Completed Event: Women's Lacrosse at Cornell on March 28, 2026 , Loss , 6, to, 11
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Women's Lacrosse
at Cornell
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A Look Back at 2004
9/28/2006 12:00:00 AM | Women's Lacrosse
Women's Lacrosse Comes `Oh, So Close' in NCAA Play
It only took a quick look at the Dartmouth bench.
At the conclusion of the Big Green's NCAA game at Princeton, the faces of the Dartmouth women's lacrosse players told the story. They ranged from crestfallen to tear-streaked and some were downright angry.
After holding leads of 4-1 and 5-3, the Big Green lost a heartbreaking, overtime decision to the defending national champions, falling 6-5, in quarterfinal action.
"It was a heckuva game," said Big Green coach Amy Patton whose players were emotionally and physically spent after 66 minutes on the artificial turf. "It was a pretty typical Dartmouth-Princeton game."
Still mindful of a 17-8 loss to Princeton on April 24, Patton noted that Dartmouth made adjustments in its approach. "We just came in with a completely different game plan than when we played them the first time. I think that took them a little by surprise and I think they had trouble against what we were trying to do with them for most of the game until maybe the last minute or so."
That classic matchup may have been the highlight of another impressive women's lacrosse season at Dartmouth as the Big Green made its second straight run at the NCAA Championship and sixth in the past seven years. The squad also finished up its eighth consecutive campaign with 10 or more wins.
With the winter winds still blowing in late February, Dartmouth began the 2004 campaign with a 10-5 victory over New Hampshire, and then dropped a heartbreaking 7-6 decision to No. 8 James Madison. During spring break, the Big Green switched gears and played at Stanford, picking up another victory, before battling perennial power Maryland and falling 11-8 in College Park.
Dartmouth's senior class proved the catalyst for the next seven games as the critical Ivy League stretch began. The result was perfection as the Big Green defeated six Ancient Eight opponents and No. 11 Syracuse. All-America Lana Smith was impressive, contributing a pair of goals in the wins over Yale, Columbia, Cornell and Harvard, as well as a four-goal outburst at Brown. Although Katieanne Christian was forced to the sidelines with illness during the Cornell and Syracuse road trip, she returned with an impressive three-goal performance that paced Dartmouth to a 6-4 win over Penn.
The depth of the 2004 Big Green team was never more obvious than during a critical trip to Harvard. When standout goalkeeper Devon Wills was ill, junior Kelly Roy stepped up to the challenge and backstopped Dartmouth to a 14-7 win, the first victory of her collegiate career.
But the magic came to an end against Princeton, who held down the No. 1 ranking in the nation throughout the season. Struggling to find its rhythm, the Big Green fell in a game that was closer than the score indicated. Although Dartmouth fell short of the goal for an Ivy title, the result would later prove inspirational in the NCAA quarterfinal contest.
With the non-conference portion of the schedule complete, Dartmouth used a 10-4 win over Boston University to help its chances of another NCAA bid. Despite losses to Duke and North Carolina, the Big Green got the good news on Sunday, May 9.
A solid, 14-12 win over New Hampshire in the opening round sent the Big Green back to Princeton for the rematch.
Refreshed and rejuvenated with a second chance, Dartmouth stared the nation's No. 1 team in the eye for nearly 60 minutes. With the success and tradition of the Big Green program -- and with the leadership of five exceptional seniors -- there was no reason to expect anything less.
Special thanks to the Class of 2005: Lana Smith, Rowan Smith, Elizabeth Right, Kate Killen and Molly Jenkins.
Overall Record: 11-6, Ivy League: 6-1
Results (*= Ivy League game)
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Honors
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2003 Ivy League Final Standings
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Players Mentioned
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