me and things worked out well. I'll always be grateful to him for the opportunity to play here."

Wheaton counters by noting how Gudeman has made Harvard soccer better.

"Keren has made an incredible impact on our program as a player and as a personality," says the coach. "She is a very determined and competitive person. She is also the epitome of the scholar-athlete."

Gudeman started all 16 games as a freshman in 1994 and was the team's second leading scorer with five goals and six assists. She also earned Second Team All-Ivy honors for a Crimson squad that was invited to the NCAA Tournament.

Gudeman again earned Second Team All-Ivy honors as a sophomore. She was third on the squad in scoring with 7 goals and 11 assists and helped the Crimson to its first Ivy crown in 13 years.

Last fall it all came together as Harvard captured its second straight Ivy title and earned the League's new automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. Third on the team in scoring with three goals and eight assists, Gudeman gained Third Team Regional All-America and Honorable Mention All-Ivy accolades.

Through three seasons, Gudeman has 25 career assists and shares the Harvard career assist record with teammate Emily Stauffer '98.

That's the soccer story. Now here's how Gudeman discovered lacrosse.

"One of my close friends and teammates, Genevieve Chelius '95, was the captain of both soccer and lacrosse," she says. "I was really curious about lacrosse and picked up Genevieve's stick one day and just started playing pass. She encouraged me to try out for the team, reminding me that two other lacrosse players, Carrie Shumway '96 and Sara Noonan '96, had begun playing while in college.

"My first year, I was learning something new every day," says the anthropology concentrator. "The team was very encouraging and patient, and I definitely couldn't have done it without everyone's support."

Gudeman had the athleticism to go about the monumental task of learning a new sport at the collegiate level. Fortunately, playing basketball in high school assisted her understanding of lacrosse. And she was never discouraged, even with the extreme role-reversal of star striker in soccer to learning to catch and throw a lacrosse ball. Instead, the reverse is true.

"I had such a different role in lacrosse. I hardly played at all as a freshman and, in my sophomore year, playing in games was scary at first. But I really valued that contrast and it has really helped me in a lot of ways to grow as a person."

Gudeman also brought her determined and positive outlook to a Crimson lacrosse program going through a rebuilding process.

"I don't know if you would call it a winning attitude," says the Eliot House resident, "but coming off such successful soccer seasons, I was pretty psyched. It helped to stay positive during the growing pains that lacrosse was experiencing."

With three years of collegiate lacrosse under her belt, Gudeman has finally acclimated to the sport.

"Last year, I really felt comfortable. I felt like I could help other people -- sharing what I had learned with the freshmen -- and that was a big step for me.

"I often wonder if I would have had this opportunity at any other school," says Gudeman, who is interested in serving in the Peace Corps after graduation. "Harvard was definitely the right place for me, and athletics has completed my education here."