Offense Comes Alive as Dartmouth Opens Ivies with 3-1 Win at Brown

Sunday, September 27

Providence, R.I.

1:00 p.m.

Dartmouth College

at Brown

Offense Comes Alive as Dartmouth Opens Ivies with 3-1 Win at Brown

9/27/2009 3:45:00 PM | Women's Soccer

By: Dartmouth

Boxscore

BProvidence, R.I. - Three different Dartmouth players scored today as the women's soccer team outplayed Brown in a 3-1 road victory to open the Ivy League season.

With the win, the Big Green (4-4, 1-0 Ivy) snapped a tough three-game skid and finally ended a six-game road swing. The Bears, who have played an impressive schedule thus far, dropped to 2-4, 0-1 Ivy.

"We have been on the road for six games now and to play our first Ivy away from home after a midweek game at BU was far from perfect," said head coach Angie Hind. "But we wanted the win and the players did so convincingly today."

Dartmouth's speed and athleticism proved the difference maker on a slick Stevenson Field, particularly up front as the Bears had little answer for the Big Green's strikers. To that end, Dartmouth outshot Brown, 26-8 including 12 shots on goal. Colleen Hogan (Houston, Texas) made two saves in goal to secure the win while Brown's Brenna Hogue had nine saves.

Three different goal scorers got in on the action for Dartmouth, which despite a dominant opening 20 minutes, had to come from behind after a Brown goal in the 22^nd minute. Aly O'Dea (Irvine, Calif.), Kelsey Quick (Bernardsville, N.J.) and Peyton Tata (Virginia Beach) each tallied goals for the balanced Big Green attack.

Dartmouth pressured Brown from the opening whistle, but the Bears defenders made some late plays to keep the Green off the board. Quick made two great early runs but was held off by a defender in the ninth minute and struck the ball just off center in the 13^th. O'Dea, who seemed to outrun the Brown backs on every possession, hit the crossbar in the 19^th.

Brown got its first shot of the game in the 21^st minute when Gina Walker's header went wide left. Just a minute later, however, Brown got on the board after Melissa Kim's cross was redirected by Waker and scored by Syliva Stone to the far post.

Dartmouth regrouped and capitalized during the restart period to get the equalizer in the 25^th minute. Senior Becky Poskin (Leadwood, Kan.) made a great run out of the midfield and passed it off to O'Dea, who scored her fourth goal of the season with a rocket to the left corner and a 1-1 score.

The Big Green kept the pressure on in the first, with Quick and O'Dea each having great opportunities, the second in a one-on-one that Hogue saved at close range. Rookie Libby Hamlin (Vernon, Conn.) nearly had one of her own when she beat her defender and fired, beating Hogue but just missing the far corner in the 40^th.

Ultimately, Dartmouth outshot Brown, 17-3 in a dominating first half despite the 1-1 score.

Brown came out much sharper in the second half, spending some early time in Dartmouth's defensive end. Hogan passed an early test making a save on a Marybeth Lesbirel attempt in the first minute. Dartmouth settled and countered with a series of three shots in the next 10 minutes including a dangerous long ball from Poskin that Hogue secured.

Dartmouth's eventual game-winner looked similar to the first, when Quick made short work of the Brown defense in the 66^th minute. She won the ball back from the Bears and settled herself about 25 yards out on the left side before firing a shot off the bottom of the crossbar and in for a 2-1 lead.

Checking into the game in the 73^rd minute, Tata gave the Big Green an instant lift, scoring the insurance goal in the 78^th. O'Dea played the ball up to a streaking Tata, who beat the offside trap and looped the ball over the head of Hogue one-on-one for the 3-1 lead.

It was a true team effort, for Dartmouth, with nearly every player getting in on the attack. Junior Melisa Knrjaic (Washington, D.C.) played a solid game in the back line, also making some runs up front, resulting in three shots. The midfield combo of Myra Sack (Wynnewood, Pa.) and Ali Hubbard (Marshfield, Mass.) gave the Bears fits all afternoon. Senior back Jenny Stone (Wilmette, Ill.) made her first appearance of the season in the win, having battled an injury to date.

Dartmouth is back in the friendly confines of Burnham Field this weekend when it hosts Ivy foe Princeton at 4 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 3.